NEW DELHI: The world’s leading badminton equipment brand YONEX on Saturday announced that it will now manufacture high-quality graphite racquets in the country, expanding its existing production plan and base in India, a move which will bring the cost of full-body racquets down considerably.
Towards this end, YONEX is opening a new factory in Bengaluru dedicated to the production of full carbon graphite badminton racquets, which is set to begin operations in April.
Yonex India Private Limited, the Indian subsidiary of Yonex, has been manufacturing steel and aluminum badminton racquets in Bengaluru since April 2017.
This new facility will be the company’s second factory in India and will have a much larger production capacity, covering an area of over 8,000 square metres.
The company has seen consistent growth in India, thanks to the growing popularity of badminton as a sport in the country.
With the Indian badminton team achieving great success on the global professional circuit, the demand for high-performance racquets has surged.
Indian shuttlers have been performing exceptionally at the global stage, bringing numerous laurels for the country which includes the historic Thomas Cup triumph as well as winning medals at the World Championships and other multi-nation events such as the Asiad and the Commonwealth Games. Such consistent performances has put badminton in the spotlight as it’s now the second most played sport by both genders in India.
The new graphite racquets were unveiled in the presence of Ben Yoneyama, chairman of YONEX Japan, R Hanawa, president of YONEX India, Vikramaditya Dhar, managing director, Sunrise Sports India Pvt Ltd and India’s chief national coach Pullela Gopichand.
“India is a big market for badminton with its growing economy and interest in the sport. A lot of Indian players are performing really well on the world stage, encouraging more to take up the sport. We want to cater to that audience and provide the highest Japanese quality equipment to further the sport’s development,” Yoneyama commented while addressing the media at a press conference in the capital on Saturday.
The growing popularity of the game has resulted in taking the demand for quality racquets sky high and the market share for badminton is seeing a 10-15% YoY growth. The production of racquets in India will also ensure the product’s prices reduce by 20-30% than the current market rates.
“We want to give better quality racquets to our customers who are looking for full body graphite racquets at affordable prices. These are for players at a higher level, playing at academies and starting at a competitive level. With racquets being made in India, the consumers need not worry about import costs, fluctuating exchange rates as they will get high quality Japanese craftsmanship and technology at affordable prices.” said Dhar.
The Japanese company, which set up a factory in Bengaluru in 2016, was only producing aluminium T-joint racquets, used for beginners who play for fitness or recreation purpose. They aim to amplify the production of existing T-joint racquets from 1 million to 2.5-3 million per year.
“The new Yonex factory will further establish local Yonex manufacturing practices with the goal to stably deliver badminton racquets to the customers in India,” the company said in a statement.
The company plans to triple the current manufacturing volume in three years.
Yonex and Sunrise have been committed to the promotion and development of badminton for over 60 years. SUNRISE has the largest direct sports distribution network in the Indian sub-continent. It has been supporting multiple state and district associations in the country to promote and develop the game the grassroot to the highest level of badminton in the country. They are also the official equipment partner for the Badminton Association of India.
