Harley Davidson Case Study Report

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At the same year, Harley-Davidson’s venture to China market also was not very smoothly, when a company enters a foreign market without sufficient background preparation.

In 2011, Harley-Davidson generated 88 percent of its revenues from a single business area (Motorcycles and Related Products) and 12 percent from its second primary segment (Financial Services). This composition of sales revues is consistent with previous years and suggests that Harley may continue business as usual to help the firm reduce its idiosyncratic risk. It will also try to expand its business in other countries with a primary focus on providing quality product and services. Harley- Davidson has been able to earn positive returns while focusing on just two business because it has developed strengths that allow it to create value for customers. Moreover, there are fewer challenges in managing only two business.

In 2016, Today’s Harley-Davidson, in order to show how its American spirit is proving popular around the world. Harley-Davidson has built a new motorcycle and chose to launch in Europe, but whether it will sell well in Europe is left to be seen. Many other brands offer motorcycles that perform as well, such as BMW or Yamaha, but Harley’s pricing beats them all as the Euro Festival showed, the Harley brand has a strong following in Europe. So for those who want the true American flavor, there really is only one choice.

Based on my analysis with Harley-Davidson’s business strategy case study, I think Harley Davidson should not have purchased other irrelevant motorcycles’ companies when they became the only one supplier of motorcycle’s product in the U.S. and they should not have sold their company to AMF during the difficult time, or even AMF has bought Harley-Davidson financially, but the company’s management strategy should always maintain the same in order to keep the core value of Harley-Davidson’s brand, product and customers. Good strategy about Harley-Davidson is when Harley-Davidson faced the global economic condition changes, they also changed their target market to meet the market needs; when Harley-Davidson sold the company to AMF unsuccessfully due to the wrong management strategy, Harley-Davidson’s employees and management of Harley Davidson took the company back and restructure the company to keep their core values and improved the management strategy.

Overall, Haley-Davidson is a typical U.S. successful heavy motorcycles company till today, it has survived from the good times and bad times. In the future, when Harley-Davidson expand their international business overseas should conduct below researches:

*** Government Regulations

To understand the country rules of riding a motorcycles is major important when launch Harley-Davidson into a new country, as well as the safety training programs

***Customer Preferences

Before entering a new country, always need to do sufficient research about the customer preference of heavy motorcycles, some counties just don’t have the experience to ride a heavy motorcycles, as Harley-Davidson see the great potential of motorcycles market in that country, always need to spend the time and advertisement to let customer experience their heavy motorcycle product first, build the loyalty customers little by little and then try to expand the business after having certain amount of followings in that country.

***Market Segment share

Harley-Davidson always need to do the market segment share evaluation before launch the business in a new country, if the research tells that market segment share will not be an amount to start the business, then that county should not have Harley-Davidson’s product.

***Core Competitors

Before entering into a new country, Harley-Davidson always need to know who are the core competitors, they can get this information from customer survey or market investigations or industry sales report.

*** Threats & Challenges

There are usually culture difference challenges and government regulations, environmental risks, customer preference, price preference or currency inflations threats to a new country, as to create a new lifestyle to any new country, Harley-Davidson need to know all these opportunities, strengths and threatens in front of them, and make the best decision to enter the right place to expand their global business.

SWOT Analysis Strategies of globally expanding Harley-Davidson

Internal Factors Analysis Summary (IFAS)

External Factors Analysis Summary(EFAS)

Strengths(S)

S1. Iconic American company

S2. Has strong core competency

S3. Harley-Davidson the brand is their assets

S4. Create values for customer

Weaknesses(W)

W1. Lack of foreign country government regulation experiences

W2. Lack of customer preference research

Opportunities (O)

O1. Global resources

O2. Internationally Harley-Davidson market & stores

O3. Global strategic management

SO Strategies

- Globally expanding

- Increased international business

- Crossing culture management/leadership

WO Strategies

- Provide American style management to global business, localization

Threats (T)

T1. Strong competition

T2. Slow market growth

T3. Price wars

T4. Foreign currency inflation

T5. Culture difference barriers

ST Strategies

- Continue build up loyalty customers

- Focus on production