A throwback to Royal Enfield's journey: From early days to global leader

The two-wheeler giant is about to enter the electric motorcycle arena to meet the emission rules currently under consideration in India; we look at its journey so far

Royal Enfield is the oldest running motorcycle brand
The Royal Enfield was originally the 'Enfield Cycle Company' founded in 1893, which was into manufacturing motorcycles, bicycles, lawnmowers and stationary engines. The first Enfield motorcycle was built in 1901.

The World War connection
The Enfield company started off as a weapon manufacturer. During the World War II, the British authorities asked them to develop and manufacture military motorcycle. One of the famous models of that time was 'Flying Flea' - Royal Enfield WD/RE. It was lightweight motorcycle and could be dropped by parachute along with airborne troops.

First Super Bike
In 1947, Royal Enfield came up with motorcycles named 'Super Meteor' and 'Constellation' which had a parallel twin 700cc and were available at a very affordable price. These became to be known as first super bikes from Royal Enfield stable.

Royal Enfield in India
The motorcycle was first sold in India in 1949. In 1955 The Enfield Cycle Company partnered with Madras Motors. They started assembling 350cc Royal Enfield motorcycle in Chennai by getting parts from the England.
In 1965, the Indian government bought 800 350-cc model Bullets for police officers and Army personnel.

Royal Enfield and Eicher Motors
Earlier in 1990, Royal Enfield collaborated with Eicher Motors and merged with it in 1994. Royal Enfield, now the subsidiary of Eicher Motors, which makes Standard Bullet and Thunderbird motorbikes, has seen brisk sales.

The Star
Royal Enfield is a star performer in the Eicher stable. Royal Enfield has a market share of 95% in mid-size motorcycle segment in India. It has got some breathtaking models -  the Thunderbird series, Continental GT and Classic series. Royal Enfield now has over 540 dealerships across 50 countries and 36 exclusive stores, 11 of which were opened in 2017-18.

Adding value
Currently, Royal Enfield is preparing for its biggest launches this year in recent times - two twin-cylinder motorcycles. The Interceptor and Continental GT 650 are due for launch in India later this year. Both motorcycles use 650-cc, twin-cylinder engines that Royal Enfield has newly developed.
 

Global sales
Royal Enfield exports its motorcycles to 42 countries around the world, including the US, Japan and Germany. It surpassed Harley-Davidson in global sales in 2015. In exports section, compared to the 9,363 units shipped in FY2016, the bike maker recorded a 64 per cent hike in volumes with 15,383 units exported in FY2017.

The bankable brand
Digest this one: If you had spent Rs 55,000 to buy a Royal Enfield motorcycle in 2001, you would be just a proud owner of a bike.
But if you had invested the same Rs 55,000 in shares of Eicher Motors, your investment would be worth Rs 3.53 crore in 2017. The stock has skyrocketed 64,146 per cent to Rs 31,320-odd level on November 6, 2017 from Rs 48.75 as on January 3, 2000.