With the decline in sales of the famous American motorcycle manufacturer Harley-Davidson in the United States, the company’s chief executive, Matt Levatich, recently launched a radical growth plan for “More Roads to Harley”. These include expanding the line of light motorcycles, launching smaller urban retail stores, international market expansion plans, and new digital strategies.
Harley-Davidson said that the company will release a medium-sized motorcycle platform of 500cc to 1250cc by the end of 2020, and will launch a light motorcycle to emerging markets in Asia. 'We will double the existing product line. We will be brand new Investment in medium-sized motorcycle platforms. This is a modular chassis and very core engine technology that can be applied to three distinct areas: adventure travel, customization and street competition,' Levartic said.
In recent years, the company's share price has fallen by nearly 13% because the 115-year-old company has struggled to find a breakthrough in the millennial buyers who have been rejected by the high price of heavy motorcycles. As a result, its profits have continued to decline. Harley-Davidson's international business sales in the second quarter increased by 0.7% year-on-year, but this was not enough to offset the negative impact of US revenue decline of 6.4% on company performance.
Harley-Davidson is currently working on overseas markets, particularly in China and India. The company has released Live Wire, the first electric motorcycle, and plans to release several electric motorcycles between next year and 2022. In addition, Harley Davidson also increased investment in overseas manufacturing plants to avoid double tariffs imposed on imported motorcycles in India.
US President Trump has been publicly criticizing Harley-Davidson’s international investment. He said in a tweet published on July 3 that Harley-Davidson announced in June that the company’s motorcycle manufacturing operations in Europe were due to retaliatory tariffs in the European Union. After withdrawing from the United States, the US government is negotiating with other motorcycle companies interested in entering the US market. ' 'Harley Davidson should be 100% in the United States, with those who have made you. I have done this for you. More, the result is like this. Other companies are returning to their place! We will not forget that your customers and your now excited competitors will not forget!” Trump said in Twitter.
Levartic said that Trump’s statement 'regrets attention' to some of the tough decisions the company had to make in recent years. He said that Harley-Davidson struggled to stay away from politics. 'We just deal with what we have to deal with. Things; we are not a political organization. We work very hard to treat business and consumers in a non-political way around the world,' Levartic said.
Harley-Davidson’s motorcycles used to have a tariff of 6% in Europe, and the new tariff has now been adjusted to 31%. Harley-Davidson has suffered because the Trump administration imposes a 25% tariff on imported steel and aluminum. India currently imposes a 100% tariff on Harley-made motorcycles made in the US. Currently, the company has set up plants in Brazil, India and Thailand to develop these fast-growing emerging markets.
According to John Olin, chief financial officer of Harley-Davidson, the additional costs of global trade conflicts will reach $100 million a year by 2019. 'Although Harley-Davidson tends to build all motorcycles in the US The car, but not offsetting the cost of customs, the company has had to invest in overseas factories in the past 20 years,' Levartic said. 'We do this only because these are important growth markets for the company. Without these investments, we cannot make any reasonable The price is in contact with consumers in these markets.'