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Kymco making inroads into Italy

Some 30 motorcycles of a variety of designs carrying the Kymco label were among the brightest stars at the World Motorcycle Exposition held recently in Rome.

After 10 years of efforts in Italy, Kuang Yang Motor Company (光陽), Taiwan's largest motorcycle manufacturer, has made deeper inroads into Italy -- one of the world's top motorbike makers and the largest motorbike market in Europe, with annual sales exceeding 30,000 units last year, said Cheng Hsien-cheng (鄭仙正), a vice president of the Kuang Yang operations in Rome.

It is estimated that the number of Kymco motorcycles sold in Italy will increase to some 45,000 units annually in the coming years, according to a widely circulated Italian motorcycle magazine.

Kymco motorbikes now constitute around 7 percent to 8 percent of Italy's entire motorcycle market of about 600,000 units a year, the magazine said. With sales in Italy for the first eight months of this year topping NT$1.3 billion (US$38 million), sales for this year are expected to reach NT$1.5 billion (US$44 million), overseas sales manager Yang Ching-wen (楊錦文) said.

In cooperation with the Italian advertising firm Padana Ricambi SPA, Kuang Yang has spent five years exploring the Italian market and gaining popularity. Now, the Taiwanese company maintains 300 direct sales points and 150 indirect marketing spots nationwide, Yang said.

According to Stefan Gianotti, Kuang Yang's marketing partner in Italy, Kymco is gaining increasing popularity in Italy because of high quality, innovative designs and good after-sales service.

Bikes with engines 150cc or smaller have been the best-selling models in Italy, Cheng said, adding that these small models have been increasingly sought after by Italian riders, particularly young men, despite competition from counterparts from Greece or China, which are usually less expensive than the Kymco motorcycles. To gain market share, Kuang Yang is also preparing to break into the heavy-motorcycle market with 750cc models or larger, Cheng noted.

Kuang Yang maintained technical cooperation with Japan's Honda Motor for 33 years before starting up its own manufacturing and design departments more than 20 years ago. It now commands about 35 percent of Taiwan's entire motorcycle market of about 1 million units per year, according to Cheng.

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