Mahindra & Mahindra redefines its approach over six years, focusing on customer-driven products and heritage models while rapidly advancing electric mobility and platform sharing, signalling a significant transformation in its business strategy.
Mahindra & Mahindra’s reinvention over the past six years has been driven less by a bid for sheer scale than by a deliberate effort to build products that customers actively want, according to Rajesh Jejurikar, the executive director and chief executive of the automaker’s auto and farm businesses. Speaking to businessline, Jejurikar said the company set out in 2020 to focus on segments where it had a clear right to compete, rather than pursue volume for its own sake. That strategy, he said, has helped Mahindra expand its revenue base while turning a stronger line-up of SUVs and electric models into a broader business transformation. Reuters reported in 2008 that Mahindra had already begun reshaping its automotive operations by appointing Jejurikar to oversee sales, marketing and manufacturing, an early sign of the long management arc that now underpins the company’s current strategy.
That shift has unfolded against a backdrop of stronger pricing power and supportive tax policy. Jejurikar said Mahindra has still not returned to pre-GST price levels, even after recent increases, and argued that affordability has remained intact for buyers because the higher sticker price is spread over financing periods. He added that the more meaningful effect of GST has been in commercial vehicles, where it helped reverse years of cost inflation tied to commodities and regulation, and in passenger vehicles, where it improved access in the sub-₹10 lakh segment and encouraged buyers to move up to better variants. Mahindra’s annual report for 2024-25 said Jejurikar has been reappointed to lead the auto and farm division through 2029, underscoring the board’s confidence in the strategy now in place.
Some of Mahindra’s biggest gains have come from its oldest nameplates. Jejurikar said Thar created an entirely new niche, while Scorpio and Bolero, both decades old, continue to sell in meaningful volumes because customers still connect strongly with their design and identity. Mahindra has been careful not to change those products so aggressively that the brand bond is broken. The company’s own communications and industry reports suggest that approach will continue: Mahindra has already confirmed electric versions of Scorpio and Bolero, while preserving their existing ladder-frame architecture for combustion models. That dual-track evolution reflects a broader attempt to refresh heritage products without diluting what made them successful.
Platform sharing is now central to the economics of that expansion. Jejurikar said Mahindra has invested heavily in engineering, software and product-development capability, but has also learned to standardise architectures across multiple vehicles to improve scale with suppliers. That approach is visible in the company’s new NU_IQ SUV platform, unveiled in 2025 with a series of future-facing concepts that point towards the next generation of Thar, Scorpio and XUV derivatives. Industry reports say the first production model on NU_IQ is expected in 2027, potentially opening the door to a much wider family of SUVs for India and export markets.
Electric mobility remains the centre of gravity. Jejurikar said Mahindra is less focused on the EV-to-ICE mix as a percentage and more interested in absolute volume growth, arguing that the brand’s EV push has already lifted perceptions of the company’s technology and design credentials. He said Mahindra sees no need to chase the “mass-mass” market simply for scale, preferring instead to stay within segments where it can offer something distinct. Hybrids may have a place for high-mileage customers, he said, but only as a response to demand rather than as the company’s main destination. For FY30, he said, Mahindra wants to stand for products that “wow” buyers and make advanced technology, style and design more accessible, with electrification continuing to anchor that ambition.
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