While the last couple of months we tough for the Indian automotive industry, seems like the COVID-19 pandemic could result in a surge in personal vehicle purchase in the interest of safety. Okinawa has revealed that the brand has managed to sell more than 1,000 electric scooters within 1 month after the lockdown has been relaxed. More than 1,200 electric scooters have been dispatched. Okinawa has more than 350 dealers across India and only 60-70% of this network is currently operational. So having sold these many electric scooters is surely a positive sign. Okinawa and its dealer partners have partially resumed operations from the 11th of May, 2020. Only 25% of the workforce is on duty and the brand is following every possible safety measure to avoid the coronavirus infection.
Okinawa is ensuring that the scooters are sanitized before being dispatched from the assembly line and even the dealers are going to follow the same procedure once the scooter is received at their facility. All Okinawa dealerships are ensuring thermal screening of customers as advised. Okinawa is optimistic that the demand for such affordable all-electric mobility solutions will rise in the near future. The brand also claims to be the top manufacturer for high-speed electric scooters in India with sales crossing 10,000 units in FY2020.
To support the dealer partners who took a major hit during the lockdown, Okinawa has also hiked the dealer margins from 8% to 11% to aid profitability. Okinawa will soon engage in activities to help create awareness and more widespread adoption of electric vehicles.
The most recent Okinawa scooter launch in India was the ‘Lite’. The model does not require a driving license to be ridden and is a zero-emissions pure electric scooter. It comes with features such as push button start, coloured digital speedometer cluster, removable battery, projector headlamp with DRL, USB charging point, front disc brake, machine finished rims and 6 body colour options. With a charging time of 4-5 hours, the Okinawa Lite has a 250 Watt BLDC motor along with a 1.25 kWh Lithium-Ion battery pack. This Lite scooter has a speed of 25 kmph and will ride for 60 km on a full charge.