Is Big Trouble Looming For Harley-Davidson?
For a premium motorcycle to sell well, several things need to go right. Not just on the motorcycle, but even for its target audience. As a result, many premium bikemakers often struggle to maintain positive sales trends/ Harley-Davidson is a key example of that, as the brand’s latest financials paint a saddening picture. Here’s what you need to know.
Harley-Davidson Recorded Dipping Sales For The Second Consecutive Year
This is perhaps the biggest and most alarming takeaway. Harley-Davidson’s record shows ~151,200 sales in 2024, a seven percent drop over the motorcycles sold in 2023. The difference worsens when you look at the 2022 figures of 178,400 sales. A closer look reveals the market-wise numbers. Europe, the Middle East, and Africa saw a combined sizable 11 percent drop in sales over 2023, while the APAC (Asia Pacific) region recorded an 18 percent decline.
Out of all, the latter is what might alarm Harley-Davidson the most. That’s because H-D has launched three special small-capacity bikes in India, China, and Australia, all of which are catered towards improving sales figures. Yet, the entire APAC just managed 22,200 sales in the entire year. So it appears the American giant still hasn’t cracked the most populous markets, even after dedicated products.
| Market | 2024 sales | 2023 sales | 2022 sales |
| North America | 102,023 | 105,890 | 117,114 |
| EMEA | 24,082 | 27,005 | 30,510 |
| APAC | 22,213 | 26,953 | 27,905 |
| Latin America | 2,911 | 2,923 | 2,922 |
| Total | 151,229 | 162,771 | 178,451 |
Harley-Davidson’s EV Initiative Is In An Even Bigger Pickle
Think those numbers are bad? Wait till you see LiveWire‘s situation. Even though it is a fairly new initiative, the electric marque is losing money left, right, and center. It reported an operating loss of $110 million, which was marginally better than the 2023 figure of $117 million. However, the motorcycle shipments were lower than in 2023, instead of better. That is a bit perplexing when you consider LiveWire introduced two new motorcycles in the past two years, yet its shipment figure has dropped. As a domino effect, the revenue was 31 percent down over 2023. Let’s hope 2025 fares better for Harley-Davidson!
