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Harley-Davidson Removes Branded Merchandise From Amazon

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by Brendan Menapace from https://www.goprintandpromo.com Harley-Davidson Removes Branded Merchandise From Amazon, Prioritizes Its Own E-Commerce Initiative Harley Davidson CEO Jochan Zeitz said his company will no longer sell branded merchandise on Amazon, instead choosing to prioritize its own dealers’ e-commerce efforts. “We want to have a fully integrated, digital e-commerce business with our dealers,” Zeitz said, according to The Detroit News. “Amazon was not really something that got our dealers into the mix.” It’s not hyperbole to say that Amazon dominates e-commerce. But there has been pushback against the site through initiatives such as Small Business Saturday and from big brands such as Nike, which previously announced it would stop selling sneakers and apparel on the site. For Harley-Davidson, the concern is that Amazon is cutting into branded merchandise revenue from its dealerships. This is particularly pressing after Harley posted fourth-quarter losses, with Zeitz looking to steer the bike toward growth after years of declining sales in the U.S. That plan, which Harley is calling “Hardwire,” will include premium apparel and accessories as a means of strengthening its brand as more than just a motorcycle company. The decision to move away from Amazon is also a direct reversal of a previous plan to boost the company, after former CEO Matt Levatich debuted the “digital storefront” on Amazon in October 2018. If selling on Amazon didn’t work, maybe becoming more autonomous in its e-commerce offerings could help. Consumer habits have changed, and the simple convenience of buying from Amazon isn’t always more popular than being able to buy directly from a company. We might not see a mass brand exodus from Amazon any time soon, but between Nike and Harley-Davidson, we’re seeing a few major brands testing the waters of e-commerce without Amazon involvment.

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Partnership between the brands METZELER and Indian Motorcycle is strengthened

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The partnership between the brands METZELER and Indian Motorcycle is strengthened: several new Indian Motorcycle models equipped with tires of the blue elephant brand Along with the Indian Challenger, METZELER CRUISETEC™ will be original equipment tires of the Indian Roadmaster, Chieftain, Springfield and Vintage models. METZELER SPORTEC™ M9 RR will now be original equipment on the brand new Indian FTR ROME, Ga. 15th February 2021 – The technical partnership between the brands METZELER and Indian Motorcycle forges ahead since the first collaboration between the German-born tire brand and the legendary US motorcycle manufacturer happened in 2019. METZELER brand was chosen as the development partner and exclusive supplier for the powerful touring model, the 2020 Indian Challenger. It was an extremely successful project, thanks to the joint work between two brands that share the same philosophies of enhancing their company heritage and at the same time aiming for the highest level of performance, in compliance with the most challenging quality standards. From that moment, the technical collaboration between the two historic brands has been further strengthened and to date it has been extended to other important models of the American manufacturer. In fact from 2021, in addition to the Indian Challenger, METZELER tires will exclusively equip the brand new Indian FTR, which was recently unveiled to fans all over the world, and other iconic models from America’s first motorcycle company, such as the Indian Roadmaster, Chieftain, Springfield and Vintage. For the Indian FTR, including the FTR S and FTR R Carbon versions, METZELER SPORTEC™ M9 RR tires were selected as original equipment, in 120/70 ZR 17 front and 180/55 ZR 17 rear sizes. Pulling inspiration from its American Flat Track race bike, the FTR750, the new 2022 FTR is an exciting motorcycle that combines style and performance, ideal for both weekend

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Norton Motorcycles invests in advanced new factory headquarters

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Norton Motorcycles invests in advanced new factory headquarters in Solihull The Norton Motorcycle Co Ltd has moved to a new location in Solihull, West Midlands The new HQ will be a permanent base for all staff and incorporates state-of-the-art design, engineering, manufacturing and quality capabilities Opening of the newly fitted out factory comes after a multi-million pound investment from Norton’s new parent company, TVS Motor Company Commissioning is near completion and opening is expected in Q1 2021 Over 50 high quality, new jobs have already been created and more are expected to follow as the business activity grows providing a welcome boost to the local economy. The site in Solar Park, Solihull is the most advanced facility that Norton has ever had The Norton Motorcycle Co Ltd has announced that the company is moving to a new headquarters. The state-of-the-art production site located in Solihull, West Midlands, will open following a multi-million pound investment by Norton’s Indian parent company, TVS Motor Company. It will be the most advanced manufacturing facility in the 122-year-old motorcycle brand’s history. The premises will be the central hub for all of Norton operations, providing a permanent base for all staff. The new headquarters will be home to design, engineering, purchasing, sales, marketing, and support teams as well as the skilled production team that is resuming manufacture of motorcycles. Some of the specialist tooling and equipment previously used by Norton has been carried over to the new site in Solihull, but the site is benefiting from substantial new investment. The new manufacturing facility will make use of modern-day, quality-assured production processes. Skilled technicians will deploy bespoke bike building techniques and state-of-the-art new manufacturing equipment to ensure all bikes are built with great precision and quality, a hallmark of both Norton and TVS Motor Company. Norton will

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Harley Davidson’s plan to take iconic motorcycle brand into transportation’s future

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by Joe D’Allegro from https://www.cnbc.com Harley-Davidson unveiled a new 2021 lineup featuring several advances in engineering, electronics and styling, and its first rival to BMW and Honda “adventure” bikes. Hog motorcycle sales peaked 15 years ago and have dropped 40% since. But as it cuts costs, total number of models and geographies under a new CEO, and looks to electric motorcycles and e-bikes, Harley could be in for a smoother stock market ride. As a tradition-minded 118-year-old motorcycle manufacturer, Harley-Davidson may not seem ideally situated to prosper in a rapidly changing world where vehicles are increasingly electrified, self-driving, and shared. But the iconic company could be better positioned than many stock market investors betting on transportation suspect. The company’s U.S. bike sales peaked at more than 260,000 way back in 2006, and have since dropped about 40%. Demographics are part of the story, and it is a well-charted one, in the stock price and broader narrative about Harley’s consumer market. In 1985, the year before Harley went public, the median motorcycle owner was only 27, according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics. By 2018, the median age had risen to 50. But the iconic “HOG” brand is turning itself around under the leadership of president and CEO Jochen Zeitz, who took the helm last year after drawing praise for a turnaround engineered at European consumer brand Puma. Zeitz, and other new executives pushed the “Rewire” initiative, which has driven the manufacturer to exit international markets with low potential to focus on 36 high-growth-potential areas in North America, Europe and Asia. The company also laid off 700 employees to trim costs. It closed out 2020 by entering into a distribution agreement with Indian motorcycle maker Hero and spinning off its electric bicycle operations to a new firm where it holds a

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Aprilia debuts its long-awaited Tuono 660 naked bike for 2021

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by Kyle Hyatt from https://www.cnet.com This promises to be a much more approachable and affordable naked bike from the Italian brand. Enough power, very light weight and top-tier safety tech make the Tuono 660 pretty appealing. The Aprilia Tuono V4 is one of the most over-the-top, terrifying, wonderful and life-affirming machines I’ve ever had the pleasure of riding. It’s massively powerful, thanks to its 1,077-cc V4 engine, it sounds like half of the world’s angriest Ferrari, and it’s packed to the gunwales with brilliant electronics designed to keep your tires on the pavement. It’s also not a bike I’d recommend to most people as a first, second or even third motorcycle. It’s just overwhelming. Aprilia seems to understand that issue with its Tuono V4, so it’s done the only sensible thing and lopped two cylinders off it, calling it the Tuono 660 and making it a much more accessible motorcycle. It teased the Tuono 660 alongside the RS 660 sportbike at EICMA in 2019, and now it’s getting its official debut, according to an announcement on Wednesday. The Tuono 660 makes a reasonable 95 horsepower (the V4, for comparison, produces over 170 hp) and has a curb weight of just 403 pounds. This means that things with the baby Tuono should be plenty rowdy but not quite so hectic as on the V4. Like its bigger brother, the Tuono 660 sports a more upright riding position than the similarly powered RS 660, which means it should be more comfortable for longer rides. It comes with a KYB suspension with limited adjustment, paired with decently sized, radially mounted Brembo brakes. While miles away from the high-zoot stuff on the more expensive V4, this combination should be more than adequate for some hardcore canyon carving for most riders. To help make the

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Excelsior-Henderson Resurrection

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by Ben Purvis from https://www.cycleworld.com Indian firm Bajaj may be bringing back the classic American marque. For a brief moment in the late 1990s the name Excelsior-Henderson was one of the hottest stories in motorcycling – a brand that was resurrected as a high-tech rival to Harley-Davidson after decades in the grave. Even if you don’t remember the furor over Excelsior in 1997, you already know how the story ends. The fact that those Excelsiors remain vanishingly rare more than two decades later reveals that the plan didn’t quite come together as envisioned. Just two years after unveiling the first bike since 1931 to wear that storied badge, Excelsior-Henderson 2.0 ended up closing its doors as well. But now it seems that the brand might be set to rise from the grave once more, this time courtesy of Indian manufacturing giant Bajaj. Bajaj might not be a name that registers on your radar like Honda or Harley-Davidson, but it’s a behemoth of a company with a 75-year history of its own and a string of subsidiaries. It’s India’s second-largest bike company, after Hero, with the production capacity to manufacture 6,330,000 vehicles per year, most of them motorcycles. On top of that, Bajaj owns 48% of KTM, building KTMs and Husqvarnas in its plants in India, and it has a deal with Triumph to jointly develop and manufacture a new range of small to mid-sized machines in the near future. In short, Bajaj is one of the biggest players in the worldwide motorcycle market, and now it’s planning to relaunch the classic Excelsior-Henderson marque. The news has yet to be officially announced, but Bajaj has already applied for trademark rights in various countries to use the Excelsior-Henderson name and logo on motorcycles, parts and clothing. It’s understood to have bought the

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Confederate Motorcycles is now Combat Motors

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from https://motorcycles.einnews.com BIRMINGHAM, AL, USA, June 18, 2020 /EINPresswire.com/ — Confederate Motorcycles LLC announces a change of its name to Combat Motors LLC to better reflect the spirit and the values of our team, manufacturing partners and clients. We stand with those fighting for change in the United States and are very happy to contribute an overdue but small part of that change. Confederate Motorcycles was established in 1991 as an international brand. “Our motorcycles are realized through a partnership with our various members of our team who design, build and distribute these one of a kind masterpieces. We feel that the new name better exemplifies the spirit and values of that team.” “We stand with those peaceably fighting for change in the United States and are very happy to contribute an overdue but small part of that change.” The F-117 Combat Fighter, P-51 Combat Fighter, FA-13 Combat Bomber and the Combat Wraith are each built upon the CX-4 frame, feature an S&S X-Wedge 117 or 132 cubic inch engine, BST wheels, RaceTech suspension, Beringer Brakes, Motogadget electronics, a Bandit clutch and have a frame carved entirely from solid billet blocks of aircraft-grade 6061 and 7075 aluminum built by 3D Systems, resulting in the most robust, fatigue-resistant motorcycle possible. “Each of our manufacturing partners makes doing what we do possible.” The Combat Hellcat and Speedster are based on Harley Davidson Frames with CNC Aluminum tanks and other body parts, an upgraded Screaming Eagle 117 cubic inch engine which is homologated for worldwide delivery. True to his passion as “curator of the brand”, Ernest Lee, owner of Combat Motors, has hired many of the design, assembly, sales, service and support team from the company’s past, Jay Etheridge, Jason Reddick, Landers Sevier, Andrew Reuther, and Dave Hargreaves to name a few. “Our

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Electric motorcycles made and designed in Singapore set to rev up Southeast Asia

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by Zhaki Abdullah from https://www.channelnewsasia.com SINGAPORE: Although the COVID-19 pandemic had affected their initial plans, two Singapore-based start-ups are still set on revving up efforts to produce their own electric motorbikes. This comes as Singapore relaxed its rules on electric motorcycles in April, allowing high-powered motorbikes with power ratings of more than 10kW to be on the roads as part of efforts to encourage the adoption of cleaner vehicles. The coronavirus outbreak has caused “little hiccups” in its supply chain, said Scorpio Electric’s acting head of operations Muhammad Taureza. But the brand remains on track to roll out its zero-emission, fully electric smart motorcycles, with no “appreciable delay”, he said, adding that it aims to do so by the middle of this year, or as soon as the COVID-19 situation stabilises. Scorpio Electric is a brand under Singapore-based EuroSports Technologies, which is backed by SGX-listed EuroSports Global. Since March, Scorpio Electric has expanded its premises at Teban Gardens to 7,000 sq m. The space includes offices and showrooms, as well as 4,000 sq m dedicated to a factory and warehouse. This facility is expected to produce about 8,000 electric motorcycles a year, said Dr Taureza. Although the components will be manufactured elsewhere, Scorpio Electric’s bikes will be assembled at its Singapore location, he added. Scorpio Electric chief technology officer Tham Kwang Sheun noted that making its motorcycles “smart”, with the use of artificial intelligence and data analytics, will allow them to be even more energy efficient. “That means that when you get on, the bike will actually have the intelligence to tell you how can you better plan your trips, and how much fuel consumption you’re going to use, accounting for operating conditions,” he explained. The aim is also for Scorpio Electric to extend this environmental sustainability to its production

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Harley-Davidson appoints Jochen Zeitz as President & CEO: New plan to redefine brand

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by Rahul Kapoor from https://www.financialexpress.com With Matt Levatich stepping down, Harley Davidson had appointed Jochen Zeitz to lead the brand in the interim. But Zeitz has now been appointed as the president and CEO for the Milwaukee based motorcycle manufacturer. Harley-Davidson, the iconic American motorcycle brand has elevated interim President and CEO Jochen Zeitz as the new President and CEO of the company. Zeitz was appointed into the interim position after the former head of the brand Matt Levatich stepped down after a dismal sales performance of the brand that it witnessed in recent years. Zeitz who is currently the chairman of the board of Harley-Davidson brings his experience as the CEO of the sports apparel and goods brand Puma to the role. He also has plans to restructure the company and also redefine Harley Davidson. In a press statement, Zeitz said “Over the next few months, we will re-wire the business and redefine a new 5-year strategic plan later this year. I will then oversee the implementation of these changes and re-ignite Harley-Davidson as one of the most revered and iconic brands in the world,” Zeitz is working towards an all-new brand strategy called “The Rewire” that would allow Harley-Davidson to enter new markets and segments as well. The plan is said to develop further in the coming months which will incorporate key products, and initiatives from the current ongoing strategy for the brand, but with a key focus on markets and products that can help drive profits and growth. Harley-Davidson has found the last few years to be difficult in terms of unit sales. This has been more prominent in its home market – the USA as the modern consumers have moved away from heavyweight cruisers to adventure touring models or ADVs. Zeitz has been on the board

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Harley’s New Rewire Strategy Is A Bad Idea

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by Justin Hughes from https://www.rideapart.com Why refocus the brand on capturing a rapidly shrinking demographic? Earlier this week we reported on Harley-Davidson’s latest change in direction: to abandon some of their more ambitious ideas and focus on growing the core brand, with their core bikes, in the US. While models like the LiveWire, Bronx, and Pan America are already far enough down the pipeline to continue, beyond that we can expect nothing more than cruisers, baggers, and tourers from Harley for the foreseeable future. That’s too bad. As an amateur radio operator, I have often heard the derogatory joke that the average age of one who participates in the hobby is “dead.” Sadly, that is beginning to apply more and more to the average age of a typical Harley rider. There are always exceptions. I’ve had my radio license since I was 15, and I’m actually considering an 80s or 90s Harley for a future project bike. But even I have a bit of gray in my hair and beard, something you will see in the vast majority of Harley enthusiasts. We’re only getting older. From the investors’ perspective, I get it. They’re not in it for the bikes or the culture. They’re in it for the money, and especially these days the money isn’t there. Shareholder Impala Asset Management has been arguing for a while that a change in direction is needed, and chose to act during the recent management shakeup at Harley. While we hoped this might be good for Harley, it looks like they have chosen to take what it sees as the safe path, prioritizing short term profit over the long term survival of the company. Given the crazy economic condition of the world right now, maybe that’s the right choice for now. It’s not like

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