COMPANY PROFILE:-
Harley Davidson(HD) Motorcycle Company was established in 1903 by William Harley and Walter, William, and Davidson, who built their first three motorcycles in a shed in Milwaukee. In 1909, the company introduced its trademark bike; a 2 cylinder, w-twin engine (the fastest motorcycle at that time), able to reach speeds of 64 mph. However, a few years later the competition was becoming stiffer. At the time of World War I, the demand for United States bikes overseas grew tremendously. As a result, HD became a leader in innovative engineering in the 1921's. With the introduction of the front brake disc and "teardrop" gas tanks, Harley was quickly developing its mystic appearance in the country. The industry, which was thriving after World War I, was diminishing quickly as result of the Great…show more content… AMF put the company up for sale in the late 1971's due to a gross reduction in sales and they faced heavy losses. The reduction in sales was representative of a poor level of quality in the Harley motorcycles compared to their Japanese competitor. In 1982, thirteen members of the Harley management team purchased the company from AMF in a leveraged buy-out. But, within the first year, overall demand for bikes dropped dramatically and Harley's share of this market also continued to fall. This even greater reduction in sales for Harley Davidson resulted in a large inventory of unsold products in that year. Harley Davidson 0was aware they would no longer be able to continue their business at their current production level and operating cost. Therefore, production was cut drastically, and more than 1,900 of the 5,000 employees were let go. In a move to help the floundering United States bikes industry in 1984, President Ronald Reagan increased tariffs on large Japanese motorcycles from 4.5 percent to 49.4 percent. But this increase was only effective for four years and would decline