TVS Motor Co. Ltd has booked nearly ₹2,000 crore in losses at its British premium motorcycle brand, The Norton Motorcycle Co., since —equivalent to about one-fifth of its profit over the past six years.
While India’s third-largest two-wheeler maker made ₹9,993 crore in profits over 2020-21 to 2025-26, the legacy brand lost ₹1,976 crore during the period, a review of its annual reports showed.
Norton incurred the highest loss in FY26 at ₹723 crore post-tax, ahead of its global relaunch with a new line-up in July. It announced the rollout of the first Atlas models at TVS’s Hosur manufacturing facility on 24 June.
The losses reflect the Hosur-based two-wheeler company’s aggressive push to strengthen its premium positioning in domestic and global markets, with TVS chairman and managing director Sudarshan Venu closely tracking developments since taking over from Ralf Speth in August 2025.
“Norton, our British icon, is finding its stride, rebuilt with the engineering discipline and investment capacity of TVS Motor behind it,” Venu said in his first letter to shareholders after becoming the TVS chairman.
“A century of heritage, combined with the manufacturing and R&D (research and development) capability of one of the world’s leading two-wheeler companies, is a powerful combination. Norton opens doors in premium Western markets, elevates our brand perception globally, and is central to where this company is going,” Venu added.
The efforts of the 37-year-old executive rival those of the country’s fourth-largest two-wheeler manufacturer, Bajaj Auto Ltd, which is looking to turn around the prospects of the Austrian premium brand KTM after acquiring it in an €800 million debt deal last May.
TVS acquired Norton in a ₹153-crore all-cash deal in 2020.
“Our investment in Norton is a clear strategic choice, aligned with our long-term ambition to build a strong presence in the modern luxury motorcycle segment and create a globally admired brand,” said a spokesperson for TVS. The spokesperson clarified that much of the investment has been in building a design and engineering hub in Solihull, England and in building products. is building six new products, with production of two already underway. The company expects to increase its dealer network from the current 50 in seven countries to 200 by the end of the fiscal year.
“We remain disciplined in capital allocation and focused on creating long-term value while preserving the strength and profitability of the broader TVS businesses,” said the spokesperson.
New life
Since acquiring the 1898-founded brand, TVS has not launched any products, as it prepared the company’s new product range and stabilized operations amid financial struggles.
TVS built the executive team at Norton and opened a centre of excellence in Italy in 2025 to boost the premium brand’s design. Norton’s head of design, Simon Skinner, is joined by former Jaguar Land Rover chief creative officer Gerry McGovern.
In an interaction with Mint last October, Venu said the company wants to sustain the legacy of the old brand and gradually build its sales.
“We’re targeting 200 dealer touch points globally for the 2026 season and looking at scaling up over a period of time to 20,000 units a year, but not immediately, over a period of time,” Venu said.
TVS may borrow from Bajaj Auto’s KTM playbook. The company discontinued several loss-making brands, saving costs and reigniting sales across key markets such as Europe and North America. Since Bajaj’s official takeover last November, the Austrian brand has moved closer to profitability.
Bajaj Mobility AG’s filings with Austrian exchanges showed KTM clocked earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (Ebitda) of €5.5 million in the March quarter, as against an Ebitda loss of €55.8 million a year ago, Mint reported on 19 May.
Revenue jumped 70% to €331 million as motorcycle sales more than doubled to 40,332 units, while net loss improved to €35.1 million from €108 million in the year-ago period.
Long-term bet
Meanwhile, experts see TVS’s premium push as a long-term project. “It is at least a 10-year project. The premium motorcycle market across the globe is volatile, with very few successful brands such as BMW, Ducati and Triumph. Norton will try to be the fourth one, but gains for TVS need to be seen in how its own products have learned from the development at Norton,” said Deepesh Rathore, founder and head of research at global two-wheeler consultancy InsightEV.
“The benefits of having a global presence would trickle down to its own product line-up as well,” he added.
Analysts see the push helping the company gain in the long run by delivering stronger revenue growth and a higher likelihood of profitability.
“TVSL has been gaining share across segments, and we reckon its domestic share shall increase from 19.5% in FY26 to 20.5% by FY28E, driven by its strong presence in ICE (internal combustion engine) and EV scooters along with growing presence in premium segments,” analysts at Nuvama Institutional Equities wrote in a 13 May note.
“We forecast revenue/earnings CAGR (compound annual growth rate) shall be 13%/18% over FY26-28E. Although there are near-term cost pressures, we estimate margin expansion in FY28E due to better scale/mix and cost savings.”