Hero MotoCorp, once the undisputed leader in India’s two-wheeler market, has seen a decline in dominance in recent years. Established as Hero Honda in 1984, the company revolutionized the motorcycle industry with fuel-efficient models like Splendor and Passion. Despite holding nearly 50% market share at its peak, growing competition and shifting consumer preferences have impacted its position. This report explores the key factors behind Hero MotoCorp’s decline and the challenges it faces in the evolving Indian two-wheeler industry.
Hero MotoCorp has long been synonymous with India’s two-wheeler boom, rising to dominance through decades of success. Founded as Hero Honda in 1984 via a joint venture with Japan’s Honda, the company revolutionized the motorcycle market with fuel-efficient, reliable bikes. By 2001, Hero Honda had become India’s largest two-wheeler maker , eventually claiming the title of the world’s #1 two-wheeler manufacturer by volume. Its iconic commuter models (like the Splendor and Passion) became household names, helping Hero command nearly half of India’s two-wheeler market during its peak years. This report examines how Hero MotoCorp’s fortunes have faded in recent years, analyzing the key factors behind its decline in the Indian market.
Joint Venture with Honda
The joint venture (JV) between the Hero Group and Honda was the bedrock of Hero’s initial success. Established in 1984 as Hero Honda, the partnership combined Honda’s superior 4-stroke engine technology with Hero’s manufacturing prowess and vast distribution in India. The result was a series of affordable, fuel-efficient motorcycles that perfectly met Indian consumers’ needs. Hero Honda’s legendary “fill it, shut it, forget it” campaign highlighted the mileage and reliability that made its bikes (notably the Splendor) best-sellers. Through the 1990s and 2000s, the JV’s products dominated the commuter bike segment, allowing Hero Honda to capture ~49% market share by 2009. The JV’s success gave Hero not only huge sales volumes but also a reputation for quality backed by Honda’s engineering. In short, the Hero-Honda partnership was instrumental in making Hero the unrivaled market leader in India’s two-wheeler industry for over two decades.
International Markets Expansion
After establishing dominance at home, Hero MotoCorp set its sights on overseas markets – especially once the JV constraints eased. Over the past decade, Hero expanded to 35+ countries across Asia, Africa, and Latin America. Key focus areas included neighboring markets like Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Nepal, where brand recognition was easier, and large developing markets further afield. Hero invested in overseas production facilities – for example, a manufacturing plant in Colombia (to serve Latin America) and assembly units in Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda for East Africa. Despite these efforts, exports remain a relatively small piece of Hero’s business. Even as of 2018, over 97% of Hero’s output was still sold in India, with exports contributing only ~2–3% of volume. Hero found it challenging to crack foreign markets dominated by well-entrenched Japanese and Chinese brands. Issues like lower brand recognition, lack of higher-displacement products, and the need to build distribution networks from scratch proved tough. A notable setback was Hero’s failed attempt to enter the US: it had partnered with Erik Buell Racing (EBR) to develop premium bikes, but EBR went bankrupt in 2015, forcing Hero to shut its US subsidiary without launching a single bike. In summary, while Hero did expand internationally after 2011, its global footprint remains limited, with only modest success in a few emerging markets and several challenges in gaining meaningful market share abroad.
Separation from Honda
By 2010, cracks had appeared in the Hero-Honda alliance, leading to a landmark separation. The termination of the joint venture was announced in December 2010, when the Hero Group bought out Honda’s 26% stake. Several factors drove this split. One major reason was Honda’s reluctance to freely share new technology with Hero – the tech licensing agreement was set to expire in 2014, and Honda was cautious about giving Hero its latest innovations. Meanwhile, Hero was unhappy with the hefty royalty payments it paid to Honda for decades. There were also strategic disagreements, such as Honda’s insistence on merging Hero Honda’s spares business with Honda’s own Indian subsidiary, which the Munjal family refused. Additionally, under the JV, Hero was restricted from exporting outside a few countries in South Asia. Honda’s decision to exit was partly to focus on its independent Indian arm (HMSI), which had entered the market in 2000 and was growing rapidly. The separation, completed by 2011, meant Hero lost the “Honda” brand name and had to rebrand as Hero MotoCorp, launching a new logo and identity. In the immediate aftermath, Hero gained freedom – especially to pursue global markets – but also faced the challenge of standing on its own. Honda’s exit deprived Hero of direct access to Honda’s R&D, and suddenly Hero had to develop its own technology and products. The short-term impact was mitigated by a transition agreement (Honda continued to license certain models/technology to Hero till 2014), but it was clear that Hero now bore full responsibility for its future product development and brand building. The split set the stage for Hero’s testing “solo journey,” with new opportunities (e.g. exports) but also significant risks as the protective umbrella of Honda’s partnership was gone.
Lack of R&D and New Product Launches
One of the biggest challenges for Hero MotoCorp post-Honda was filling the R&D void and delivering new competitive products. For years, Hero had relied on Honda’s engineering – so after 2011, it had to bootstrap its own technological capabilities. Hero did invest in building in-house R&D; for instance, it opened a massive new ₹850 crore R&D center in Jaipur in 2016 and hired top talent (including a CTO from BMW). However, translating R&D into successful products proved slow. Many of Hero’s post-JV launches were essentially refreshes of older Honda-derived models (e.g. Splendor and Passion variants) rather than ground-up new designs. The company struggled to produce a blockbuster new model in either the scooter or premium motorcycle category throughout the 2010s. By the mid-2020s, this innovation gap was evident in the numbers – in the first 9 months of FY2025, newly launched models contributed only 7% of Hero’s revenue, versus 20% of sales for a competitor like TVS. The lack of fresh, exciting products hurt Hero’s appeal, especially among younger and urban customers. For example, Hero’s attempts in the premium motorcycle segment (150cc and above) such as the Xtreme and Karizma updates saw tepid response, allowing rivals to dominate those niches. Even in the scooter segment, despite launching models like Maestro and Duet, Hero’s market share in scooters actually fell post-split (from ~16% in 2010 to about 10% by 2018) as it failed to displace Honda’s Activa leadership. Internally, Hero’s product development cycle was lengthy and sometimes plagued by quality issues (a far cry from the instant hits it enjoyed in the Hero Honda era). In short, the split with Honda left Hero scrambling on R&D, and the company was slow to develop breakthrough products. This innovation deficit severely limited Hero’s ability to keep up with fast-changing market trends and aggressive competition.
Market Share Analysis
Hero MotoCorp’s market share in India has been on a steady downward trajectory over the past decade. Once enjoying nearly 40-45% of the two-wheeler market, Hero has seen its slice shrink to around 30% or less in recent years. Hero’s share dropped from about 39% in FY2015-16 to roughly 28–29% by FY2024. Competitors have gradually chipped away at Hero’s dominance each year.
Even though Hero remains the single largest two-wheeler manufacturer in India by volume, the gap between Hero and the #2 player has narrowed dramatically. In calendar 2024, Hero sold 5.4 million two-wheelers in India, just barely ahead of Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India’s 4.7 million – a gap of only 0.7 million units, versus a gap of 1.4 million the year before. As a result, Hero’s overall market share for 2024 was about 29.0% (down from 31.3% in 2023). By the end of 2024, Hero hit its lowest market share in a decade, and preliminary data for early 2025 showed the slide continuing (e.g. ~26.9% share in Jan 2025 vs 28% a year prior).
A closer look segment-wise reveals that Hero’s strength remains in commuter motorcycles (100–110cc bikes), while it has lost ground in other segments. In the entry-level commuter segment, models like the Splendor and HF Deluxe still sell in huge numbers (the Splendor was the #1 selling two-wheeler of 2024 with over 3 million units sold) – this has helped Hero retain leadership by volume. However, in the premium motorcycle segment (150cc and above), Hero’s market share is minimal; here Bajaj, TVS, and Royal Enfield dominate, and Honda has also entered aggressively. In the 125cc commuter segment, Hero’s Glamour and Super Splendor face stiff competition from Honda’s CB Shine and Bajaj’s Pulsar 125. In scooters, Hero has lagged far behind – its scooter share is barely in double digits, whereas Honda commands about 55–60% of the scooter market (thanks to the Activa). This imbalance means Hero is over-reliant on a shrinking segment (rural entry-level bikes) while missing out on growth areas like scooters and premium bikes. Indeed, Hero derives over half its sales from rural markets, which have seen slower growth recently (e.g. rural two-wheeler demand grew only ~3.8% YoY in Jan 2025 vs ~4.5% in urban areas). This has further pressured Hero’s volumes. Overall, the market share trend underscores Hero’s gradual erosion of dominance – from nearly one in every two two-wheelers sold being a Hero a decade ago, to now roughly one in four.
Failure to Enter the EV Market
One of the most critical missteps in recent years has been Hero’s slow entry into the electric vehicle (EV) two-wheeler market. As the industry began pivoting to electric scooters and bikes, Hero – despite its resources and market clout – was notably late to the party. The company announced plans for its own electric scooter under a new “Vida” EV brand, but the launch faced repeated delays. Initially slated for launch in July 2022, the first Hero Vida e-scooter was pushed back to late 2022 due to supply chain issues (semiconductor shortages) and concerns over EV battery fire incidents in India. This cautious approach meant that by the time the Vida V1 electric scooter finally hit the market (late 2022), startups and rivals had already seized the initiative. Newcomers like Ola Electric, as well as traditional players like TVS (with its iQube) and Bajaj (Chetak EV), had launched their electric models and started capturing consumers. Hero’s initial EV rollout was limited in scale and geography, leading to very modest sales. By mid-2023, Hero’s EV sales were so low that they comprised less than 1% of its total volumes. Even by January 2025, Hero sold just 1,615 Vida e-scooters that month, whereas the market leader Ola sold over 24,000 units in the same period. In effect, Hero “missed the bus” on EVs – during the crucial 2021–2023 period when India’s electric two-wheeler market took off (fueled by government subsidies and rising fuel prices), Hero had no compelling EV product on sale. This delay translated into a massive lost opportunity: in calendar 2024, electric two-wheelers accounted for over a million units in India, and Hero was a marginal player in that boom. The company has been trying to catch up – it launched an improved Vida V2 scooter in late 2024 and has announced plans for more models, including an electric motorcycle co-developed with Zero Motorcycles (USA) expected in 2025. Nonetheless, the initial failure to aggressively enter the EV market ceded the early mover advantage to others. Hero’s conservative strategy, possibly stemming from fear of cannibalizing its ICE bike sales or waiting for perfect conditions, resulted in it playing from behind in the EV race.
Bet on Ather Energy
Interestingly, even as Hero lagged in launching its own EVs, it took a strategic stake in Ather Energy, one of India’s leading electric two-wheeler startups. Hero MotoCorp first invested in Ather in 2016 and participated in multiple funding rounds, gradually increasing its share. As of late 2023, Hero had become the largest shareholder in Ather with a ~40% stake. This investment was essentially Hero’s hedge in the EV space – an acknowledgment that if it couldn’t move fast enough internally, it could at least gain exposure to the growing EV market through Ather. Ather Energy has been a pioneer in premium electric scooters (like the Ather 450X) and built a strong brand among urban buyers. Hero’s backing gave Ather capital to expand, while in theory Hero could leverage Ather’s technology or insights. However, in practice, Ather operated independently and even competed with Hero’s own Vida line in the market. By 2024, Ather had grown to become the #4 player in the Indian e-scooter segment with about 11% market share (126,000 units sold in 2024). Hero, despite its stake, didn’t directly benefit in terms of market share – Ather’s sales counted against Hero’s competitors.
That said, Hero’s bet on Ather isn’t futile: if Ather continues to succeed (it even filed for an IPO, with Hero listed as a promoter shareholder), Hero stands to gain financially and possibly via technology transfer. In 2022, there was speculation that Hero might integrate Ather’s charging network or powertrains for its Vida scooters, but the companies have kept their operations separate.
In summary, Hero’s investment in Ather provided a foothold in the EV ecosystem and some bragging rights (as an early supporter of a successful EV startup). Yet, this passive approach also drew criticism – it seemed Hero was relying on someone else to win the EV race on its behalf, instead of decisively leading the transition. While Ather versus Hero’s own EV efforts could be viewed as a two-pronged strategy, it also highlighted an internal dilemma on whether to build or buy EV capability. As of 2024, Hero’s Ather stake has paid off modestly (in terms of stake value and learning), but it did not translate into Hero MotoCorp establishing itself as an EV market leader under its own brand.
Failure to Capture the Two-Wheeler EV Market
Despite eventually launching EV products and investing in Ather, Hero MotoCorp has failed to capture a significant share of India’s two-wheeler EV market. The competitive landscape in electric scooters/bikes became intense by 2023-24, and Hero found itself trailing new entrants. Market data for CY2024 shows the stark reality: Ola Electric led with about 35% of India’s e-two-wheeler sales, followed by TVS Motor at ~19%, Bajaj Auto at ~17%, and Ather Energy at ~11%. Hero MotoCorp (Vida) was a distant player with only around 4% market share in EVs.
Several factors contributed to Hero’s underperformance in EVs. First, as noted, was the late start – by the time Hero ramped up the Vida brand (2023–24), rivals had already launched second-generation products and built brand recall in the EV space. Second, Hero’s initial EV offerings were seen as high-priced and limited in specs compared to aggressive competitors. For example, Ola Electric’s vertically integrated approach and online sales model allowed it to price its scooters very competitively, undercutting many established OEMs. Hero’s Vida V1 was relatively expensive and available only in select cities during its first year, limiting volumes.
Third, charging infrastructure and ecosystem is an important factor for EV adoption. Players like Ather invested in setting up public chargers and educating customers, while Hero (despite being in the battery swapping consortium at one point) did not visibly differentiate itself on infrastructure support for Vida customers. Meanwhile, rivals capitalized on strong narratives: Ola positioned itself as a tech-driven disruptor, Ather as a performance and quality leader, TVS and Bajaj as trusted traditional brands adapting to new tech. Hero’s branding for Vida was muted in comparison. Additionally, Hero’s internal focus and allocation of resources might have been split – it was trying to fix its ICE business slide while also incubating the EV business, which may have slowed decision-making.
In effect, by 2024 Hero was playing catch-up: it announced plans to launch multiple new EV models (including lower-cost scooters) in 2024–25 and even exploring e-bike partnerships (with Zero Motorcycles). These moves may improve its position going forward. But as of 2024, the two-wheeler EV market largely belonged to Hero’s competitors. Hero MotoCorp, the giant of petrol two-wheelers, had missed the leadership in the first wave of electrification, forcing it to fight an uphill battle to remain relevant in the future landscape.
Tough Competition from Bajaj, Honda, and TVS
While Hero was dealing with its internal challenges, its traditional rivals – Bajaj Auto, Honda (HMSI), and TVS Motor – dramatically upped their game. The intensified competition is a core reason Hero’s dominance has eroded. Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India (HMSI), Hero’s former partner turned competitor, leveraged its global expertise and deep pockets to grab market share rapidly after 2011. Honda focused on scooters (the Activa became India’s top scooter) and introduced commuter bikes of its own (the CB Shine 125, CD110, etc.). By aggressively expanding its dealer network to thousands of outlets and rolling out new models, Honda doubled its market share from ~13% in 2010 to ~26–28% by 2018 and has roughly maintained that level since. In fact, Honda has periodically outsold Hero in monthly sales – for instance, in early 2025, Honda overtook Hero as the #1 seller in India for a month (largely on scooter strength). This would have been unthinkable a decade ago. Honda’s rise ate directly into Hero’s share, especially in urban and scooter segments.
Bajaj Auto, another longstanding rival, took a different approach. Bajaj pivoted away from the 100cc commuter segment (where Hero excelled) and focused on premium motorcycles (125cc+ bikes) and exports. Its Pulsar range and KTM tie-up gave it leadership in sports and premium commuting categories, where Hero struggled to compete. Bajaj also led the three-wheeler market and exported heavily to Africa, Latin America, etc., buffering it from domestic motorcycle downturns. Although Bajaj’s domestic market share in two-wheelers (motorcycles) fell in the early 2010s (from ~20% to ~11% by 2016), it stabilized after, and Bajaj remained highly profitable. More recently, Bajaj made a strong EV play with the Chetak electric scooter and has been rapidly scaling it (193,000 Chetak EVs sold in 2024, ~17% EV share). Bajaj’s focused strategy stole the thunder in segments Hero neglected – for example, when Bajaj launched an ultra-affordable CT100 to challenge Hero in rural markets in 2018, it even sparked a price war in the segment.
TVS Motor Company has emerged as perhaps the fiercest competitor in terms of growth. TVS, once India’s #3 or #4 player, has grown its share steadily (from ~13% in mid-2010s to ~19% by late 2024). TVS achieved this through a flurry of well-received products across categories – the Jupiter scooter (a strong #2 to Activa), the Apache sport bike series, Raider 125 commuter bike, and importantly the iQube electric scooter. By diversifying and innovating, TVS saw new models contribute significantly to its sales (newly launched models formed 20% of TVS’s sales, indicating successful innovation). In total two-wheeler sales (including exports and EVs), TVS actually surpassed Hero in early 2025, making Hero only the third-largest Indian two-wheeler maker by that comprehensive measure. This symbolic blow underscores how far Hero’s multi-decade supremacy has declined when both Honda and TVS are now threatening its position from different angles.
Beyond these three, the competitive arena has other players too – Royal Enfield (mid-size motorcycles) captured the 350cc+ segment completely, a market where Hero has no presence. Suzuki and Yamaha maintained niches in scooters and premium bikes. And new entrants like Ola Electric proved that entirely new brands can disrupt the market in the EV era. All of this means Hero faces pressure on all fronts. In commuter bikes, Honda’s new models (like the Shine 100 launched in 2023) directly target Hero’s core base. In premium bikes, Bajaj and TVS (and now even Honda with its Hornet and CB series) have a strong portfolio, whereas Hero’s Xtreme and Xpulse models are niche sellers. In scooters, Honda, TVS, and Suzuki enjoy far more mindshare than Hero. In EVs, as discussed, the field is led by others. The end result: Hero’s once unassailable market share is being divided up by aggressive rivals, each leveraging their strengths – Honda with technology and scooters, Bajaj with premium and exports, TVS with innovation and EV adaptability. Hero now has to fight multiple battles simultaneously to fend off these competitors, a stark change from the era when it comfortably led the pack.
Exodus of Top Executives in the Last Two Years
Hero MotoCorp’s troubles have been compounded by a wave of top-level executive exits in the past couple of years, which raises questions about its leadership stability and strategic direction. In 2023 and early 2025, a number of senior executives — across different functions — abruptly resigned from the company. In fact, around half a dozen senior leaders quit in early 2025 alone. Notably, in February 2025, Hero announced the resignation of its CEO Niranjan Gupta, who had only been elevated to the CEO role in May 2023. Along with him, the Chief Business Officer Ranjivjit Singh also stepped down. This was followed in March 2025 by the departure of several other high-profile executives:
- Reema Jain – Chief Information & Digital Officer (and Executive Management Team member)
- Sameer Pande – Head of HR (Talent Management)
- Swadesh Srivastava – Chief Business Officer for Emerging Mobility (heading the Vida EV business)
- Dharm Rakshit – Head of HR and Culture Change
- Chandrasekar Radhakrishnan – Head of Business, Emerging Mobility (Vida)
This exodus followed on the heels of other exits in 2022–2023, including the head of strategy and some product development leads. The string of resignations appears to be partly inter-related – many of those who left were hires of the outgoing CEO, hinting at possible disagreements or uncertainty once he announced his exit. The company tried to downplay the situation, officially denying any “leadership shakeup” and attributing it to personal decisions. However, it’s evident that leadership turmoil struck at a sensitive time. The departures hit exactly the areas Hero needs to transform (digital, HR/culture, and especially the EV business unit). For example, the head of its EV initiative (Srivastava) and the business head for Vida (Radhakrishnan) both leaving suggests internal challenges with Hero’s EV strategy execution. Morale within the company was likely impacted – indeed, in a February 2025 town hall, Executive Chairman Pawan Munjal gave a stern message to the remaining 5,000 employees that “underperformance would not be tolerated” and “I have my eyes on each one of you,” indicating high pressure from the top. Such public tough talk, coupled with the exits, suggests that Hero’s management was under stress due to the company’s financial and market performance. The loss of experienced talent and frequent leadership changes can disrupt strategy continuity, making it harder for Hero to navigate its turnaround. In sum, the recent brain drain at Hero MotoCorp has been both a symptom of the company’s troubles and potentially a cause for further difficulties if not arrested soon.
Falling Stock Performance
Hero MotoCorp’s struggles have also been reflected in its financial performance and stock price, dampening investor sentiment. While the company remains profitable, its growth and returns have lagged behind its peers, and its stock has underperformed the market. In 2024, Hero’s share price fell around 18%, while rivals Bajaj Auto and TVS Motor saw their stocks rise by approximately 8% and 19%, respectively. In late 2024, as sales and market share disappointments mounted, Hero’s stock entered a downward spiral. At one point in early 2025, the stock was down over 40% from its six-month peak. By March 2025, Hero’s share price had dropped to around ₹3,500, a steep decline over a six-month period.
Investors were reacting to both immediate results and the long-term outlook: Hero’s revenue and profit growth had been meager compared to competitors. From FY2022 to FY2024, Hero’s revenue Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) was only about 7%, compared to 17% for TVS and 26% for Bajaj. Profit growth was similarly low at around 11% CAGR for Hero, far behind TVS’s 39%, as TVS scaled up its EVs and premium bikes. This suggests that Hero has been unable to grow its earnings despite a post-Covid market recovery. Margins have been under pressure from rising input costs and heavy spending on new projects, like electric vehicles (EVs), without corresponding sales growth.
The stock market typically rewarded two-wheeler companies that showed strong export growth (such as Bajaj) or innovation and market share gains (such as TVS). Unfortunately, Hero offered neither story in recent years. Its price-to-earnings ratio and other valuation metrics slid as confidence waned. By late 2024, some analysts openly questioned whether Hero was entering a structural decline phase. Rating agencies and brokerages downgraded earnings expectations, citing concerns about the “loss of market share momentum” and “uncertain EV ROI.” Though the company still paid dividends (Hero has historically been generous with payouts), this was not enough to lift the stock mood.
In summary, Hero’s stock performance has been weak, mirroring the company’s operational challenges. The once-market darling now trades at a discount to its historical multiples, reflecting cautious investor sentiment awaiting clear signs of a turnaround.
Challenges and Strategic Missteps
Hero MotoCorp’s decline can be attributed to a confluence of industry-wide shifts and internal strategic missteps. On the industry front, consumer preferences in India have been changing: there’s a tilt towards scooters (for convenience) and towards premium motorcycles (for performance and status) – areas where Hero was under-prepared. The past few years also saw an accelerated push towards electrification, partly driven by government incentives like the FAME subsidies. This caught incumbents off-guard, and Hero in particular responded slower than needed. Additionally, regulatory changes such as stricter emission norms (BS6 in 2020, OBD-II in 2023) raised costs for traditional bikes by 10-15%, affecting price-sensitive customers Hero’s core customers in rural areas were hit by high fuel prices and economic slowdowns during COVID, leading to prolonged weak demand for entry motorcycles. All two-wheeler makers faced headwinds – the overall industry shrank during the pandemic and then recovered modestly – but Hero’s issues were exacerbated by how it navigated these trends.
Strategically, one could argue that Hero became complacent during its years of dominance. It continued milking its top-selling 100cc bikes without sufficiently upgrading or diversifying. While competitors invested in new categories (e.g., sporty 150cc bikes, scooters for millennials, etc.), Hero stuck to its “tried-and-true” formula for too long. This over-reliance on a few aging models made it vulnerable. Hero also underinvested in brand-building for new segments – for instance, when it launched the Xtreme 200 or the Maestro scooter, the marketing and dealer push was not as forceful as Honda’s or TVS’s campaigns for their products. Another misstep was the delay in forging new technology partnerships after Honda’s exit. It wasn’t until much later that Hero engaged with firms like Magneti Marelli, AVL, or the recent tie-ups with Harley-Davidson (to co-develop the Harley X440) and Zero Motorcycles. A quicker alignment with global tech leaders might have helped fill the Honda void sooner. In the EV domain, Hero’s strategy was arguably too incremental – it invested in Ather (smart) but then seemed to wait and watch the market rather than aggressively launching its own EVs or acquiring a leading EV startup outright. This hesitant approach contrasts with the bold bets by some rivals (e.g., Bajaj reviving Chetak brand electric, TVS acquiring an electric start-up Norton and rapidly scaling iQube).
Hero also faces organizational and cultural challenges. Transitioning from a family-run, JV-dependent firm into a nimble innovator proved hard. The Munjal family still holds a sizable stake and influence; navigating the shift to a more professional, risk-taking culture has been slow. The recent management churn and Pawan Munjal’s hands-on intervention suggest internal adjustments are ongoing. On top of that, Hero’s scale itself became an issue – with millions of customers to serve, it may have prioritized safeguarding its existing business (and dealership network) over disrupting itself with new channels or models. For example, even as online sales gained traction for two-wheelers, Hero’s sales model remained very traditional via dealers, possibly limiting its reach to younger digital-savvy buyers compared to, say, Ola’s direct sales model.
The Engine’s Stalling Out
Hero MotoCorp’s decline in India is not due to a single event but a series of challenges: the end of the Honda JV depriving it of easy technology, a sluggish R&D pipeline, missed opportunities in scooters and EVs, intensifying competitor pressure, leadership attrition, and an external environment pushing the industry into new directions (premiumization and electrification) faster than Hero adapted. The company now finds itself at a crossroads. The coming years will test whether Hero can reinvent itself – by accelerating innovation, forging the right partnerships, and regaining customer mindshare – or risk further decline in a market it once ruled. As of 2025, Hero remains a formidable player with enormous reach in India’s heartland, but to reclaim growth, it must address its strategic missteps head-on and prove that there is still “Hero” in its story for the new era of mobility.
