Harley-Davidson

Harley-Davidson OVERVIEW/PROBLEM STATEMENTThe following are the problems of Harley Davidson1. Declining market2. Poor economic climate3. Competition from Japanese manufacturers4. Poor quality of products5. Young Generation not buying the productCOMPANY PROFILEThe Davidson brothers, William D., William S., Walter and Arthur founded Harley Davidson, Inc. in 1903. In the first year, only three motor cycles were produced. In 1904 production increased to eight motorcycles. Company present office is located at Juneau Avenue in Milwaukee, USA. In 1907 the company was incorporated.In 1965, Harley-Davidson ended family ownership with a public stock offering and then in 1969, merged with American Machine and Foundry Company (AMF). In 1981, 13 members of the Harley-Davidson management team purchased the company from AMF through a leveraged buy-out. In the early 1980s, Japanese competitors ¡Ã‚ ¦ heavyweight motorcycles created a real threat for the Harley-Davidson organization. The heavy Japanese imports to t he U.S.The 1490cc HD engine. Rubber mounted.These four men were the founders of the best motorbike company ever, Harley-Davidson.The first couple of years of the business were some of the hardest. The four men completed their first motorbike in about 1903(McDiarmid, 13). In their 1904 season, they produced somewhere between one and eight bikes. The first motorbike ever produced went for a total of 134,000 kilometers (McDiarmid, 13). This gave the Harley-Davidson Company a reputation of being dependable. In 1906, Harley was making at least 50 motorbikes a year. The Harley-Davidson Company became an official company in 1907 and by then was making 150 motorbikes a year. By 1908, the Harley-Davidson Company was producing 450 machines a year with a staff of 18 (McDiarmid, 17).As the Harley Davidson Company grew, they became too big for the factory they were in. In 1910, they invested in a...