Tell us something about your Nepal visit.

Let me put it this way. There is a very close association between Nepal and India, and it is very important to reflect that during our major events. As of now, JCB is having a major event—the annual dealers’ conference—comprising of participants from countries like India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan to plan the way forward. Kathmandu has always remained among the nicest places. However, the most important point is that our partner in Nepal—MAW Enterprises—has grown from 100 machines in 2012 to 500 machines in 2014. Hence, this is also an initiative to come here and say thank you. This also indicates Nepal is spending more and more in infrastructure and is in the company’s priority.

Since you have been watching Nepal closely, what is your perception about this market?  

Every market starts small, but has a potential. Nepali citizens are seeking for a better quality of life. And if you are asking for better quality of life, you are also asking for better quality of roads, schools, hospitals and so on. To get all of these, you need construction equipment. Moreover, Nepal is among the difficult places to access because of the mountainous terrain, especially in the northern part. And, we feel Nepal is going to be a greater market in the days to come. Realising that potential, our partner has already established nine outlets across Nepal and they plan to add three more this year, which means customers will get spare parts and service where they are running the machines.

How do you analyse the company’s performance in Nepal?

We have a market penetration of more than 68 percent in Nepal. And we are present in all important places like Itahari, Janakpur, Birjung, Narayan Ghat, Pokhara, Butwal, Nepalgunj and Dhangadi. We have largest service force of 70 engineers. And, this force is greater than any other company, not just only construction equipment seller, in Nepal.

What has helped JCB have a deeper market penetration in Nepal?

We are exporting to 50 market places from India, and in the Indian market, we are competing with 27 other manufacturers. This way, we understand what people want. Apart from equipment, customers want proper servicing facility and spare parts. If the machine like ours stops down, customers will be losing money and it will also push the project completion date. So the key in Nepal remains expansion of MAW, which is impressive. Also, quality and reliability of machines too plays a key role. Since we export to 50 countries, our products are world class. There is no difference in the product we sell in Nepal compared with what we sell in India, Russia, Middle East, Africa and Latin America. We have a global quality. Third would be value for money. Paying Rs 3-6 million is a lot of money. Operation cost also is a factor. And, we have the most fuel efficient engines and machines.

How does JCB view the prospects of the Nepal market?

We are very positive. One of the reasons why we brought 300 people here is to showcase our support for participating in the development of infrastructure of Nepal and to share best practices of various dealers. Second is we have the widest product range, compared to any other company available in Nepal. We make almost all major projects just a few kilometres away. Also, whatever has been launched globally is promptly launched in Nepal. This shows the company’s perception towards Nepal is positive and we can see positive growth in the days to come.

Which of your products are selling well in Nepal? Also, tell us about your new products.

Nepal is a market which has a huge demand for excavators. In this segment, we have the full range. Backhoe loaders are selling well here. It is equally popular in India. Our people (people in this region) want flexibility, and since Backhoe has wheels, it can move around to several places. This means there is no need for hiring a truck to take this machine to places. Also, it can do virtually any work. Hence this product has caught the imagination of the people.

Talking about products launched recently, it is diesel generator. It is being sold in 30 market places, including Nepal. Two new products will be launched soon. The first among them is Skid Steer, which is a robot. It is useful for narrow streets like those in Kathmandu. It can clean the streets. It is small in size, and with different attachments, it can dig, load, push and even rotate around its own axis. This will be a very useful machine for Nepal and it will launch here very soon. It will cost around Rs 3 million.

The second one is “Load All”, which is essentially a “material handling” and to some extent “man handling” machine. That is if you are constructing second or third floor, how do you take loads and bricks there? We still have people walking all the way. With the help up this machine, such tasks can be executed much more safely, efficiently and quickly.

Nepal is a price-sensitive market. How competitive is JCB in terms of price?

Our advantage is we manufacture very close to Nepal. Other manufactures are located a bit far away from Nepal, in South East Asia, the UK, Japan or the USA. So prices are totally different, and there is no competition at all. Also, manufacturing in India is highly competitive. You will get world class machines with value for money. It shouldn’t be like a customer pays less while purchasing machine, but diesel efficiency is not so much and everyday cost gets much higher than the initial cost. Initial operating cost and reliability should be good. So far, we are competitive in all the ways.

Now since you have a huge penetration in Nepal, what will be the next thing you want to achieve here?

Market share cannot go up endlessly. And that is not a point. The point is ensuring complete satisfaction to our buyers. So every product which is already there needs to be upgraded. It should be better on all the fronts. For contractors, if they have a basket of products, you can bid for bigger projects.

As a company, it is also important to emerge as a one-stop shopping destination. Hence, these are the areas, where we aim to improve with time. And this applies not just for Nepal, but for all the countries wherever we are present.