Bajaj-Kawasaki end sales & service partnership in India

Bajaj Auto has announced the end of their sales and service tie-up with Kawasaki. The two companies have said to have mutually and amicably decided to part ways in the Indian market. The said partnership, which has been in place since 2009, will be terminated from April 1, 2017.

Bajaj has claimed that it wants to focus on its KTM brand in the Indian performance biking segment. Bajaj had launched the KTM brand in the country with the introduction of the 200 Duke in 2012. The automaker is expecting to clock 37,000 unit sales from the KTM brand during this year. To enhance the brand's presence, the Bajaj's Probiking dealership network has slowly been converted into dedicated KTM outlets to offer a directed experience to customers. This might have been the primary reason behind Bajaj & Kawasaki ending their partnership in the country.

Going forward, all Kawasaki bikes will be sold through dedicated Kawasaki dealerships, operated by India Kawasaki Motors Pvt. Ltd., which is a 100% subsidiary of Kawasaki Heavy Industries Japan. The official statement released has also mentioned that Bajaj and Kawasaki will maintain their co-operative relationship in markets outside India, for all current and future partnerships.