Suzuki has always been part of the big four Japanese motorcycle manufacturers. However, I’m sure I’m not alone when I say that it’s probably sitting dead last—you know, the worst of the best, if you will. Now, I love Suzuki, and would very much like to add the new GSX-S1000 to my collection of performance-oriented street bikes. However, one can’t deny the fact that the company has been rather lax in terms of product development and innovation in recent years.
As it would turn out, there could be a reason for this, and it’s simply all about setting priorities straight. You see, in 2021, Suzuki posted some impressive sales growth figures both in its car and motorcycle divisions. The Japanese manufacturer raked in more than 2.5 trillion yen, that’s around $21 billion USD, in the sale of cars alone. Meanwhile, its motorcycle division raked in an impressive 183.7 billion Yen, or the equivalent of around $1.5 billion USD. This translates to an 18.3-percent growth from the previous year in terms of cars, and 26.3-percent for two-wheelers—pretty impressive, right?
What’s even more interesting, though, is the markets in which Suzuki has been gaining traction, and conversely, the markets where it saw a sharp decline. Unsurprisingly, the Asian market is the biggest motorcycle market in the world, with countries in this region relying heavily on motorcycles for day-to-day mobility, as opposed to the western world, where bikes are seen as toys and luxuries more than anything else.
Across this key market, Suzuki sold a total of 975,000 two-wheelers. The top-performer was unsurprisingly India, with a total of 437,000 bikes, and 16-percent growth versus the previous year. Coming in second is China, with a total of 315,000 motorcycles sold, and a 9.4-percent increase versus 2020 figures. In third was the Philippines, with a total of 117,000 bikes handed over to customers, and 21-percent growth. In Suzuki’s home country of Japan, it enjoyed steady sales of 42,000 units, and a growth-rate of seven percent. The remaining couple of thousand units came from other Asian countries such as Thailand, Indonesia, and Vietnam.
Suzuki’s rapid growth in the Asian market is likely largely attributed to the increase in demand for personal mobility following the global pandemic. With public transportation infrastructure indefinitely put on hold, and passenger capacities reduced substantially, more and more people have turned to two-wheelers to get around. On top of this, the rise in popularity of door-to-door parcel and food delivery services contributed to this demand all the more. As for Suzuki, it launched a few notable small-displacement commuters in the region such as the Burgman Street, Gixxer 250, and the Avenis 125.
Now, if we shift our focus to the U.S. and European market, we see a much gloomier picture of Suzuki’s sales performance. In Europe, it sold a total of 22,000 motorbikes and scooters. While still impressive, this marks a sharp 29-percent decline. In the U.S. market, things are even worse, with another 22,000 bikes handed over to consumers resulting in a decline of 41 percent. While the report doesn’t explicitly indicate the reason behind the decline in the region, could it be simply because the competition has overtaken Suzuki in terms of performance, features, and overall value for money, especially in the premium big bike segment?
