No, Millennials Aren’t Killing Harley-Davidson!

Expanding Harley Market Proves MoCo is still as Popular as Ever

Despite the fact that we’re not buying new bikes, we’re still giving our money to the Motor Company one way or another, whether it’s tee-shirts, tin signs, oil filters, or chrome accessories. Simply put, we’re riding Harleys, and while it doesn’t show up in the sales numbers, it shows up in the bottom line.

This might explain why new Harley-Davidson dealerships are popping up all over, from Salisbury, Maryland to St. Augustine, Florida. House of Harley-Davidson, a dealership in Yorkville, Wisconsin, is moving to a much larger complex. Their new dealership location project will set the owner back no less than $5 million. Maybe they will change their name to “Mansion of Harley-Davidson” or “The Harley-Davidson Compound.”

If you want to learn about the motorcycle business, it’s important to pay close attention to whether the news source is more focused on the ‘motorcycle’ or the ‘business’ side of things.

If running a Harley-Davidson dealership is such a bad business decision, why are we reading about dealerships opening instead of dealerships closing? I’m guessing that the owners of the dealerships are starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel as millennials age and begin to become established.

While millennials aren’t as set financially as their Baby Boomer parents and grandparents, they’re reportedly having less children. As their student loans get paid off, millennials will likely have even more disposable income to spend on luxury items, like, say, new Harley-Davidsons.

It’s already starting. Harley’s new LiveWire, aimed squarely at the tech-obsessed millennial buyer, was already generating pre-orders mere days after pricing and release information were revealed at the Consumer Electronics Show. Judging by the comment section of previous LiveWire articles we’ve run, it sure ain’t Boomers lining up to buy this thing.

When reading stories like CNBC’s latest hit piece, it would be wise to consider the source. If you want to learn about the motorcycle business, it’s important to pay close attention to whether the source is more focused on the “motorcycle” or the “business” side of things.

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Cameron Vanderhorst

Cam VanDerHorst has been a contributor to Internet Brands' Auto Group sites for over three years, with his byline appearing on Ford Truck Enthusiasts, Corvette Forum, JK Forum, and Harley-Davidson Forums, among others. In that time, he's also contributed to Autoweek, The Drive, and Scale Auto Magazine.

He bought his first car at age 14 -- a 1978 Ford Mustang II -- and since then he’s amassed an impressive and diverse collection of cars, trucks, and motorcycles, including a 1996 Ford Mustang SVT Mystic Cobra (#683) and a classic air-cooled Porsche 911.

In addition to writing about cars and wrenching on them in his spare time, he enjoys playing music (drums and ukulele), building model cars, and tending to his chickens.

You can follow Cam, his cars, his bikes, and his chickens at @camvanderhorst on Instagram.

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