Auto India, Car India

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The multi-brand service providers for auto parts are currently eyeing the Indian market. Some of the names that are forming a beeline are Midas Auto Service, Meineke Car Care Center, and AutoZone of USA. Even companies from France like Autodistribution International want to open a franchise in India.

Although foreign direct investment in India is yet to be explored, the investors of the multi-brand auto spare parts have started to look at India as their next destination. The global majors mentioned above have already started selecting the domestic players in the market. Some of them include: Mahindra First Choice Services and TVS Automobile Solutions branded as MyTVS, Carnation Auto, and Hyderabad-based Carz.

It is very early to state right now how the partnerships will be formed, as the discussions are currently on ongoing process. The ultimate partnerships will be formed once these discussions are over. Venu Donepudi, the founder of Carz said, “There are FDI restrictions - foreign investment is not allowed in multi-brand retail - but with the government indicating that they may be lifted many global players are likely to enter……In five years, this will be necessary to cater to the number of vehicles on the road.” Carz is a multi-brand services and repairs company.

What makes India their next destination is the fact that the Rs 30,000 crore car service business is dominated by unorganized players. In many countries in Europe and America, there are major players in this sector.

Autodistribution has its presence in 26 European countries and it has a multi-car service network. The MD of the company said that his company is currently focusing on the European market, but it will soon expand its business across the globe in 2012 or 2013 and then India will be one of the markets that they would be looking at. They would require “well-established distributors” in the country.

In India, few big names have started to make a debut in this industry. Some of these players include M&M and TVS. As a result, multi-brand services have just begun to get noticed in the market. Rajeev Dubey, the head of the ‘aftermarket’ sector at M&M feels, “There is an unfulfilled need of the customer in terms of either pricing and convenience or trust and quality of service. A professionally-managed multi-brand service chain can make a big difference.”

The main challenge of the domestic service providers like M&M are getting skilled manpower and acquiring genuine spare parts. Although they face many problems, if the foreign investors come to India and enter into partnerships with them, they are sure to mint a lot of money from the enterprise.