Why Picanto is a Perfect Fit for the Market?

The auto industry of Pakistan has long been starving of options when it came to buying cars in any category. Each segment of cars was predominated by a couple of auto manufacturers or in some cases only one. Such a situation led to a lack of competition and eventually no second option, whatsoever for the end consumers to consider resulting in the formation of a monopoly and provided the general public with low-quality products at massive costs. And in the absence of any regulatory authority of the government, the consumers found themselves under an unending misery, for decades. Times change and so has been the case with the auto market. The previous government introduced an Auto Development Policy 2016-21 (ADP), which offered several tax-based incentives to the new auto players in the local sector. This policy was much anticipated, and several global auto giants collaborated with local investors to set up their production plants in the country. These automakers included KIA, Hyundai, Nissan, Volkswagen, Renault, etc. However, due to a constant inconsistency in the auto policies, the future of some of these companies still hangs in the balance as they are yet to set up their plants in the country.

The entry of the KIA Picanto is a major step towards ending the trend of the monopoly of a single manufacturer in this particular segment. In Pakistan, the hatchback segment has been long dominated by Pak Suzuki Motor Company while the high-end cars were successfully produced by Atlas Honda and Toyota Indus Motors, respectively. The monopoly of these Japanese auto manufacturers is also infamously known as the Big Three. In such a situation, the introduction of Picanto has certainly worked as an alert for Pak Suzuki. The company was the only major automaker in the country that produced cars with 1000 cc engine capacity. But now faces stern competition from an entrant that is ready to snatch the market share from the monopoly leader. Picanto turns out to be a direct competitor of Suzuki Cultus, which is trying to sustain its sales in the current economic crisis.

It seems like the company analyzed the market for a few years, before launching its products as there was a major gap in the market. This gap of cars that are produced locally and the cars that were being imported. The difference in build quality and phenomenal features was the reason why people preferred to purchase imported cars, rather than rely on locally manufactured options. This gap has now been addressed by KIA, as they launched the Picanto with quality and build, that can only be seen to be believed. Picanto is a versatile hatchback that has the potential to lead the pack in its category. The move was highly anticipated by the general public ever since the news of its introduction was making rounds in the local industry. The Picanto is now finally here, and the company has started receiving its bookings from 14th September 2019, while delivery will begin in the latter half of October.

This powerful new entrant is a perfect addition to the market at such a crucial time. The hatchback has already ensured its presence in the country and promises to go way beyond. The end consumers will now have another option to pick while buying a vehicle under Rs.2 million. Previously, there were as little options as you could imagine. Pak Suzuki, with its Cultus along with its hot-selling hatchback Wagon R, was the only two options in the 1000 cc segment. Its other hatchback Swift is equipped with a 1.3L engine whereas the newly launched 660cc Alto is also among those falling in this category in terms of price. All these cars are only related to each other in terms of price. KIA Picanto has diversified the locally produced hatchbacks’ lineup in the country and given the consumers what they’ve long been asking for, with high quality, better safety, and unprecedented performance.

The most important outcome will be the rise of competition in the industry. Currently, companies use low-quality material in the production of cars because of no competition. With the entry of new players, the competition is bound to get intense, and the Big Three may finally get the wakeup call that they long deserved. As we previously mentioned, the car sales are already down, and in this situation, it will be essential for the automakers to deliver cars at competitive prices with more features to stand out in the race. In our recent comparisons of Picanto with its rivals Wagon R and particularly Cultus, we came across several additional features of Picanto. KIA Picanto and Suzuki Cultus are closely priced yet the former has more attraction for the customers. As a new entrant, the pricing procedure of KIA is a separate discussion, but at the moment, it’s an exciting prospect for the consumers in the market.

The hatchback segment can, therefore, be classified into the following:

Hatchbacks Suzuki Imported KIA
Quality ✖ ✔ ✔
Specifications ✖ ✔ ✔
Performance ✔ ✔ ✔
Warranty ✔ ✖ ✔
Value for Money ✔ ✔ ✔

The imported hatchbacks have been loved for their quality, specifications, performance, and value for money; but come without warranty, while the local segment lacked the quality and specifications. KIA addresses and satisfies this gap, intelligently.

Keeping this in mind, the customers have long been craving for top-notch, high quality and build cars; KIA is simply giving the customer that.  Especially considering the dynamics of the market prior to KIA’s arrival; it comes as a wave of fresh air in a rather stale market that was driven by monopoly, not to mention the warranty it offers as well.