Words by Gugu Masuku

Throughout the years, Harley Davidson has become known as the bike of choice for greasy, long-haired, tattooed old men, and when people think of the brand, this is the image they see. This highly inappropriate image of a man on a bike sadly leads to many turning to the next available motorcycle brand.

Well, the outcry has been deafening and was beginning to affect the brand’s market share. Thankfully, the powers that be at Harley’s headquarters have heard, and they are taking drastic steps to turn things around.

Harely’s new strategy includes broadening their range to not only include their existing clientele but, more importantly, to reach out to new people like you and me who don’t fit the mould of old agro and tattooed – I haven't heard better news in ages! Harley Davidson is an appealing brand but for the longest time I just couldn't relate, and thankfully that’s all about to change.

A few months ago, I met with the brand’s marketing manager, Aidan Johnson. He made it clear that the brand is going through much-needed renovations; they are making an earnest effort to break the stereotype and get more people of colour on their bikes, and bring in a new breed of riders.

A huge part of this new strategy is introducing 500cc to 1250cc middleweight platform motorcycles, starting with a 975 Streetfighter model launching in 2020, which gets my approval as one with a weakness for this type of motorcycle.

 

Harley also has an Adventure Touring bike on the way, set to drop around the same time as the Streetfighter named the Pan America. No doubt this robust looking machine is sure to get people talking as it leans more towards the unique side of motorcycle design. It’s set to come coupled with a 1250cc motor and is aimed for launch in 2020.

 

 

The LiveWire will be the first-ever fully electric motorcycle from Harley Davidson – talk about breaking the mould! It will be offered in a simple clutchless setup, just open the throttle and you're off! LiveWire will be the first of many projected electric motorcycles for Harley, and we can expect to see it as soon as next year.

 

Other models projected in Harley Davidsons new portfolio will include a mean looking custom motorcycle with 1250cc to get things going, and a range of other lighter, more nimble bikes set to launch between 2021 and 2022 respectively.

 

The future looks quite promising for this American brand, and we’re looking forward to bringing you timely updates of this new avenue that Harley Davidson is veering into.

 

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