About ten years ago a company in Gilroy, California, tried to revive the Indian Motocycle. They changed the name from “Motocycle” to “Motorcycle” by adding a letter and attempted to build traditionally styled Indian motorcycles with more modern technology. The parts they used, however, were mostly farmed out of aftermarket catalogs. They had about 500 employees. It failed.
It seems to me, and I may be wrong about this, that every nostalgic customer on the planet who ever dreamed of owning a new Indian motorcycle snapped up the first bikes. Then the demand seemed to fizzle. The Gilroy company overproduced, and suddenly there was a lot of inventory on dealer’s showroom floors with no one to buy it.
After a lengthy trademark dispute, a U.S. federal judge awarded the Indian trademark to a British company, Stellican, Ltd., and set up operations here in the U.S. of A. There is now a new Indian manufacturing company based in Kings Mountain, North Carolina, that is re-starting the Indian name brand.
What’s different about this new Indian restart is its philosophical approach. More than two years ago, instead of jumping in with hundreds of employees and simply buying off-the-shelf components to assemble bikes, it started with only about 30 people to completely re-engineer a brand new product. About two of every three of the current employees are engaged in engineering. The plan is to build almost everything in-house.
Following Harley-Davidson’s comprehensive marketing plan, they will provide a factory-based owners group that provides a newsletter, roadside assistance and other benefits. A full line of parts and accessories, beginning with about 200 items, will also be offered right from the outset.
Another interesting thing is the company’s very modest marketing target. Since the projected retail price is being set at around $30,000, they don’t expect to sell more than 750 vehicles in the first year; setting a conservative sales target would seem to be an excellent marketing plan. And unlike the Gilroy operation that had more than 100 dealers that often offered multiple brands, they are starting with a small number of single-brand dealers.
This Stellican group appears to have a conservative and thoughtful approach to successful engineering and marketing. Of course it is always good to have another V-twin brand so that we, as riders, have more options. Here’s hoping they succeed.
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