[libranof1987]

Harley-Davidson to open brand stores in India.

If it wasn't the case already, seems like a move to capitalize on brand "Harley-Davidson" as the news generously mentions HD merchandise.

American cult bike-maker Harley-Davidson is preparing to accelerate its India engagement by opening brand stores across top metros, while working on boosting exports to the US and countries across Europe. The push comes even as US President Donald Trump has voiced concern against the duty on imported Harley bikes. Trump feels that a recent cut in import duty (to 50%) is not sufficient.

The company is looking at partnerships for this retail expansion and will begin with 12 such stores that will come up in cities such as Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru and Chennai. “We plan to have a lot more such stores.” Harley also sells specific merchandise through its motorcycle stores, but this is aimed at the enthusiasts. “These are heavy on branding.”

Quote Source: Times of India

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Not a bad idea. Royal Enfield has successfully been running the merchandise show for quite sometime now and some stores are even located inside shopping malls.

Harley Davidson could utilize a similar concept to sell their merchandise and also increase public brand awareness.

Not sure about the quality of their merchandise though - as my exposure to them have been limited to smaller items like caps etc that friends have gifted occasionally. Helmets I believe are rebranded from HJC.

[ArizonaJim]

Harley Davidson's merchandise is top quality and is known to last for years even with hard usage.

That said, it usually costs a kings ransom because it has the official "Harley Davidson" logo on it.

There are other options that are equal in quality and cost far less. Of course, you don't get the Harley logo.

[GTO]

Harley-Davidson makes a whopping $262 million (annual gross) from selling merchandise - link. To such iconic marques, merchandise is a profitable + brand building exercise. Similar case with Ferrari merchandise.

Harley India is copying Royal Enfield which in turn copied Harley USA. Royal Enfield has some excellent standalone merchandise stores, including one at Bandra where I've bought some stuff.

It'll sell. The brand has draw & their quality is top notch. Store-level profitability is guaranteed.

[Moto_Hill]

They currently sell merchandise through their bike stores. They have a good range of tees, helmets, stickers, jackets, safety gears. They cost a bomb though. I got a small sticker some 3 years back for 700 INR for my RE. Though I removed it later for esthetic reasons, the quality was top notch.