Sona Cycle Industries

Sona Cycle Industries is a Ludhiana-based manufacturer and exporter of bicycles and bicycle parts, hand tools, fasteners, three wheeler parts and stationery, with 400 products across 29 catalogue headings. The business traces back to Om & Company, set up in Kolkata in 1969 by Mr. Suresh Gupta. It expanded to Ludhiana in 1989, moved its head office there in 1994 while keeping a branch in Kolkata, and became Sona Cycle Industries in 2010. Goods are made and exported under the brands "SONA" and "TOREX", and the Sona group also includes Sona Cycles Pvt. Ltd. and Om & Company. Bicycle parts and accessories make up 248 of the 400 products: pedals (28), accessories such as lady baskets and air horns (28), saddles (26), carriers (19), front forks and fork fittings (14), frames and frame parts (13), B.B. axles and cups (12), handles (12), hub axles, cones and cups (12), chainwheels and cranks (11), stands (11), complete bicycles (11) including a French gents model, brake sets and parts (10), chain covers (10), freewheels (9), mudguards (9), hubs (7) and rims and spokes (6). Hand tools add 84 items: spanners (26) such as a 13 hole spanner and a cold pressed double open end spanner to DIN 3110, wood working tools (16) such as a jack plane, pliers and pincers (11) including fencing pliers, hammers (9) including a claw hammer, screwdrivers (9), pipe wrenches (7) and vices (6). The rest of the catalogue covers three wheeler parts (21) such as a rear wheel assembly, fasteners (19), stationery (17) and lubricating equipment (11). Catalogue codes run in the SC- series, for example SC-P-109 and SC-P-125 for pedals and SC-S-105 and SC-S-121 for saddles. Stationery covers paper products, bound books, notebooks, office files, and pens and pencils, made to the buyer's specification for private label orders and matched to the import country's needs for size, ruling format, language, packing and display. The service runs from design, sampling and product development through pre-press, printing, binding and book finishing to dispatch. Sona Cycle Industries also sources specific products and commodities from any part of India to the buyer's specification, with quality control carried out by trained personnel. Quality work follows three Ps: procurement of raw materials, production, and packaging for transport. Its competitive strengths are large production capacity, good financial position and TQM, an experienced R&D department and a large product line. Export percentage is 100%, with top export markets Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Guyana and Panama, and its bicycles and bicycle parts go to African and Asian countries; it also serves buyers within India, alongside wholesale and retail business. The proprietorship employs 26 to 50 people, ships by air, cargo and sea, and takes payment online, by wire transfer, bank transfer or LC.