Within a year, Maruti Fronx outsells sibling Baleno

Rebranding works for company, more than it bargained for

- Vikram Chaudhary

INDIAN BUYERS' CRAZE for SUVs can be gauged from the fact that when Maruti Suzuki gave its Baleno hatchback a crossover-car treatment in April last year, and branded it as a compact SUV called Fronx, sales shot up.

But possibly Maruti Suzuki itself didn't realise that within a year of launch, Fronx would outsell Baleno—a 10-year-old brand. Over the past five months (July-November), Fronx—priced ₹80,000 more than Baleno—has sold 68,487 units, a shade more than the latter's 68,461 units.

It wasn't always like this, though. First month sales of Fronx (April 2023) were 8,784 units—almost half of Baleno's (16,180 units). Sales rose gradually—May (9,863 units), June (7,991), July (13,220), August (12,164), September (11,455), October (11,357), November (9,867), and December (9,692).