Gulf Oil, M&M tie up for co-branded lubes

Chennai: Hinduja group company Gulf Oil Lubricants India has entered into its first tractor partnership by tying up with Mahindra & Mahindra. As part of the tie-up, Gulf Oil will manufacture and supply 'Mahindra Genuine Oil' under the brand name 'Mahindra M-Star Super' for the auto major's dealer/ workshop network along with a Mahindra-Gulf co-branded lubricant line for the 'bazaar segment' under the brand name 'Gulf XHD M Tractor' based on M&M's 'MKM' (Mileage ka Master) platform.

The 2.2 million metric tonne lubricant market in India is worth around $3.5-4 billion and is carved up into three slices in the automotive segment. Around 75% of that business is under lubricant company brands but a growing 25% comprises co-branded products, genuine oil products (riding on the vehicle manufacturer's branding) and approved-by-OEM branded products (where the auto maker approves a particular lubricant brand).

"Gulf Oil & Mahindra & Mahindra's partnership for the tractor segment is an extension of our relationship in passenger segment. We already have a relationship with Mahindra thanks to Gulf X-10, a co-branded product meant for vehicles in the Bolero segment and going down to three-wheelers," said Ravi Chawla, MD, Gulf Oil Lubricants India. "We are testing our products across a lot of other segments in the OEM business including at Mahindra. In fact we were approved by Navistar for the truck business in India before Mahindra bought them out."

Although not a common trend globally, co-branding, he said, works in India because it cuts out the fear of spurious lubricants used in the open market. "Co-branding works because both the OEM and the lubricant brands stand for some value in the open market and the user gets the surety that the product is tested on the vehicle's engine conditions," said Chawla. Gulf Oil has similar branding partnerships with group sister Ashok Leyland for commercial vehicles and L&T Komatsu for construction equipment.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.