Caught in the crossfire of Sino-India border skirmishes and strained by the severe impact of the pandemic on its business, Brand Hector is foregoing the bustle and frenzy for a quiet digital campaign that talks about its British roots, the smart tech powering its drive and its made-for-India models. The tone is subdued and the brand seems to be deliberately playing down its ownership by Chinese company, SAIC.
The pre-owned vehicles arm of the Mahindra Group plans to add 30 outlets in a few days taking the total number to 1,000.
Mandates have been handed out to staffing solutions companies such as Randstad India and TeamLease, officials at these firms have said, as players increasingly push into rural areas to capitalise on the uptick in the hinterlands.
This will have an impact on inflation as everyone in the value chain passes on the costs.
Several carmakers, including car market leader Maruti Suzuki India pulled the plug on diesel models citing higher costs for BSVI variants leaving buyers with limited options.
A knee-jerk reaction, they said, could be detrimental to the fortunes of an industry that is highly dependent on the country given the huge competitive advantage it offers, in terms of cost and speed.
To be able to tide over the current crisis, automobile manufacturers have waged a war against all cost heads.
From auto, refrigerator, and mobile handset makers to real estate firms, companies are tying up with banks to dole out attractive finance schemes and discounts to make buying more affordable.
In a circular dated May 20, Sebi had directed the listed companies to evaluate the impact of Covid-19 on their capital and financial resources, profitability, liquidity position, assets, and ability to service debt. Instead, companies have spoken about the number of plants, warehouses and distribution centres that have resumed operations; work-from-home and safety measures undertaken for employees; and the labour shortage they are facing.
After the easing of lockdown in mid-May, auto companies were able to resume production in a phased manner, but the ramp-up was slow due to a broken supply chain, and lockdown-induced restrictions.
Besides regular buyers, there is lot of interest among those in essential services, such as health, banking, and IT. The sales will be helped by social distancing becoming the new normal in both urban and rural regions as people will be averse to using public transport.
Hotels are using a combination of platforms to reach out to the guests. These include online travel agents among others. hotels in India are offering guests an option to pay now and stay later.
A clutch of automakers including Maruti Suzuki, Hero MotoCorp, Mercedes Benz India, Eicher Motors, TVS Motor, and Isuzu Motors India announced they had got the clearance from the governments of the states they operate in to resume operations.
Executive lounges with happy hours, complimentary hors d'oeuvres, and complimentary services have been the norm - but not anymore.
Given that people have been reluctant to order cooked food - which worsened due to a couple of cases of delivery personnel testing positive for COVID-19 - food delivery platforms have included grocery delivery as part of their services.
What India's top restaurants are doing to satisfy your food cravings.
Once the 21-day lockdown is lifted, which may happen in phases, those who have been contemplating purchasing a car may actually do it, said analysts. Thanks to social distancing norms and rising hygiene awareness, daily commuters may ditch public transport and shared mobility solutions like Ola and Uber. Many are likely to prefer the confines of a car over roughing it up in crowded public transport services such as a metro, local sub-urban trains and buses, they said.
The possibility of harassment by cops and fear of the unknown have forced a large number of truck drivers to abandon vehicles at the transport centres and flee home. Transport of goods remains badly hit as confusion remains among various stakeholders and road transport becomes the victim of disconnect between policy makers and local authorities.
From offering office premises that can be converted into isolation wards to earmarking funds to be used for procuring kits, ventilators as well as personal protective equipment for health care workers, India Inc has put a united front to combat the unprecedented crisis facing the country.
The donation by Tata Sons and Trusts is the biggest sum committed by a corporate and its philanthropic arm since the outbreak of Covid-19. Others, including Reliance Foundation, Mahindra Group, Bajaj Group, and ITC, are lending support too in the battle against the pandemic.
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