Ford India turns profitable on higher local sales and increased exports

Ford had started its India business back in 1996 with the Ford Escort. After slipping into the red in 2010, the American brand has got back into profit in FY2018 after almost a decade as a result of their new initiatives.

Over the past few years, Ford has steadily worked towards changing its image with a new array of products, beginning with the Ford Ecosport, that are modern and at the same time nothing like the earlier Fords to maintain. The increased localisation from 75 per cent to 85 has not only allowed Ford to reduce the cost of production but has also allowed the spares prices to be lowered. The decision to build modular assemblies for parts has made Fords one of the most affordable cars to maintain even bettering Maruti Suzuki in some areas.

With increased localisation and improved production efficiencies, Ford’s capacity management has also resulted in increased exports. The number of cars shipped out form the Chennai factory has grown by over 15 per cent over FY2017 which has also helped Ford boost their profit. After posting a loss of over Rs 500 crores in 2016-17, Ford posted Rs 526 crores of profit in FY 2017-18. Ford's current India line-up includes the Figo hatchback, the Freestyle CUV, the Aspire compact sedan, the Ecosport SUV and the Endeavour SUV.