So what do all you Canadian riders think about the MOCO announcement today that as of July 31, 2017 Harley Davidson will drop Deeley as their Canadian distributor. This move will allow the MOCO to start direct distribution of bikes and parts to Canadian dealers.
Is this a big deal or does it even matter to you? It looks to me like it "could" lower pricing to the end buyer.

 

the antiquated distribution through Deeley has resulted in much higher costs for Canadians for parts, shirts and bikes.

Deeley is based at the West end of the Country..part of their market is 4 1/2 time zones and over 7,000 kilometers away. communication and shipping adds time and cost to everything.
MOST of the Canadian market is physically closer to Milwaukee than it is to Vancouver ( Deeley).
Some of the CDN Dealers are in competition with Deeley owned shops for customers, access to product may not be as easy for them

Pricing structures can be criticized for taking advantage of market by retaining high prices even when the CDN $ has been close to parity with the USD.
CDN prices for Imported product should have risen or fallen with the exchange rate.

This move may make the HD line more competitive vs other "Imports" ( cause if it ain';t a skidoo...it's an import)



it can only get better.

mike

 

This news is the best I have heard in a very long time !!!! The overpricing we pay as stated on genuine HD parts and accessories and clothing is ridiculous !!
Perfect example for you ..... I wanted the 2014 service manual for my new street glide ... Here in Canada at HD it was 100.95 >> I was able to get a U.S friend to grab it off Kutter online for 48.00 ... So yes ... Huge difference...

 

Time will tell but I doubt it, HD sets prices for their product where ever they go. My guess is pricing will remain the same or higher.

 

Here comes the new boss,same as the old boss...
Prices will not change and likely need to be increased for the transition costs of a new management team or be "justified" by some other corporate bafflegab.Besides if Ford,GM, and Chrysler and countless other corporations can gouge Canadians for far more dollars than what they sell the same product to Americans for(don't you just love it when a part or vehicle that is manufactured in Ontario is a lot cheaper to buy in San Diego than Toronto),why should HD be any different?

 

We are fighting a declining Canadian dollar now and I'm sure this has a lot to do with this decision. I was contemplating buying a new bike this year but with the already inflated Canadian prices and our weak dollar, that just isn't going to happen. Sales will be down across the board in Canada unless the MoCo takes drastic action to spur sales. This announcement fits in the "drastic action" category. Just my take on it.

 

Don't worry guys. Harley will keep their high prices in Canada as they do here in good old Europe.
We almost pay double price compared to the US market. HD announced to raise the price for new motorcycles stating 1st of March for the high US Dollar. I'm sure this will happen to P&A also. When the dollar dropped in the past, they never lowered their prices.
Ride safe
Werner

 

During brainstorming seminars national marketing geeks agree on a "Maximum Public Price" applicable to a product and sales policy to support their "Market penetration project".
Such sessions are done in presence of the sales force exposed to the public and thankful to share this level of decision taking; in fact the sales force often shoots itself in the foot.

Once the marketing scenario is established you manage players (or distributors) according to the progression of sales you projected.

No matter who sells H-D, the marketing logic applies. In the EU prices are calculated to provide a (fixed) margin over the NET cost (used to be called C.O.D.) and we will always pay a greater price.

 

The only change I can foresee,is that in 2 yrs time or as early as this fall,we won't know who to blame for the high prices we pay.

 

This isn't a new idea that was spurred by the lower Canadian dollar. My local dealer told me last summer that Deeley was going to be out when their contract came due. Before the dollar took a dump they said to expect prices to lower once they eliminated the middle man... let's hope this is true.