| Author | Message | ||
     Brucelee |
Interesting Harley-Davidson's Buell Nearly Doubles 04 European Sales DOW JONES NEWSWIRES September 14, 2004 9:18 a.m. MUNICH -- U.S. motorcycle maker Harley-Davidson's sporty Buell unit increased European sales by more than 75% in 2004, as riders flocked to Buell's "streetfighter" XB12S product line, Harley-Davidson Europe Ltd. Managing Director John Russell told Dow Jones Newswires. Buell's sales were traditionally in the 1,000-1,200 unit range, said Russell, until it launched the faster, stripped-down "streetfighter" line in 2003 that has appealed to European riders who grew up with high performance bikes make by Ducati, BMW, Suzuki or other Japanese producers, he said. Buell has sold 3,500 bikes in Europe as of the end of July, he said. Russell said he expects Harley-Davidson's European market share including Buell, which it acquired 10 years ago, to rise to 8%-9% in 2004, compared with 6%-7% last year. "That an American-made sports bike sells more in Europe than in the American market is new for a U.S. company," he said. Buell is Germany's fastest-growing brand, said Buell Chairman and chief designer Eric Buell, who said he got the idea for the "streetfighter" from watching "The Terminator." Buell's sportier and faster bikes compliment Harley-Davidson's heavier, bigger line of custom and touring motorcycles. Russell said Buell benefits from some synergy with Harley's distribution network in Europe, but the aim is "to make the Buell brand stand on its own two wheels in a market that already has plenty of brands," he said. Europe accounts for 11% of Harley-Davidson's annual sales volumes | ||
| Gonen60 |
Eric Buell, who said he got the idea for the "streetfighter" from watching "The Terminator." Ummm} | ||
| Lord_deathscyte |
Just glad to see sales climbing some where. | ||
| Glitch |
Buell is Germany's fastest-growing brand No doubt, just check out Hillbilly Bikers. Those guys are way ahead of everyone else as far as XBs are concerned. | ||
| Cataract2 |
Wow, now that is saying something. Seems like Buell is onto something. | ||
| Tucsonxb9s |
I think now you can see Buell's philosophy for the City X. I'm thinking the European market will absolutely eat those things up! | ||
| Trojan |
2,000 years of history teaches you to appreciate the finer things in life  Plus of course we have lots of corners....... | ||
| Zip |
American's seem to follow European lead in motorcycles (sometimes). How many time have we Americans lamented over a Euro only bike from brand X. maybe this will turnout to be some convoluted twist that boosts sales in the USA.  | ||
| Whodom |
Zip- that's exactly what I was thinking. Whatever, it seems like it has to be a good thing for Buell. | ||
| Tikiman1 |
Doesn't Harley only have a 54% share of Buell? | ||
| Blake |
HDI bought 49% of BMC back in '93 or '94 timeframe then increased that to '98% around 1998, then most recently I believe they took on 100%. HDI also owns 100% of HDMC and HDDC. |
