Victory Motorcycles The End
Polaris Industries, the giant American company behind Victory Motorcycles and Indian Motorcycle, have announced that they will immediately wind down the Victory Motorcycles brand.
Victory Motorcycles, founded 18 years ago, the Victory brand has been a strong presence in the market, and was number four in the North American market on market share, but global sales were only running at just over 10,000 units per annum. The process of winding-down the company start immediately, and is expected to be complete in 18 months.
‘This was an incredibly difficult decision,’ said Polaris Industries Chairman and CEO Scott Wine. ‘We have invested not only resources, but our hearts and souls, into forging the Victory Motorcycles brand, and we are exceptionally proud of what our team has accomplished.’
Isle of Man TT fans, as well as fans of electric motorcycles, will also know that Polaris acquired Brammo in 2015, and have been racing with the technology under the Victory Motorcycles name. All Brammo patents, technology, intellectual property and Polaris enhancements will remain the property of Polaris and the firm says that they ‘will be applied to other products and business units as appropriate’.
So what does the demise of Victory Motorcycles mean for owners? Dealers and owners won’t suddenly be cut off, and Polaris have committed to continue to provide them with the same levels of customer service and support. There will be full parts availability for 10 years along with service, warranty coverage and other necessary support. The Thai Victory Motorcycle dealer is also an outlet for sister firm Indian Motorcycle, so it’s likely that the supplying Victory dealer will still be owners’ first port of call. Each dealer worldwide will make this decision based on their unique circumstances and customer base, and some may offer service for 10 years or even more.
So is there any good news? Well, yes. The demise of Victory Motorcycles frees up investment funds and other resources that will be used to accelerate the growth, product innovation and profitability of the Indian Motorcycle range.
