{"id":8834,"date":"2026-04-17T13:04:02","date_gmt":"2026-04-17T07:34:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/onlykutts.com\/?p=8834"},"modified":"2026-04-17T13:04:04","modified_gmt":"2026-04-17T07:34:04","slug":"harley-davidson-needs-a-jump-start","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/onlykutts.com\/index.php\/2026\/04\/17\/harley-davidson-needs-a-jump-start\/","title":{"rendered":"Harley-Davidson Needs a Jump-Start"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\n
\"Image\"\/<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Image\"\/<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Image\"\/<\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Harley-Davidson just launched “RIDE” – a new global brand platform. There’s a 60-second TV ad, Willie Nelson’s On the Road Again<\/em> in the background, real riders on real roads, and an American flag or two. Clean, emotional, back to basics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the surface, it looks like a campaign. But it isn’t. It’s a distress signal dressed up nicely.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Numbers Don’t Lie<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"Image\"\/<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Harley’s retail motorcycle sales dropped 12% in 2025 \u2013 the fourth consecutive year of decline. Bike sales are now down 32% from 2021, the last year they actually grew.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Global motorcycle retail sales in 2025 were down 12% from 2024, which was down 17% from 2023. Net income fell 26% yearoveryear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This isn’t a bad quarter. The company is a brand in structural retreat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What’s Eating Harley<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The problems are layered, and they’ve been building for years:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  • The core customer is ageing out.<\/strong> When you see a Harley coming toward you, you see somebody with a big grey beard \u2013 that’s not a joke from a competitor. That’s a Harley owner talking about his brand. Baby Boomers drove the company’s golden era. They’re now in their 60s and 70s, and they’re hanging up their boots.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Younger riders aren’t buying in.<\/strong> Gen Z and younger millennials are showing far less brand loyalty and significantly more interest in lightweight, affordable bikes from brands like Honda, Yamaha, and KTM.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Affordability is a wall.<\/strong> Most Harley models sit north of $20,000. That’s not an impulse buy for a 28-year-old.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Tariffs are punishing the business.<\/strong> The company incurred $67 million in additional costs in 2025 due to tariffs alone.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Previous strategies failed to make a significant impact.<\/strong> The brand has undergone several transformations, including More Roads, Hardwire, and Rewire. None produced the volume growth the market was waiting for.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

    So, Why “RIDE”?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    CEO Artie Starrs is calling it a “full reset of the brand”-one that leans heavily into the simple joy of riding, stripping things back to the emotional core of motorcycles rather than layering on anything radically new.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    That’s a deliberate choice. When a brand is confused about what it stands for, going back to the most fundamental truth is often the right instinct. Harley isn’t trying to be a tech company or a lifestyle platform. It makes motorcycles. Riding is the thing. Lead with that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Central to RIDE is a 60-second ad featuring a diverse cast of riders \u2013 in cities and on open roads \u2013 celebrating friendship, community, and the American flag. The diversity in the casting is also a signal. Harley is quietly telling the market it wants more people in the tent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Along with the platform, Harley has revived its iconic Bar and Shield logo \u2013 a heritage move that says, ‘We know who we are, and we’re not running from it.’<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n