Indian Motorcycle Retail Sales Increase 17 Per Cent

Polaris Industries, the parent company of Indian Motorcycle has announced results for the second quarter of 2017. Polaris, which makes ATVs and snowmobiles, and also owns the Indian Motorcycle brand, has reported an increase in sales by 21 per cent to $1.36 billion in the April to June, 2017 period. The company's second quarter earnings stood at $62 million, on the back of robust sales of the company's side-by-side off-road vehicles and Indian motorcycle. Indian Motorcycle continued to deliver strong retail sales increasing 17 per cent for the quarter.

International sales grew robustly with Australia, Europe and Mexico showing strong growth. Polaris' largest division - off-road vehicles and snowmobiles - saw a 5 per cent sales increase to $845 million for the April to June quarter of 2017.

"Performance improved in many parts of our business during the quarter, particularly within our international and PG&A businesses. The powersports industry remained very competitive and headwinds persist, but we were encouraged by the return to growth in our Side-by-Side business and continued strength and aggressive share gains for Indian Motorcycles.

"In a weak motorcycle industry, Indian continues to demonstrate how a complementary combination of exciting new bikes, strong dealer execution and overall brand momentum can prevail. Dealer engagement is a corporate priority and from profitability to delivery and communications, the consistent progress we are making is augmenting our retail results. We still have a lot of work to do, but we are seeing results from the strong and sustainable improvements we are making to the fundamentals of our business, as we establish the foundation of a renewed growth platform," commented Scott Wine, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Polaris Industries.

The Indian Scout Bobber is the latest motorcycle model, and will be on sale in the US from September

Profits for the quarter fell in large part because of costs associated with the winding down of the Victory motorcycle line, a facility closing in Iowa and the integration of the recently purchased TransAmerican Auto Parts. Total profits fell nearly 13 per cent to $62 million. The decision to discontinue the lacklustre Victory brand and to increase its fast-growing Indian brand was made earlier this year as officials looked to drive growth in the face of massive product recalls. Polaris recalled more than 400,000 off-road vehicles over two years due to fire and other risks.

Indian Motorcycle has just launched its latest model, the Indian Scout Bobber. The Scout Bobber is based on the standard Indian Scout but gets some aesthetic changes, and will be on sale in the US by September. The model will be available on sale in India by the end of the year.