Electric Scooter Firm Okinawa Planning to Expand Dealership Network

Electric scooter manufacturer Okinawa has announced that it is planning to aggressively expand its dealership network in the current and next fiscal years.

Electric scooter manufacturer Okinawa has announced that it is planning to aggressively expand its dealership network in the current and next fiscal years. The company is working towards the goal of reaching the 500 dealerships target by the end of FY20-21. The company also plans to focus on increasing its sub-dealer network as well in order to improve sales in post-pandemic days.

While Covid-19 has forced a slowdown across the industries, Okinawa had shared the strategy to accelerate its marketing activities and strengthen its dealership network. Recently, the brand also announced a hike in dealership margins from 8 percent to 11 percent, to support the partners amid the unprecedented Covid-19 spread, the company said in a statement. In the aftermath of the pandemic, the Gurugram-based start-up would focus on states like Maharashtra, Bihar, Assam and other eastern states to increase sales of its electric two-wheelers.

According to Jeetender Sharma, managing director and founder, Okinawa, as the COVID-19 curve gets flat, there will be a demand for private vehicles and given the fact that electric vehicles are economically more viable in the longer run, people would want to opt for it.

“There is no doubt that it will take a little time for the market to pick up. While things gradually return to normalcy, we plan to grow ourselves across the country to serve the customers better. We are spreading our wings to provide our customers across the cities with easy availability of the products and services,” added Sharma.

With about 30 percent of the dealerships operational, the brand delivered around 1000 vehicles within a span of 30 days post the company resumed their services abiding by the government rules. The aggressive expansion plan of the company follows the rising demand of electric vehicles among customers.

In May, the firm had announced that it had resumed operations at its plant in Bhiwadi, and corporate office in Gurugram with a 25 percent workforce. The company had said it will maintain safety measures at its offices, manufacturing unit, and dealership networks as it begins business activities. It had also issued an advisory to its dealership network, which too will be operating with 25 percent staff.