A Partner for its Asia Pacific Hub
Harley-Davidson is going through a massive restructuring, and the motorcycle company is going to look a lot different in the coming years. Part of that restructuring is to use Thailand as its main hub for the Asia Pacific markets, according to Economic Times Auto. To help make this happen, Harley is looking at a collaboration with another company, possibly Mahindra’s subsidiary Classic Legends or Hero Motocorp.
This potential alliance would handle contract manufacturing for Harley-Davidson. The bikes that would be produced would be smaller displacement machines than we’re used to seeing from Harley. They would be middleweight machines designed to compete with Bajaj and KTM, TVS, or BMW.
This is a smart move by Harley in my eyes. Classic Legends is already in the process of breathing new life into hold brands. Both BSA and Jawa are owned and run by Classic Legends, and that gives me hope that it would be a smart move for Harley. Hero Motocorp is another force to be reckoned with and has said that it wants to do more in the premium segment. Harley could be that brand.
Nothing is for sure at this time. There have been no deals inked, and Harley is just reevaluating its moves in this area of the world. This could be a smart move. Harley has to do this right if it wants to make smaller bikes that will compete in the Asian Pacific market without diluting its brand image too much.