Arun Alagappan appointed president of TI Cycles

Chennai: Arun Alagappan, a fourth-generation member of the Murugappa family that runs the Rs22,500 crore Murugappa Group, was made president of TI Cycles last week, a division of auto component maker Tube Investments of India.

add_main_imageAlagappan, 37, who was the senior vice-president of TI Cycles, which sells brands such as Hercules, BSA Champ, and BSA Ladybird, will replace D. Raghuram, who is leaving the company in September.

“In my new role, I will be working towards taking the business to the international market as we have a very negligible presence now,” Alagappan said on Tuesday in a telephone interview.NextMAds

TI Cycles earned revenue of Rs1,258 crore or 37% of revenue of Tube Investments in the fiscal year 2013. The unit sold 9.3% fewer cycles in 2012-13 than a year earlier as poor monsoons affected rural incomes, resulting in a drop in demand for its bicycles.

Alagappan, who was responsible for the company’s entry into electric bikes, worked with GE Capital and Parryware before joining TI Cycles in 2007.

His father, M.A. Alagappan was previously executive chairman of the Murugappa Corporate Board.