Harley-Davidson has enjoyed amazing success by appealing to two very different segments of society in the USA; the first group we'll call the "hardliners", those people who may have spent time on the fringes of society and are truly "rebels", people who didn't belong to "motorcycle groups", they belonged to "clubs" with names like "Hessians" and "Hell's Angels". These are the hardcore Harley owners, and the company was brilliant in co-opting that lifestyle as their own. The second group of Harley owners are newer, wealthier, younger and more likely to add sound-baffling to their bikes because the noise bothers their wives. These people are generally known as "Rubbies", the shortened version of a derisive term, "rich, urban bikers". There is another, third important group of Harley buyers, those riders in other countries who feel that Harley is the epitome of the "American lifestyle". There are many Harley clubs in Japan, for instance, which may have hundreds of members, and they all might be over 65 years old; not too bad in a country where the average new Harley costs $30,000 and above. And the Harley exhibit is always one of the best-attended (and among the largest) at the Tokyo Motor Show. A visit to the Harley website offers visitors a choice of some 25 different countries from which to get sales information. Click on this line to visit "Harley World" in Japan. Worldwide, their "Harley Owners' Groups" (HOGs), have been a tremendous success in organizing Harley owners and bringing new buyers "into the fold". Harley has just made another tremendous business decision in deciding to become the first major international product sponsor for the "Ultimate Fighting Championship".
According to the Associated Press story: On its way to becoming a mainstream sport, Ultimate Fighting Championship, just the latest in guilt-free homo-erotic entertainment for American males, has long courted a sponsor that could bolster its image. (Photo --- Harley's good-looking and successful V-Rod was designed with help from Porsche).
The fast-growing UFC is finally getting one. The Las Vegas-based company that specializes in mixed martial arts is teaming up with Milwaukee-based Harley-Davidson Motor Co.
UFC President Dana White, whose comp any surpassed more than $200 million in customer retail revenue for the second year in row, said it was the first time UFC had landed a major sponsor in a long-term deal.
The deal calls for Harley-Davidson to place its famous logo in the center of UFC's well-known Octagon, where the fighters duke it out in usually explosive and sometimes bloody fashion, and at weigh-in backdrops and news conferences. The sponsorship also includes World Extreme Cagefighting, which
Zuffa LLC, UFC's parent's company, bought in Oct. 2006.
UFC held 11 pay-per-view events in 2007, one more than the previous year.
Harley-Davidson, known for its sleek designs and powerful engines, is the leading motorcycle maker,
with about half the market. The UFC pairing gives the company a chance to reach younger riders.
Mirroring an industry trend, Harley-Davidson has seen its average buyer's age creep up in the past few decades, with the average rider in 2002 just under 45 years old. In 2006, the average buyer was in his late 40s.
Harley owners are nothing if not loyal. According to the company, nearly half of its sales in 2006 were to previous owners.
Harley-Davidson's profit and sales have been slipping as U.S. consumers become more cautious about their spending. Mirroring the overall U.S. motorcycle market, Harley-Davidson's domestic sales were down 2.5 percent in the most recent quarter, while they were up 8.8 percent overseas.
The company is due to announce its fourth quarter results next Friday. Analysts are expecting another weak quarter.
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