This isn’t a war of the sexes and “Why should guys have all the fun?� is not a slogan from the feminist brigade. It’s the tagline for the TV and print campaign for Hero Honda’s new offering, Pleasure.

The 102-cc gearless scooter marks the Rs 9,000-crore company’s debut in the scooters market. But why would a company that is a market leader in motorbikes — Hero Honda commands about 50 per cent marketshare — zoom into a scooter segment that is only 14 per cent of the Rs 16-18,000 crore two-wheeler market? “The scooters’ market is a dormant one but there’s huge potential there — and we mean to expand it,� says a confident Pawan Munjal, managing director, Hero Honda.

Munjal’s confidence is based on hard facts. Studies by the company in early 2004 revealed that for the 14.5 million households that own a Hero Honda bike, the preferred second two-wheeler is a scooter.