Harley Davidson Case
Essay by douglass.tommy • January 30, 2013 • Case Study • 555 Words (3 Pages) • 2,347 Views
Name: _________________________________ Midterm Exam - 2013
Please address questions on the following page. View issues in the context of Year 2005;
Provide strategic analysis and recommendations as directed;
Utilize applicable theory and frameworks;
Support with specific rationale;
Avoid repeating case facts.
Harley Davidson: Preparing for the Next Century
Q 1 How would you characterize HD's core challenge(s), importance, urgency, etc., as of the end of 2005?
What are the defined, or inferred, decision criteria for the go-forward strategy in the case?
Harley Davidson has long been a brand with high customer loyalty and a symbol of American made ingenuity. It faces many challenges currently and it would seem that its' long time strength is rapidly becoming its' greatest weakness. As their main demographic continues to age Harley Davidson is failing to grow in market share with younger riders and equally female riders. Having overcome its production issues of the 80's by learning from the Japanese it must now face the challenge of growing its' ridership amongst a new generation of riders and reclaiming its' former dominance of the American market.
With the 17% stock price decline in April of 2005 due to the change in sales forecast the company finds itself at a crossroads and perhaps a timely wake up call.
Further exporting the Harley Davidson brand remains crucial to increasing profitability. In order to do that it must design new products that both appeal to these foreign markets while not alienating its' cult following, a daunting task for any marketer. With the consistent performance and reliability of the Japanese motorbikes and the lower price the American motorbike giant faces many difficult decisions in order to conquer more global market share.
With a 17% stock price decline in April of 2005 due to the change in sales forecast the company finds itself at a crossroads and perhaps a timely wake up call. The urgency of this task remains debatable as forecasters within the firm predict that as their core demographic ages the these time these individuals spend enjoying their products will continue to increase however, this cannot last forever and sooner or later a new generation must targeted in order to renew ridership. With this in consideration it is my own personal belief that Harley Davidson has roughly 2 years
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