Hero Cycles

The Beginning
We look over our shoulders, we see the past. We use it to make a better present and a beautiful
tomorrow, as tomorrow isn’t just another day, it’s another chance for us to better ourselves and
to excel.

Hero Cycles is a product of this philosophy. The philosophy that instills commitment, team work
and foresight. Hero’s colossal journey started before independence. The four Munjal brothers,
hailing from a small town called Kamalia, now in Pakistan, are the men who are behind the
mission. Brotherhood apart, what knit the men together was the wealth of will, integrity,
ambition & determination. In the year 1944, they decided to start a business of bicycle spare
parts in Amritsar. Its is modest beginning and the next 3 years saw the business grow rapidly.But
the dark clouds of partition eclipsed their plans of the future. With renewed vigour and optimism,
the operational base was shifted to Ludhiana. By 1956, the brothers had began manufacturing
key components of bicycles

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and as a logical way forward, began to assemble the entire cycle at their manufacturing plant in
Ludhiana. In the early days, the plant had a capacity for 25 cycles per day. Over the next few
years, the Bicycle Unit started growing in stature and size, attracting skilled engineers,
technocrats, administrators and entrepreneurs. From a modest beginning of mere 639 bicycles in
the year 1956, Hero Cycles products over 18500 cycles a day today, the highest in global
reckoning. With the 48% share of the Indian market, this volume has catapulted Hero in the
‘Guinness Books of World Records’ in 1986 and edge over global players is being maintained
since then.

A tiny acorn has now become a mighty Oak. From cycle to two - wheelers was a natural step,
and the Hero Group came into being. The Hero Group, today, is a vast conglomerate of
companies, either in the form of collaborations, joint ventures or fully owned subsidiaries, with
more than Rs. 10000 Crore turnover annually

Hero Cycles Industry

Company profile

Hero Cycles Limited, based in Ludhiana Punjab, India, is the largest bicycle and related products
manufacturing company of India.
Hero group was started by the four Munjal brothers, hailing from a small town called Kamalia,
now in Pakistan in the year 1944 by establishing bicycle spare parts business in Amritsar. After
independence and partition of India, they moved to Ludhiana and started a bicycle unit called
Hero Cycles in 1956. By 1975, Hero cycles became the largest bicycle manufacturer in India. In
1984, Hero group joined Honda Motors of Japan to create Hero Honda Motors Limited which
soon became one of the market leader in motor-cycle sales in India. In 1986 Hero Cycles
Limited entered the Guinness Books of World Records as the largest bicycle manufacturer in the
world. It has a 48% market share in the Indian bicycle industry. Annual sales volumes of over
4.8 million makes it the largest bicycle manufacturer in the world. Hero Cycles rolls out around
18,500 units every day.

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Industry profile

India is the second largest bicycle producer of the world. It has seen a tremendous increase in the
number of bicycle manufacturers and bicycle exporters in the recent past. Today, Indian bicycle
manufacturing and bicycle spares industry is well accepted and is also widely recognized for its
quality standards in the international market. There is a significant scope for export of Indian
bicycles, bicycle spare parts and bicycle accessories. The approximate export and import figures
of bicycle for the year 2006-07 were Rs.133.7 crore and Rs. 31.7 crore, respectively. The total
production of all kinds of bicycles in the organized sector has been 105.98 lakh numbers during
the same year. During 2007-08 (upto December 2007), it was reported at 81.13 lakh numbers.
The industry has been delicensed and is allowed 100 per cent FDI under automatic approval

Business situation

Bicycle Blues
The Indian bicycle industry is facing some challenges. The...