Polaris made a bet on the motorcycle industry over a decade ago when it bought the historic Indian motorcycle brand. The Medina-based recreational vehicle giant knew it would be a long road to profitability when it took on a category long dominated by Harley-Davidson.
But on Tuesday, the unit is riding high as it launches a refresh of its most popular motorcycle model, the Indian Scout. Last year, the business posted its first annual profit and is now consistently No. 2 in the industry in North America behind Harley, which is based in Milwaukee.
The motorcycle division started in 1997 and added the Indian brand in a 2011 acquisition. With the brand added, Polaris began to expand the unit. The motorcycles are in the On-Road unit, along with the three-wheel Slingshot and a few other small businesses. That unit now accounts for 13% of the company’s $8.9 billion in sales.
The Indian Scout refresh is the biggest product launch in the Scout lineup for Polaris with design cues and models that callback to legendary Scout models that predate ownership by the Medina-based powersports company.
Polaris initially made motorcycles under the Victory brand before they acquired the Indian Motorcycle brand. In 2017, Polaris announced it would discontinue the Victory brand. Soon Polaris was making motorcycles only under the Indian name. The historical roots of Indian go back to 1901.
“There is a strong future for Indian Motorcycle,” said Mike Dougherty, president of Polaris On-Road.
The past decade was about serving loyal customers and building the critical mass of the business, from engineering to manufacturing and sales.
“This scale in our business combined with, in my opinion, the best and most exciting motorcycles in the market, Indian Motorcycle is well-positioned to continue gaining market share, expanding the brand in the U.S. and internationally, all while growing profitably,” Dougherty said.
