Hero Cycles: How it became the country's largest cycle company

Of course, today we have all the personal means available like scooters, bikes, cars, etc., but there has never been any decrease in the popularity of the cycle which has been going on for hundreds of years even in the midst of the increasing crowd of all these. There was a time when not only the entire village but people from far off places used to come to see the cycle after buying it and the cycle owner used to ride it only after worshipping the cycle. Bicycle wheels then not only used to increase the speed of life, but also gave a new flight to our dreams, and the company whose name is taken first among the bicycle companies that gave wings to that flight is the name Hero Cycles. Whether big or small, Hero Cycles has been everyone's favourite and trusted company since then. However, you will be surprised to know that this company, which once set a record in bicycle manufacturing, was started with borrowed money. what is the story of hero cycle…

Before talking about the beginning, struggle and success of Hero Cycle Company, we should also know that when and where did the cycle ie bicycle start and why did it become so popular?

History of bicycle

It is about the year 1816, when a volcano named Mount Tambora erupted in Indonesia. In this calamity, a huge area was destroyed and the main food of the people there, buffalo, goat, chicken etc. all the animals were finished, so they started killing their horses and eating them. Although this definitely filled their stomachs, but a big problem of traffic arose, because the only means of travel then used to be horses. To get rid of this problem, in the year 1817, a man named Carl Dries built a bicycle. However, there were no pedals in the bicycle then and to run it, it had to be pushed forward by rubbing the feet on the ground. Then the bicycle was named Dandy Horse or Albela Ghoda, which later became known as Bicycle. In the year 1864, the pedal cycle also started to be made and gradually came into full use. Anyway, this is the story of the beginning of the cycle, now let's come back to our original topic i.e. Hero Cycle.

Started with bicycle parts

Om Prakash Munjal

The credit for the introduction of Hero Cycles is given to Om Prakash Munjal, one of the Munjal brothers. It is said when the country was partitioned and among those who came to India from Pakistan during that partition, there was also a family of grain businessman Bahadur Chand Munjal and Thakur Devi who along with their four sons Satyanand Munjal, Omprakash Munjal, Brajmohanlal Munjal and Dayanand Munjal He had come to India but the problem was that what work should be done here. In the early days, the Munjal brothers started selling cycle parts on the footpaths in Ludhiana, Punjab, and also did this work by roaming the streets there. After this the business progressed, the Munjal brothers decided to make bicycle parts by themselves and started this work in the year 1956 he took a loan of Rs 50,000 from the bank and set up his first factory for manufacturing cycle parts in Ludhiana itself.

When the factory was set up and the parts started being prepared, the Munjal brothers thought that instead of selling bicycle parts, they should manufacture their own bicycle, it would be even more profitable. What was it then, Munjal brothers made 25 cycles and launched them in the market, which became everyone's dream as soon as they saw them. By the year 1966, the Hero company started producing one lakh cycles per year, which surprised the whole world by producing more than 22 lakh cycles by the year 1986, and became the largest bicycle manufacturing company.

When the company owner himself ran the machine to fulfil the promise

Along with making cycles for adults, when the Hero company started making cycles for children, it became an important part of every child's life. As a result of which its demand also started increasing and according to the promise, it had become the responsibility of the company to deliver it in the market on time. It is said that during the same time there was a strike in the Hero Cycle Company, due to which the manufacture of cycles came to a standstill, in view of which the owner of the Hero Cycle Company himself made the cycle by running the machine. However, seeing him working in this way, some officials of the company explained that this work can be done later as well. Then he said that “You all can go home when you want but I have orders so I will work. If cycles are not manufactured, dealers will understand for a while that work is not being done due to the strike, but how will we explain to the mind of a child whose parents have promised to get him a bicycle on his birthday. Many such children will be heartbroken because of our strike, but I will not let this happen. I will fulfil the promise made by every parent who has promised to get their child a bicycle.

Responsibility from workers to dealers

Success drives good to good but Munjal brothers never neglected their dealers, workers and customers but took care of them more than their own profit. An example of this is the incident that happened in the year 1980 when a loaded truck of Hero Cycles got burnt in an accident. In such a situation, instead of asking about their loss, the Munjal brothers first thought it necessary to know the condition of the driver. Also, he again sent fresh consignment to the dealer so that the dealer does not suffer any loss.

World record of bicycle production

In the 80s, Hero Cycles became the world's largest bicycle manufacturer by producing more than 2.2 million cycles every year, and in 1986, Hero Cycles was named in the Guinness Book of World Records as the world's largest bicycle producer. Also registered in Apart from India, Hero Cycle Company, which exports cycles to 89 countries in Africa, Asia and Europe, has a share of 48 per cent in the cycle market.

BBC. Hero Cycles, which has been commended for its excellent management by the World Bank, is a part of business studies at the London Business School and INSEAD France. Apart from this, in the year 2004, Britain had also given super brand status to Hero Cycle Company. Along with this, it has also got the status of the world's largest company for manufacturing more than 14 crore cycles. According to media reports, Hero Cycle Company has more than 7500 outlets across the world where more than 30 thousand people work.

Journey from Hero Cycles to Hero MotoCorp

Friends, the identity of Hero Cycle Company is not limited to cycles only because it has travelled from Hero Cycles to Hero Group, under whose banner Munjal Brothers has also prepared many products like Cycle Components, Automotive, Automotive Components, IT, Services. Have done Starting with the two-wheeler Hero Majestic, the Hero Group partnered with Japanese giant Honda in 1984 to form Hero Honda Motors Ltd, under which the first bike, the CD 100, was launched in 1985. In the year 2011, both these companies were separated and Hero Company became Hero MotoCorp.

Current owner and business

After the death of Dayanand Munjal, the eldest of the Munjal brothers, in the 60s, the other three brothers took over the business, out of which Omprakash Munjal and Brijmohan Lal Munjal died in the year 2015 and Satyanand Munjal in the year 2016. Presently Hero company is being handled by Omprakash Munjal's son Pankaj Munjal and in the changing environment Hero company is still making 75 lakh cycles every year.