<ul><li>The CEO said that <keyword id="132519" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="harley" source="Orion">Harley</keyword> wants to bring its big bikes into the market without having to pay huge customs duty.</li><li>Zeitz agrees that the premium mid-segment is growing fast in the country.</li><li>The company has been phasing out, reducing its product complexity by more than a third.</li></ul> Harley-Davidson is banking on the partnership with <keyword id="6357252" type="General" weightage="30" keywordseo="hero-motocorp" source="Orion">Hero MotoCorp</keyword> to offer locally-produced premium models in the country, according to company's Chairman, President and CEO <keyword id="304983" type="General" weightage="60" keywordseo="jochen-zeitz" source="Orion">Jochen Zeitz</keyword>. India imposes 50 per cent customs duty on imported fully built up bikes, which makes the American cult bike-maker feel that partnering with Hero has turned out to be a good decision after deciding to exit its manufacturing operations in India three years back. In an interaction with PTI, Zeitz noted that the tie-up with Hero MotoCorp is allowing the Milwaukee-based bike maker to go for "volume opportunities" by introducing a competitive product in the Indian market. "And (there is) a lot of upside with much greater manufacturing capability that Hero brings in and the willingness to invest into the business, to really build us up as a brand. So, I would say it is the right decision," he said. Zeitz noted that the company would like to get its big bikes into the market without having to pay huge customs duty. "That (high customs duty) is the downside. But <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/auto/news/harley-davidson-x440-launched-in-india-with-a-price-tag-of-2-29-lakh/slidelist/101474727.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink" target="_blank">X440 is made in India</a>. It does not have tariffs, so that's a positive for those who want to get an experience of the Harley brand," he said. Last week, Harley and Hero introduced their first co-developed product in India -- Harley-Davidson X 440 -- with price starting at Rs 2.29 lakh. The bike is being produced by Hero MotoCorp at its Neemrana-based plant. Harley-Davidson had announced to discontinue sales and manufacturing operations in India in September 2020. Before that it had an assembly plant at Bawal in Haryana. In October 2020, Hero MotoCorp and Harley-Davidson announced a partnership for the Indian market. ALSO SEE: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/auto/news/triumph-speed-400-and-scrambler-400-x-bike-unveiled/slidelist/101329459.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink" target="_blank">Triumph Speed 400 and Scrambler 400X hit Indian roads to heat up competition</a> The deal envisaged Hero MotoCorp developing and selling a range of premium motorcycles under the Harley-Davidson brand in the country. It is also entrusted to take care of service and parts requirements for Harley bikes. Asked if the iconic brand could make a comeback in the Indian market if the tariff issue gets resolved in future, Zeitz said: "That's for the politicians to think. I mean, in theory, why would you have to pay such a tariff for a bike that comes into India versus a bike that goes into the US? When asked if the partners planned to bring in more models in the country, Zeitz said the focus is currently on making the X440 successful in the Indian market. "The more successful it is, the more opportunity we will have," he noted. On Harley utilising India as a manufacturing base for export markets, Zeitz said: "We were manufacturing our 750cc also for the international market, so I am not ruling that out." He further said:"But right now, the focus is really to make sure that the product is successful in India - one important cornerstone is to get X440 to be a success in India, from there we can build and come up with other ideas." When asked if X440 would be shipped to overseas markets, he said: "It is not something we are discussing right now." On the company's plans to introduce Harley Originals, its apparel range in India, Zeitz said: "That's the opportunity down the road I would certainly look into. We have invested a lot into our apparel operation in Milwaukee in America. " The company sees a lot of potential in the segment, he said. Commenting on the evolution of the high-end bike segment in India, Zeitz said the premium mid-segment is certainly a growing segment in the country. He noted that Harley's core segment is 975 plus cc bikes. "But in terms of sales opportunity, that is still a relatively small segment in India due to the price it carries, and obviously amplified by the import duties that make it even more expensive than if you would buy a bike in America, for example," Zeitz said. He noted that eventually the bigger bike segment will also grow in the country but affordability will obviously be an issue if tariffs continue to be as high as they are at the moment. There is a growing middle class who wants to afford more premium and luxury products. "We have seen that happening in China, and I am sure we will see the same thing happening in India," he noted. Elaborating on the company's strategy across global markets, Zeitz said the company is focusing on the core segments that are providing the return on investment. The company has been phasing out, reducing its product complexity by more than a third, he added. "In return, our profitability has gone up dramatically in the last three years as a company. So, I know that this industry is obsessed with unit sales and I am obsessed with profitability," Zeitz said. So, for the company the mandate is to make sure that it focuses on those segments where "Harley is truly Harley" and those are also the most desirable and most profitable segments, he added. Zeitz noted that both China and India were growing very fast. "I look at the two most populous markets in the world as an opportunity and you need to think long term, right. You build your roots now in order to grow with the economy and which is why we are here really," he said. Harley has decided to work with local partners in the markets where it does not have the local know-how, Zeitz added. Asked about <keyword id="6357453" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="harley-davidson" source="Orion">Harley Davidson</keyword>'s electric vehicle strategy he said one day, there certainly is going to be an electric Harley, but not in the near future. "...electrification is likely to grow in some markets faster than others. and we want to be the leader in electrification as a holding company," he said. Asked if the company is looking to introduce its electric bike range, Livewire in India, Zeitz said: "I don't see that in the near future."

Harley-Davidson's volume play — CEO aims for X440 success to get India story rolling

<ul class="summary-list"><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/harley-davidson">Harley-Davidson</a> posted an unexpected loss of $0.60 per share for Q2; analysts has expected a slight profit.</li><li>In Q2 2019, Harley made $1.23 per share.</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/harley-davidson-whats-next-for-the-motorcycle-company-jochen-zeitz-2020-5">Harley is in the midst of a restructuring under new CEO Jochen Zeitz</a>; the plan is called "Rewire" and seeks to refocus the company on is core products and heritage.</li></ul> <keyword id="96419" type="COMPANY" weightage="60" keywordseo="Harley-Davidson">Harley-Davidson</keyword> unexpectedly swung to a loss in the second quarter as coronavirus shutdowns hit motorcycle sales.The company on Tuesday reported a loss of 60 cents per share for the quarter through June, compared with a profit of $1.23 per share a year ago.Analysts had on average expected the profit to come in at 4 cents per share, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.Motorcycles and related products revenue dived 53% year-on-year to $669 million.The iconic American motorcycle maker is in the midst of a rush restructuring under new CEO Jochen Zeitz, a former head of athletic brand Puma. Zeitz replaced Mat Levatich earlier this year, prior to the impact of the coronavirus.Zeitz immediately refocused Harley on its core business — big, expensive, and profitable cruiser bikes, calling his turnaround plan "Rewire." This entails, as Zeitz said on an <keyword id="6357061" type="SPONSORED" weightage="60" keywordseo="earnings">earnings</keyword> call after the results were announced, layoffs of hundred of employees worldwide.Levatich had struggled to introduce an all-electric motorcycle, the LiveWire, but dealers have balked at the nearly $30,000 bike. Under Levatich, Harley has also sought to expand in growing <keyword id="31671" type="CITY" weightage="60" keywordseo="markets">markets</keyword> outside the US.Zeitz said that Harley intended to exit underperforming global markets to concentrate on North America.Harley shares have declined 22% year-to-date, but they had been recovering since a nadir in April. The stock was down 6%, to $27, at the markets open, after declining slightly pre-market.<div type="image" title="HOG Chart" height="1038" width="1572" msid="77222686" hostid="261"></div>(<keyword id="76338" type="CITY" weightage="60" keywordseo="Reuters">Reuters</keyword> reporting by Rajesh Kumar Singh; Editing by Alex Richardson)

Harley-Davidson misses on 2nd-quarter earnings as coronavirus hurts sales and new CEO pushes restructuring plan

<ul class="summary-list"><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/harley-davidson">Harley-Davidson</a> is undertaking a tentative restart of motorcycle production and shipping a reduced range of bikes to dealers, the Wall Street Journal reported.</li><li>Under new CEO Jochen Zeitz, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/harley-davidson-whats-next-for-the-motorcycle-company-jochen-zeitz-2020-5">Harley is expected to focus more on its core business</a> to stem a stock slide of over 40% since the beginning of 2020.</li></ul><keyword id="96419" type="COMPANY" weightage="60" keywordseo="Harley-Davidson">Harley-Davidson</keyword> is reopening its factories this week at lower production rates and sending dealers a narrower range of <keyword id="6388987" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="motorcycles">motorcycles</keyword>, the Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday.The motorcycle maker, which closed its US assembly plants in March due to the <keyword id="1754604" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="coronavirus">coronavirus</keyword> outbreak, may not ship any additional new motorcycles this year to about 70% of its 698 dealers in the country, the report said.Earlier in 2020, Harley replaced CEO Matt Levatich with board member Jochen Zeitz, first as acting, then as permanent chief executive. Zeitz had served as CEO of athletic brand Puma.Zeitz immediately discontinued Levatich's ambitious "Open Road" strategy, which sought to expand Harley's products and grow its ridership. The new CEO described his plan, called "Rewire," to Wall Street analysts after the company reported first-quarter earnings."As a result of my observations and assessment, I've concluded that we need to take significant actions and rewire the company now in terms of priorities, execution, operating model and strategy to drive sustained profit and long term growth," Zeitz said."We're calling it The Rewire and it is our playbook for the next few months, leading to a new five-year strategic plan which we'll share when visibility to the future returns."Harley shares moved up about 4% in pre-market trading on Wednesday, to $23. Year-to-date, the stock is down over 40%.(Reporting by Ankit Ajmera in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli)Read the original article on <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/harley-plans-to-ship-fewer-models-to-us-dealers-wsj-2020-5">Business Insider</a>

Harley-Davidson restarts production, but the company is reportedly shipping 70% fewer bikes to dealers in 2020

<img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/5e5d1c57fee23d06921977f6-2200/2018-02-11t000000z1632582779rc1d918d6c80rtrmadp3harley-davidson-ceo-interview.jpg" alt="CEO harley davidson matt levatich" /><ul class="summary-list"><li>Matt Levatich stepped down as <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/harley-davidson">Harley-Davidson</a> CEO after more than two decades with the iconic motorcycle maker.</li><li>The Harley board appointed an interim CEO and undertook a search for a new leader.</li><li>Levatich's resignation should end Harley's efforts to once again reinvent itself amid sliding US sales and an aging customer base.</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/?hprecirc-bullet">Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories</a>.</li></ul>Harley-Davidson CEO Matt Levatich abruptly resigned last Friday, replaced by board member Jochen Zeitz while the iconic motorcycle maker searches for a new chief executive.An orderly transition this most certainly isn't. Levatich had been with Harley for over two decades and was in the midst of a significant transition of the business, as sales in the core US market declined, the customer base aged, and Harley sought new markets in Asia while <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-tesla-could-rescue-the-motorcycle-market-in-the-us-2019-10">also launching a highly-touted new all-electric bike, LiveWire</a>.Zeitz has been on the Harley board since 2007, but prior to that he was CEO of Puma, the athletic brand.The critical issue here is that the Harley brand isn't actually in trouble. Unique in the world, Harley is nearly synonymous with motorized, two-wheeled transportation. You could argue that Harley is motorcycles. The main business problem is that sales have been slowly sliding ever since the financial crisis. That's because the Baby Boomers who supported the brand and were delighted to shell out big bucks for a big bike aren't being adequately replaced by GenXers and Millennials who want to take up the lifestyle. This is a long-term challenge; Harley could remain relatively dominant for decades. Levatich, however, decided not to ride a declining brand into the sunset and began the process of reorganizing Harley's products around younger riders who crave smaller motorcycles; Asian customers who know the brand but don't need a huge freeway cruiser; and futuristic enthusiasts who are all about electric propulsion.<h2>The end of the Levatich era</h2><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/5d2ceaa0a17d6c48464db2a9-2000/large-harley-davidson-livewire---electrify-america-318.jpg" alt="Harley LiveWire" />That strategy was probably needed but, as it turns out, also toxic for Harley's US dealers, who understandably were not all that interested in selling cheaper motorcycles to potential buyers who didn't know how to ride yet and would require training classes (<a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/harley-davidson-ceo-steps-down-11582930380">dealers were reportedly balking at the expense</a>).For the record, Harley has been here before. Prior to the financial crisis, it was trying to get into the sport-bike market and compete with Japanese companies such as Suzuki and Kawasaki, but when the bottom fell out of the world economy, Harley wisely retrenched and got back to basics: big, loud, pricey, all-American motorcycles.Harley boosters know in their heart of hearts that establishing the brand as something one could actually buy and ride in Asia makes sense: riding little Harleys means riding bigger Harleys is more likely. But then again, Harley could also simply cut to the chase in those regions and reduce the inevitable brand dilution that the so-called "small displacement" business implies. Meanwhile, LiveWire isn't moving the needle, either on sales or the sort of brand-halo'ing it was supposed to. That's understandable, as the motorcycle cost $30,000. In fact, Harley's experience with this extremely impressive machine mirrors what's happening in the electric-car market, which has managed to become barely a blip on the global radar despite more than a decade of efforts, the success of Tesla, and plenty of new vehicles in the past few years. The entire EV market amounts to only about 2% of total sales.<h2>Harley's way forward</h2><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/5804dde28d83b4a6018b4b31-1280/wmmb2300.jpg" alt="Mark Fields" />So what's Harley going to do? Well, when you sell high-ticket bikes, you ought to be able to right-size the business to make money pretty consistently, even if sales are terminally slowing and revenue is unlikely to rebound. And there's no reason Harley can't continue to sell the brand, as T-shirts and leather jackets, even if that's just a substantial layer of frosting on the cake.Whoever winds up in charge of Harley is going to have to fix the rift with dealers. Nobody needs a Harley, so the company relies on its front-line dealers to convince interesting, older, (and usually male) riders to buy a bike and then buy another one. This isn't complicated. And while it won't arrest the sales drop, it could preserve the topline and provide Harley with the dependable cashflow its next CEO needs to manage his or her way to assured profits.<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/harley-davidson-difficult-situation-2019-1">Levatich always had the hardest job in the transportation industry.</a> He made some bold moves. A few of them were questionable. Many of of them intentionally distracted from the core of the company. And this is why being CEO of Harley-Davidson is so tough. Any deviation from the care and feeding of the icon is fraught with risk. It's basically never worked. Sadly, the die is now cast and Harley's future is going to be a lot less dynamic than it might have been. The temptation is to bring in a branding genius from outside the motorcycle world, but that would only worsen the situation with the dealers, who don't need anyone telling them what the brand is supposed to be.A better move would be to focus on finding a solid motorcycle person, but Levatich was already that, so really Harley would be looking to replace the former CEO with more of the same, but perhaps a person more comfortable with surrendering the growth objectives. A third option could split the difference, bringing in an experienced transportation executive with a Levatich-like business-school background who could also keep dealers happy and has done the hard work of reinventing 100-plus-year-old companies. That person is former Ford CEO Mark Fields, who left in 2017 and has been working in finance since then. As it turns out, Fields could also be joined by an extremely capable manufacturing leader who is also recently out of a job: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/ford-names-news-chief-operating-officer-amid-11-billion-restructuring-2020-2">Joe Hinrichs stepped down as a Ford president last month</a>.Regardless of what Harley decides to do, the message from last week's sudden decision is clear: The Levatich era is over, and Harley is likely to abandon his ambitious goals to transform the company.

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Harley-Davidson's volume play — CEO aims for X440 success to get India story rolling

PTI

Harley-Davidson misses on 2nd-quarter earnings as coronavirus hurts sales and new CEO pushes restructuring plan

Matthew DeBord,Reuters

Harley-Davidson restarts production, but the company is reportedly shipping 70% fewer bikes to dealers in 2020

Matthew DeBord,Reuters

After the sudden resignation of CEO Matt Levatich, Harley-Davidson has no choice but to retrench around its core business

Matthew DeBord