Daijiworld Media Network - Mumbai

Mumbai, Aug 23: Homegrown automobile major Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) is preparing to significantly expand its international presence with its newly unveiled pickup truck, targeting markets including South Africa, Australia, West Asia and Latin America, a senior company executive said.

Rajesh Jejurikar, Executive Director and CEO of M&M's Auto and Farm Sectors, said the upcoming pickup, unveiled as the Mahindra Scorpio Lifestyler for the Indian market, forms an important part of the company's global growth strategy.

The pickup is scheduled to be launched in India in April 2027, while it will be marketed as the Mahindra Lifestyler in international markets.

“The Lifestyler pickup was developed as a global platform for access for mainly leveraging a global opportunity. It is an important part of our global growth strategy,” Jejurikar told PTI.

He said the company sees significant export potential for the new model and is evaluating markets such as South Africa, Australia, West Asia and Latin America.

The company is also exploring opportunities in the ASEAN region, where pickup trucks have strong demand. M&M is currently present in Indonesia but has limited presence elsewhere in the region.

“We are not present in the ASEAN markets except Indonesia. So we would have to open up those markets with these products,” Jejurikar said when asked about the company's plans to use the new pickup to expand its presence across the bloc.

M&M's export business has already been growing. According to the company's annual report for 2025-26, its automotive division exported 41,030 vehicles, compared with 34,709 vehicles in the previous year, registering an 18.2 per cent increase.

The company currently exports its sport utility vehicles to markets including Australia, New Zealand, West Asia, Africa and South America.

While the Lifestyler is being positioned strongly as a global product, Jejurikar said the pickup could also find a market in India as consumer preferences evolve.

“We now see a potential emerging product opportunity in India for a product like that as well,” he said.

According to Jejurikar, Indian consumers have increasingly been showing interest in experiences such as curated holidays, outdoor recreation and travel where they can carry their own equipment.

“The Lifestyler, in a way, is a perfect pickup for them to experience that,” he said.

He said the potential customer base could include coffee plantation owners as well as people who travel with friends or family for camping and other outdoor activities.

“These are all new lifestyle experiences that are emerging, and that could be a very good opportunity for us to leverage that,” he added.

Alongside its international expansion plans, M&M is also witnessing a sharp increase in demand for electric vehicles. Jejurikar said electric vehicle penetration within the company's SUV portfolio had risen from almost zero to around 12 per cent of total SUV volumes over the past 16-17 months.

The increase followed the introduction of models including the BE 6, XEV 9e and XEV 9S.

M&M has also recently introduced the BE 6 SPORTEQ, which is expected to reach the market later this month, adding another model to its growing electric vehicle portfolio.

Asked whether EV penetration could rise further, Jejurikar said the company expected the share of electric vehicles to continue increasing, although the exact percentage would depend partly on the overall sales mix between electric vehicles and internal combustion engine models.

“We don't want to get too much into what the penetration will be because it's also a function of how much ICE we sell, but it'll keep growing,” he said.

M&M's electric four-wheeler sales recorded a sharp increase in 2025-26. According to the company's latest annual report, it sold 57,472 electric four-wheelers, compared with 14,183 units in the previous financial year, marking more than a four-fold increase.

The company's strategy of expanding its electric vehicle portfolio alongside developing globally oriented products such as the Lifestyler pickup is expected to strengthen its presence both in India's rapidly evolving automobile market and in international markets.