OFF THE WIRE
http://www.eagletribune.com/business/x1525008244/Polaris-poised-to-inject-new-life-into-iconic-Indian-motorcycles
Polaris to inject new life into Indian motorcycles
By Dee DePass MCT News Service The Eagle Tribune
Arturo Eguia-Welch, co-owner of Indian Motorcycle of the Twin
Cities, is so thrilled to sell the iconic American bike that he set up his St.
Paul, Minn., dealership like a museum, featuring models from 1949 to today.
Soon, Eguia-Welch, the only Indian dealer in Minnesota, will
have two new models to sell.
This month, Polaris Industries introduced the 2013 “Indian
Chief Vintage Final Edition” at the International Motorcycle Show at the
Minneapolis Convention Center. The limited edition bike is the last one to be
based on designs from the previous owners in Kings Mountain, N.C., and only 25
will be made.
But come fall, Medina, Minn.-based Polaris --- which bought
the 112-year-old company in 2011 --- will unleash hundreds of its closely
guarded, fully redesigned 2014 Indian. By year-end, the new generation bike will
roar out of the factory in Spirit Lake, Iowa, and onto showroom floors at new
dealerships set up across North America.
The launch is important for Polaris. Steve Menneto, the
company’s vice president of motorcycles, said Polaris has invested “tens of
millions of dollars” to get Indian just right so it can compete with
Harley-Davidson.
If successful, Polaris will revive a struggling but
much-beloved motorcycle brand that broke racing records in the ‘60s, birthed the
2005 Anthony Hopkins movie “The World’s Fastest Indian,” and survived
predecessors’ bankruptcies and weakly funded relaunches.
“We are really excited. It’s going to be a great year,”
Menneto said. “Our team is committed to charting an inspired new future for this
brand that fuses the iconic elements of its legendary past with (new)
state-of-the-art technology and engineering prowess.”
At the motorcycle show, Eguia-Welch and other fans of the
classic heavyweight motorcycle huddled near a sound booth display to hear the
distinct engine growl that Polaris promises will be a key feature of its next
generation bike. “I am extremely excited about what is to come,” Eguia-Welch
said.
Mark Smith, senior research analyst at Feltl & Co. in
Minneapolis, said Polaris’ engineers spent big to develop the right engine roar
for its new take on the 1901 American classic.
“They have rooms full of special equipment and sound studios
where they tuned and tweaked and tested to get the sound just right,” Smith
said. “You think of Harley-Davidson, and you immediately get that key piece of
recognition because of the engine sound. (With Polaris’ Indian), they certainly
need that same feeling of wonder.”
Hundreds of the new 2014 bikes are expected to emerge this
fall, thanks to hundreds of Polaris engineers in Wyoming, Minn.; engine builders
in Osceola, Wis.; and production workers in Spirit Lake, Iowa. Polaris will make
both its Victory motorcycle, a brand it built over 10 years, and the Indian in
the same plant.
In buying Indian, Polaris instantly gained an established,
well-loved brand that could sell well right out of the starting gate. Indian
will be built on two of its own production lines in Spirit Lake.
“With Indian, you have this great, upscale brand,” said Smith,
the research analyst at Feltl & Co. “It’s been undercapitalized for decades. Now
(under the wing of the $3 billion Polaris), one has the chance to dump the
capital and the R&D it deserves into the Indian name. ... I think it’s really
exciting.” With Indian, Polaris has “something where they can go after that
high-end consumer. With Indian, there is a lot of brand equity.” Menneto wants
to have 150 Indian dealers set up across the United States and Canada by year
end 2014. And he wants about $375 million in annual sales in five to seven
years.
It’s a tall order. There are just 14 Indian dealers today.
Only 100 of the 2013 Indian models will be made and sold. So a lot is riding on
the 2014 redesign and production ramp-up.
To understand the aggressive nature of Polaris’ goals,
consider that in 2011, Polaris’s entire “on-road” division — mostly Victory
motorcycles and electric vehicles — generated $146 million in sales. Forecasts
call for 60 percent growth in 2012. And Menneto predicts $750 million in
combined Victory and Indian sales in five to seven years.
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