Harley-Davidson to expand business to smaller cities

American motorcycle maker Harley-Davidson is expecting growth in tier-II cities of the country. They plan on opening dealerships and introducing the brand in new growing city markets.

MD, Harley-Davidson India, Vikram Pawah said that the Harley-Davidson brand has succeeded in building a strong cruiser motorcycle culture. Moreover, since its retail operations began in the country in 2010, over 12,000 Harley-Davidson motorcycles have been sold.

The company has more than 65 per cent market share in the segment, he said adding, that it was expanding its dealer network in tier-II cities, where growth is expected. Harley-Davidson offers a range of 13 models and of these, only one, the Street, is manufactured in India at the Bawal, Haryana plant. The rest are assembled at the completely-knocked-down unit at Bawal. The Street is also exported from here to countries like Japan and Australia.

To a query about the proposal to launch lower capacity bikes to suit Indian road conditions, he said there was no such proposal. He further said South India was an important market for the company which had received ‘a phenomenal response’ from the customers.