Harley Davidson Case Analysis : Davidson

Harley-Davidson, Inc. since its inception has specialized in selling dream motorcycles that are of high quality and distinctive in styles. The company in the past have seen turbulent business environment to the extent of leveraged buyout, infiltration of foreign made bikes as well as government regulations. Yet despite these factors, Harley-Davidson continues to reap profits, yield high growth of approximately 15% a year and retain its customer base (Official Website 2004). This position in the market is however limited to the US whereas in other countries of the world Harley-Davidson products remain luxury item requiring emotional attachment with American iconism.

Harley-Davidson has been operating as a U.S. motorcycle manufacturer since 1903. Throughout its life, it has been through many hardships, but just as many successes. Throughout the 1970s and 1980s Harley-Davidson experienced tremendous difficulties and almost went bankrupt in 1985. To its dismay, in the 1990s Harley-Davidson experienced several years of record growth and was ranked in 1990 by BusinessWeek as one of the top U.S. companies with a market value of $515 million. As a sign of their success, they remain the only U.S. motorcycle manufacturer still in business.

Despite their conception in 1903, Harley-Davidson and the motorcycle industry as a whole didn’t really take off until after the Second World War. Many people rode motorcycles during the war, with Harley-Davidson themselves supplying almost 90,000 motorcycles for the U.S. military during this time. Many veterans chose to purchase motorcycles upon returning home, as they enjoyed riding during the war and wanted to continue riding in their civilian life. This generation known as the “baby-boomers” quickly became the main target audience for many of Harley-Davidson’s marketing efforts. With sales increasing and the industry growing, many “motorcycle clubs” and “rallies” were introduced. Unfortunately, due to the lewd behavior displayed by

It could be speculated that one reason HD has such a high ratio is because they are not investing in the growth of their company and one might come to the conclusion that they are stagnant when in actuality this is not the case. When you look at their growth rates you have to take into consideration optimum performance levels. HD is deficient in every Growth Rate Ratio across the board. Revenue Growth, Earnings Per Share, Capital Spending Growth all significantly lower than that of their competitors. However, my opinion is that the reason behind this is that they are already a well-established company who are already operating at the optimum level at which their market demands. All of the other companies in HD’s shadow are trying to play catch up so they have larger percentages of growth by comparison; however they suffer in profitability as a result of their growth rate. This theory is further corroborated by analyzing all of the profitability ratios, management effectives ratios and the disparity those numbers reflect between HD and its competitors.

Despite increasing their sales Harley-Davidson company hold a specialized and profitable part of a commercial market. But due to the fall of Harley-Davidson’s market share they faced financial problem in producing new production. This financial crisis made Harley-Davidson to go public for the first ever of their 60-year private ownership. American Machine and Foundry (AMF)

Ronald Grottanelli appeals the judgment of the District Court for the Western District of New York in a suit brought forward by Harley-Davidson, Inc. The judgment prohibits Grottanelli from using the word “hog” in reference to some of his products and services. Moreover, it restricts Grottanelli from using his logo modeled on Harley-Davidson's bar-and-shield design mark, but the verdict allows him to continue using the mark “THE HOG FARM” to mark his motorcycle service business in a restricted geographic area. Following this, Harley-Davidson cross-appeals and argues that the Court should farther limit the geographic area where Grottanelli may use the mark “THE HOG FARM.”

The strength of Harley-Davidson 's brand and dominant market position give the firm a wide moat, in our opinion. However, weaker consumer spending and tight credit markets are presenting the firm with some significant near-term challenges. In addition, we believe the firm must carefully broaden the appeal of its brand to secure its long-term

Participant 1 (PAR1, AFSAS Person 1) was operating his Harley Davidson Sportster 883 (OBJ1, AFSAS Object 1) when he rear ended a vehicle on a five lane highway. As PAR1 struck the rear end of the vehicle he became airborne landing in the adjacent traffic lane. An unsuspected motorist to struck PAR1’s legs push him to the edge of the highway. PAR1 then called for medical assistances and was transferred to a medical facility where he received 8 days convalescent leave for his injuries.

As for South America, Harley-Davidson Inc. HOG +0.31% opened a permanent Latin America headquarters, joining a growing list of U.S. companies looking to tap into the emerging market. (By Melodie Warner in Market Watch) South America has a growing economy and a huge acceptance for an icon in the motorcycle industry like Harley Davidson. In the same way Japan embraced Harley “Their economy is a fast growing luxury market” p.c11.

Historically, how did Harley‐Davidson manage to dominate the US market? How did it do so and what were its sources of competitive advantage?

In this paper we will perform a complete analysis of the Harley-Davidson Corporation including their corporate and business strategies, strengths and weaknesses, environmental opportunities, the five industry forces, and financial situation. Harley-Davidson has many attributes, which will be apparent in the following analysis. The paper will attempt to define the different components of the analysis and put them all together in a way that seeks to explain the way that they contribute to the overall success of the company and its stakeholders.

Below is a free essay on "Harley Davidson Analysis" from Anti Essays, your source for online free essays, free research papers, and free term papers.

Harley Davidson is known as one of the main motorcycle manufacturers and sellers in the United States. The company had good business and great market share in the early 1960s when it commanded a total of about 70% 0f the motorcycle market, before the invasion or the intrusion of a small Japanese firm that manufactured lighter motorcycles, known as the Honda. The case study as identifies that Harley Davidson assumed the invasion by the Japanese firm and instead of tackling the competition, it waited for a long time which resulted in the company losing its command in the motorcycle market in the United States. Lack of action by the management of Harley Davidson resulted in the failure of the company

After an investigation by the US International Trade Commission, in 1983 President Reagan imposed a 45% tariff on imported bikes and bikes over 700 cc engine capacity. The new management deliberately exploited the past appeal of their big machines, building motorcycles that purposely adopted the look and feel of their earlier models. Quality increased, technical improvements were made, and buyers returned. Harley-Davidson once again became the sales leader in the heavyweight (over 750 cc) market.

Milwaukee is where it all started for Harley Davidson. In 1903, William Harley Walter and Arthur Davidson created the first of millions Harley Davidson. It was one of the two major motorcycles that were able to survive the great depression. Since 1977, the only motorcycles sold to the public under the Harley-Davidson brand have been heavyweight motorcycles, with engine displacements greater than 700 cc, designed for cruising on highways. It is one of the most well known brands in the world of motorcycles and otherwise as well. Harley-Davidson maintains an enormous brand community, which keeps active through clubs, events, and a museum. The worth of Harley Davidson brand and its logo was somewhere around $40 million which was 0.8% of the