In our industry insider this time we get face to face with Siddharth Chaturvedi, Founder and MD, Boys and Machines on his unique pet project and more. Boys and Machines chain of pre owned Luxury car dealership was founded by Siddharth in 2020 with a aim to provide buyers with the best-priced luxury cars. Currently, with showrooms in four major metropolitan cities — Mumbai, Delhi, Hyderabad and Kolkata, Boys and Machines plans on expanding its operation to three more cities — Ahmedabad, Indore and Chandigarh this year.
- What was the idea behind setting up Boys & Machines?
- Being a user of supercars and luxury cars, I have personally suffered a lot of losses in buying and selling cars. Due to this reason, I realized that there is a scope of making this sector more organized and provide affordable luxury cars to the masses. During the pandemic, there was a shift to personal mobility, which was an opportunity for this sector to grow, as lot of executives preferred travelling via road compared to flights. As pre-owned cars provide affordable luxury, they started opting for it in higher numbers.
- What were the challenges that you faced before starting or while starting Boys & Machines?
- We began operations amidst the pandemic, when everything was unpredictable and uncertain. It was one of the most significant risks we took and given the trend of increased desire for personal mobility, we were confident about the future. This was because we noticed that people have started splurging money on lifestyle focused items. Moreover, finding the right people with hands-on expertise was a difficult task. To achieve effectiveness and efficiency, responsibility allocation was critical in order to avoid duplication of work and keep the wider focus on achieving sustainable growth. We at Boys and Machines believe in delivering quality, therefore finding the proper channel partners for getting automobile parts at the correct pricing while maintaining quality was challenging at first.
- How is the experience so far with the pet company?
- The journey so far has been exhilarating and it is just the start. Within a year, we were able to expand our reach throughout India, opening four stores in Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, and Hyderabad. Along with this, we opened our first after-sales service centre in Gurugram. Despite the uncertainty caused by the pandemic, we have been able to clock good sales since the beginning of our operations. It’s been a good start with learnings. We intend to grow our brand and reach new heights.
- How was the mindset of the clients changed during the pandemic?
- During the pandemic customers realized that life is too uncertain. Due to this, there was a rise in spends on luxury and lifestyle products. Everyone became more concerned about safety and hygiene. As a first step towards safety, people started opting for personal mobility. Executives working at higher designation started opting for luxury cars. With this, they started travelling safely but at the same time without compromising on luxury.
- Do you see better times ahead after the pandemic?
- Yes, we do believe that there are good times ahead. Pandemic has taught everyone that life is very uncertain. We have observed that our customers and people at large have decided to live in the present and seek to savour every moment of it. Thus, customers are willing to splurge on aspirational items and spending has increased significantly since Covid.
- What sort of expansion plans do you have for B&M?
- Boys and Machines intends to support its ambitious growth aspirations by aggressively extending its footprint across India. We intend to increase our footprint both online and offline by connecting with customers and providing them with an experience rather than just selling cars. In terms of physical space, we plan to open new showrooms in three more cities in the following months: Ahmedabad, Indore, and Chandigarh. In addition, the company aims to open workshops in locations where it already has a presence to provide clients with a more convenient ownership and service experience.
- Any message that you want to send via this interview to your clients?
- I want our customers to have faith in us. We are entirely committed to providing them with the highest quality vehicles at the most competitive prices. We are not only here to sell them cars, but also to provide them with a once-in-a-lifetime experience. We’re on a mission to build long-term relationships with our customers and partner with them by combining high reliability and ethical ideals with excellent service and satisfaction.
- How different is B&M as compared to your competition?
- Boys and Machines focuses on providing the highest quality pre-owned luxury cars at the most competitive prices. Our competitive pricing and superior quality provide us a competitive advantage over our competitors. Aside from that, our continual process development, digitization, and robust physical presence around the country pave the way for an exponential growth curve. We strive to not only meet, but also exceed our customers’ expectations.