Harley-Davidson Cruises into India; opens first showroom in Hyderabad

Harley-Davidson India, the wholly-owned subsidiary of the US-based cruiser bike manufacturer, on Friday inaugurated its first showroom in the country here and plans to add four more by the end of the year.

The new showrooms in the pipeline include one at Chandigarh, followed by New Delhi both within two weeks, apart from Mumbai and Bangalore. With this launch, a cruiser bike lover can just walk into Harley-Davidson showroom and vroom out with his/her favourite bike.

The company has on display 12 models representing five families of cruiser bikes and believes that the market is up there to be tapped. No bike maker has come up with such a wide range of bikes. Interestingly, the profile of its bike lovers from the initial enquires shows that their age ranges from 25 to 65 years. It is all about passion and love for these bikes that drives Harley-Davidson buyers, Mr Anoop Prakash, Managing Director of Harley Davidson India, said. Addressing a press conference after the inauguration of the showroom by actor Jr. NTR, Mr Prakash said India is a strategic market for the $4-billion parent, which is known through generations for its cruisers. Therefore, we chose to enter India as a subsidiary rather than through a dealer.

The bikes range from Rs 7 lakh for 883 cc model and goes up to Rs 35 lakh for a 1,800 cc engine powered bike. In fact, buyers of the top end models would have the choice to customise their bikes with specific options.

The company plans to add quality service with a 20-year veteran from Harley's headquarters working in here. It is also expected to line up over 3,000 products as a part of merchandise which bike lovers could chose from.

In fact, it is also planning to bring its tried and tested Academy of Training useful for those taking to heavy biking.

The company executive refrained from any number crunching. He said that the markets in the US and Europe are getting gradually saturated and India is amongst few countries which has great potential for growth.