[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Honda launched the H'ness CB350 last month, to be retailed via its premium BigWing dealership network. A made in India, for India, Royal Enfield rivalling, 350cc bike priced at an accessible 1.9 lakhs - launched with a premium dealership with extremely limited presence.

Surely has divided opinion amongst BHPians. Highlighting a few posts -

Originally Posted by Bismaya

This bike should have been a non-Big Wing bike. I went by the local Honda Showroom last week to test ride the Hornet 2.0. Even the old man security guard was excited about the CB350 and wants to own one.
...
I live in a Tier 3 city and there's no way CB350 will make it's way even if there's a heavy demand. The nearest Big Wing (I buy all my Honda's from that place for over half a decade now) is 36kms away from my place.On the other hand, Royal Enfield has 3 showrooms within a 28km radius in the district.

Originally Posted by neil.jericho

Ive been a massive fan of Honda's Big Wing expansion strategy. It is a sound business approach though to most enthusiasts, Honda's slow pace has been rather frustrating.
...
From what I have been told, Honda will have two different types of Big Wing dealerships,
- one is going to be a Big Wing dealership which will have the 300 to 500 cc bikes only.
- the second is going to be a Big Wing Top Line dealership which will have the full line up of 300 to 1800 cc bikes.

Cochin is getting the Top Line dealership with the full range of the big bikes. It is replacing the old Ducati dealership which in turn is now shared with Polaris at the old Polaris dealership location. From your post, it looks as though Kozhikode and Trivandrum are getting the regular Big Wing dealerships to sell the 300 to 500 cc bikes. In fact just yesterday, I was chatting with a TBHPian and I said the same, I wont be surprised if those two cities get the 'smaller' premium showrooms. Good move by Honda.

Originally Posted by arvi86

So, I made up my mind overnight and went online to book the H'ness CB350 only to find out Chennai doesn't have a Big Wing outlet. I had to choose between Coimbatore, Erode or Tirunelveli. What a bummer, this!

You can't stop with launching a product, Honda. You got to sell them too. There's no excuse for not having an outlet in Chennai!

My initial thought was of shock as well - it just doesn't make sense to launch such a bike with a network that isn't even present in major cities! But, coming to think of it more, I feel this is sort of a NEXA moment for Honda Big Wing when Baleno went the 'premium' way.

Pros -
+ H'ness CB350 will surely bring in numbers slowly, encouraging more dealers to invest in the premium network.
+ Dealerships get numbers, without compromising on the premiumness too much. CB350 is still a relatively premium bike in the market, unlike earlier complaints of sharing space with the Activa.
+ CKD and CBU bikes can still retain the cheaper service Honda BigWing is known for! With only 500+cc bikes - the costs of such a network would have ensured service bills akin to Kawasaki or Triumph.
+ CKD and CBU bikes will become available in more cities and towns - as the BigWing network expands, boosting Honda's image and sales.
+ Premium competition (Kawasaki, Triumph, etc) maintaining such a network with only CKD/CBU bikes can only dream of the economy of scale BigWing can achieve with bikes like the H'ness 350.

Cons -
- Initial ramp up will be extremely slow. The entire state of Karnataka has only one dealer, that too - just opened last month in Bangalore.
- Customers in many major cities and towns have no option, but to wait for more than a year. Will customers wait, or go through such inconvenience for a 350cc, 20hp bike?
- Service bills could be much more than the competitors like Royal Enfield. The dealerships are making huge investments into these premium showrooms, and they have to break even their costs.
- Gives a lot of time for Royal Enfield to respond. Honda should have gone all out and ensured maximum bikes on the road, during the initial hype period.


(Pic Source)



What are your thoughts on Honda's BigWing strategy with the H'ness CB350?

[KarthikK]

Firstly, this is a fantastic bike for this segment and purely comparing product to product, this one makes for a more peaceful ownership journey than say the Classic 350.

My opinions on the launch using the Big wing platform are that they should have avoided that path and instead should have concentrated on launching it everywhere.

RE is the market leader in the 350cc retro segment and they are present in every nook and corner of the country. Their network is already well established, every tom, dick and harry knows about their products and can walk in to the nearest showroom in every town and pick up the classic 350 straight up.

Contrast this with H'ness being available only in a few metros and tier-2 cities across the country. Sure, the purchase experience may be better with big wing, but they have already cut off any chances of reaching out to the masses beyond the metros. In my opinion they should have made it available across the country through their regular dealerships dispensing Activas and Dios and maximized the reach. This would have ensured more publicity for the product and created more waves, and later more impact on the sales charts to disturb RE's monopoly eventually. With the current way, I fail to see how that is going to happen. Just my opinion though

Would I pick this product today if I was buying something in this segment? Speaking for myself, I'd say a yes - because I live in Bangalore and I have the big wing facilities needed for sales and service. I'd definitely invest a few thousands more in a more reliable product from the trusted Honda stable.

Would I pick it as a winner over the classic 350, looking at the bigger picture (current manner in which they are selling it through the big wing restricted dealer network)? For the near future, I'd say No. They have a long way to go before RE's sales numbers can be challenged. And they've already killed those chances by trying to project what is a simple 350cc retro bike, as some premium offering restricted only to a privileged few (read as availability beyond metros).

It might be a slow building of an alternate network (similar to Maruti's Nexa) and probably the CB350 is the first of their experiments in that direction.

[Cyborg]

Honda is behaving like the superb, slow (at times) but perfect Japanese culture, patience is the key word here. They are also sacrificing their CB model penetration in the market and obviously their own profits too with this approach. They are launching 50 dealerships in the near future, so wait for it. Haste makes waste

They are doing good for the buyers and Big Wing dealership owners by giving the buyers exclusivity for the purchase and servicing on one side and sales to the Big Wing dealership owners on the other. The very same people who want the CB to be sold at normal dealers will be the ones cribbing about service and after sales in some time. Honda is building a network for the future with expansion of their model lineup and customer satisfaction at the same time.

Think carefully what you ask for, people are always cribbing about service and after sales at normal service outlets with the Activa’s etc. Now imagine taking your CB350 for a service at the same place which is already bursting at the seams.

Good things come to those who wait, be patient and reap the benefits of Honda’s plan for the future.

Cheers

[aravind.anand]

What's even more bizarre with this 'Big Wing only' strategy is that the Big wing retail outlet itself is not complete. There is not a single dealership in Chennai for example. Options for Chennai - as suggested by Honda themselves is to get the bike either in Erode or Bangalore with a temporary registration. This is not a luxury car, to take all this trouble to acquire one. And if someone really takes all the trouble to get the H'ness, what about service support?

This makes me think that the whole idea of retail is a last-minute affair. Where no significant planning was done to cover all the bases. I am sure it wouldn't take more time to establish a dealership than to develop an all-new motorcycle!

[amol4184]

A bike retailing below 2l. It may be premium by Honda's standards because they insist on it but if RE can sell their similarly priced and upwards bikes in same dealerships as all other bikes what's stopping Honda from doing so?

I am in a city where we don't have this premium showroom so even if I want to rest ride or buy this vehicle I can't do it. And I am not going to travel 120+ kms to checkout a bike in which I have only a fleeting interest - that could have changed after a test ride, but alas.
This madness of premium dealerships ought to stop. Just reserve a corner in usual dealerships and make it upmarket. And if you must then have showrooms for CBUs, not for 350cc locally produced bikes.

Scratch that: I am 250kms away from nearest premium dealer. I overestimated Pune.

[//M]

While its a great strategy to position your premium offerings in a separate showroom space complete with plush interiors, usage of technology, personalised customer service and stuff like that, it is also important to make your presence felt where it really matters.

The biggest plus point of Honda is their widespread dealer network, they must leverage this strength in their favour.

[ABHI_1512]

I don’t know about the strategy of major like Honda but it saddens me that they don’t have a presence in major metro cities just as yet. I was pretty hyped up about the bike launch but sadly, they don’t have a showroom as yet in Calcutta.

Looked for Jawa 42 initially but the tepid response from the dealer kind of put me off from the process. Then came this shocker of Honda not having a showroom as yet and I ended up going to RE. May be, in due course, Honda will have showrooms in the major cities. But for now, they certainly are losing customers like me who actually wanted to get a hang of the bike and were on the verge of purchasing for the reliability of the brand that Honda possesses.

That I already own a Honda bike would have been a natural progression but this strategy of Honda is something that I can’t fathom at all. May be, Honda will get there eventually where they will have the presence in places where they matter. But for now, RE has the advantage for guys like me !!

[tchsvy]

I don't think it is going to take much time for Honda to expand its Big/Silver Wing network. Here in Hyderabad we don't have a Big Wing dealership, and I casually put an enquiry with JSP Honda, Kukatpally on their website regarding CB350, they called me to inform that the ex-showroom price for Hyderabad will be revealed in the second or third week of November and the bikes will be available from first week of December.

[Doo_Dev]

I get the feeling that Honda is not very confident on taking RE head on with CB350. That could be the reason for deciding to sell only in Big Wing Showrooms. Even if CB350 didn't catch up with RE, it would be perceived among the buyers that it because of the limited showrooms and not because of the product's inability to make inroads in RE territory .

I am not a RE Fanboy. Just like people are not moving away from Maruti irrespective of the quality of products, we might not see RE losing market share. Also, given their recent products( 650 twins, BS6 Himalayan) and going by the teasers, I get the vibes that RE had made significant improvement in quality . They will not become on par with Honda overnight but will definitely would have moved into the acceptance zone.

[Turbohead]

I believe Honda should have planned this properly. The H'ness can only be sold in a BigWing dealership if you ask me.

The last time I walked into the local Honda dealership in 2018, I felt I was in a fish market. Absolute chaos and they treat customers very rudely knowing very well that they will book their vehicles no matter what!

I can very well relate this to Maruti and Nexa. In 2014, the SA who handled us in the Maruti showroom was half drunk. A probable Ertiga customer doesn't want to be treated like an Alto customer. Nexa was the exact opposite- very premiuim!

Good move Honda but you have executed it poorly!

[adityak7]

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

Initial ramp up will be extremely slow. The entire state of Karnataka has only one dealer, that too - just opened last month in Bangalore.

I believe Bangalore has 2 BigWing dealerships now. One is the previous Silicon Honda (who was handling BigWing sales from their normal showroom) and has opened up a separate BigWing showroom now and the other from VFM Honda (who I believe is on team-bhp).

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

Service bills could be much more than the competitors like Royal Enfield. The dealerships are making huge investments into these premium showrooms, and they have to break even their costs.

Based on my experience with the Honda CB300R, the service costs seem to be comparable or slightly below par as compared to competitors.

I think Honda might be going long on the premium biking segment in India and they have just begun the strategy with H'ness CB350. From what I hear, CB300R might be coming in the guise of BS6 and there are other launches planned in the 500cc range. If they pick up traction, they might expand more on the showroom's front.

[texmonster]

CB350 is a new platform and an all new segment for Honda. They might have planned to have limited production at the start. If that's the case, BigWing-exclusive strategy for CB350 is good move by Honda.

Even Royal Enfield is introducing the new platform in Meteor (Thunderbird replacement with 5K units a month) and not in the super-selling Classic 350. Testing waters and ramping-up in due course of time is done my most manufacturers.

As said by @neil.jericho in the OP of this thread, Smaller BigWing showrooms will be opened soon, and mostly would be owned by the best performing Honda dealership of that area. Those dealers who were skeptical of opening additional BigWing outlet could now be convinced of a business case to open it now due to a good product buzz and a future lineup of models that they can sell and service.

Also as demonstrated by Jawa, initial response and bookings matters nothing if you cannot supply the orders on-time. By sticking to a smaller dealer network, Honda could avoid long waiting periods. If executed properly as Maruti's NEXA, Honda will benefit in the long-term.

Disclaimer: My place has a BigWing dealership and yes, if it hadn't been the case, my interest on CB350 would have been way lower!

[Geo_Ipe]

Originally Posted by aravind.anand

There is not a single dealership in Chennai for example. Options for Chennai - as suggested by Honda themselves is to get the bike either in Erode or Bangalore with a temporary registration.

Originally Posted by texmonster

My place has a BigWing dealership and yes, if it hadn't been the case, my interest on CB350 would have been way lower!

I think these two quotes sum up the lack of preparedness with which Honda has launched the CB 350. So currently the whole of Tamil Nadu has ONE Big Wings dealership? That may suffice for the 20L Africa Twin, but not for the 2L CB 350.

We need to wait till Honda finishes setting up their dealership network and for them to prove their product before we can pass a verdict on the CB 350. Till then it shall remain a niche product, which is not going to worry Royal Enfield which shall continue selling the Classic 350 like hot cakes!

[phamilyman]

DEAD on arrival. My experience with the Honda CBR250R has been dismaying -far too much wear and tear for 10k km compared to my P180-2005 which saw over a lakh km of service including 2up touring to Ladakh / hills with much less care over bad terrain etc. My issues -
- Widespread rusting of enough bolts (Clutch axial bolt? Handlebar nut? Disc brake nut?)
- Left switch gear dead - replacement? order pls
- horns that die 3-4k km (roughly 2 years of usage)
- Alloy wheel bend (enough to leak only)
- Cone set (yes its a touring ONLY bike but at 10k?)
- Minor alignment of discpads
- Both front forks leak in 10k (himachal trips and ONE Spiti trip) - replacement? order pls

The engine is butter but at 10-11k, that's totally par for the course for a Honda, no?

Yes, the service competition with Activas is there but being nice to the service manager solves it.

I think Honda thinks fancy showrooms sell bikes. They need to learn from Maruti - wide network, well priced bikes with reliable ownership leads to long term sales. Honda does not tick any of those boxes anymore - either they treat RE with respect - learn how it grew than just throw money at glitzy showrooms. When existing CBR customers are not exactly giving glowing feedback on whatsapp groups, this isnt going to work.

I will not recommend a Honda to anyone today except someone wanitng to buy a SBK or an Activa (or equivalent 100cc bike). Bajaj ProBiking experience was much more sorted back in the day

[Hispaniola]

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

Honda launched the H'ness CB350 last month, to be retailed via its premium BigWing dealership network. A made in India, for India, Royal Enfield rivalling, 350cc bike priced at an accessible 1.9 lakhs - launched with a premium dealership with extremely limited presence.

Before I make my point lets revisit what Honda two wheelers is. They sell activa scooters, a lot them. Honda two wheelers means Activa or maybe Unicorn. There existing products start around 60k. There existing salesforce is trained to handle scooter buyers. Honda as a two wheelets brand can't be considered a premium bike/2W manufacturer. Advanced and reliable but not premium.
Now lets talk about their competitors. RE, their cheapest product starts at 1.3l approx, their showrooms are no less than cafes, there salesforce is educated, trained, young and vibrant. Jawa, again the cheapest product starts at 1.7l , sole dealership for 3 premium models. Bajaj, failed with dominar, even the new version. KTMs successful, because premium bikes premium experience. It might seem as a non buyer that this is a bad strategy but then once the bigwing dealerships spread across India I would rather go 100kms to buy what I like. I want that couple of hours to be special because had I gone to RE or Jawa I would have got that
experience and more or less the same bike. I hope they do numbers now. That missing thump in this category is back, literally.