Pune: Automobile dealers are betting big on the festive season for a boost in bookings this month, following muted sales over the past couple of months. While automakers have already announced festive discounts on several models in their bid to uplift consumer sentiments , dealerships are also offering additional cash discounts, goodies and even gold coins with purchases. "We waited till the festive season to buy our car as we were sure of good discounts during the Diwali period.
We recently booked it and got a good cashback deal," Hadapsar resident Nikhil Jain said. Industry players said car sales had showed a declining trend over the last three months. "Sales during the Ganapati festival were not as robust as the previous year.
A lot of inquiries are now getting converted into bookings. Inventory has piled up, and there is competition between dealers to get the consumers to book cars," said Sachin Mahajan, state chairperson for the Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations (FADA). The Sept-Nov festive period makes up for 30-40% of annual sales for most automakers.
Nicky Sehgal, managing director of Sehgal Autoriders, said, "The market is not very buoyant, and demand has been tepid, but with huge discounts in place, we are bullish on festive bookings . We already saw good bookings on the first day of Navaratra. I am positive about demand to pick up in the rural parts because the macro indicators have shaped up well in terms of the monsoon.
" An official at a Tata Motors d.