Royal Enfield parent Eicher Motors sets up Dutch unit
Upstox
2 min read • Updated: March 26, 2024, 2:29 PM
Summary
Royal Enfield parent Eicher Motors sets up a Dutch unit to deal with supply chain issues aggravated by Brexit. In an EU expansion plan, the company is also considering setting up a warehouse in Germany or France.
Royal Enfield parent Eicher Motors said it is establishing a unit in the Netherlands in a bid to reduce its dependency on the UK, as transporting between the country and other parts of Europe became more difficult after Brexit.
In an exchange filing on Friday, March 22, the company revealed it has invested €500,000 ($541,000) into the unit called Royal Enfield Europe B.V. Eicher further plans to inject share capital in the Dutch arm in due course.
Shares of Eicher Motor were down 1.31% at ₹3,915 on NSE in the afternoon trade.
Eicher Motors is also considering establishing a warehouse in France or Germany to cut down on the supply time of non-motorcycle products including spare parts and merchandise. Arun Gopal, Royal Enfield’s international head, highlighted how Brexit has led to difficulties in moving materials from the UK to Europe. He also said, “The UK is not geographically close to some parts of Europe, so we needed a warehouse that could service that region more effectively.”
The development comes at a time when Eicher is looking to expand its presence in Europe and cut down on delivery time. A warehouse in the region could reduce the delivery time from 90 days at present to two weeks, according to Gopal.
Notably, Royal Enfield is the oldest global motorcycle brand in continuous production. Between April 2023 and February 2024, Eicher Motors reported total sales of 8,37,181 units of Royal Enfield models, a 10% increase as compared to last year.