Harley-Davidson Inc (NYSE:HOG) is a company that is famous for its bikes. The sound that comes in from a Harley-Davidson Inc (NYSE:HOG) bike can be heard from a long distance.
However the company has been producing bikes that run on gas and it has now tried to do something new in the bike industry and probably do something similar to Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) in the bike industry. The company has launched an electric bike and the new bike is going to be called as LiveWire and as the name suggests it indeed looks like one.
Matt Levatich, COO and President of Harley-Davidson Inc (NYSE:HOG) was on CNBC earlier today and he discussed about the LiveWire and the company’s plans for the future. He was asked about the transformation from a potato potato sound to the silent but powerful LiveWire. He was also asked about Harley-Davidson Inc (NYSE:HOG)’s customers’ reaction on this new bike. He said that the sound in their traditional bike is still going to be there. LiveWire though is a very cool bike by design and has a very powerful engine. Anyone who rides the new electric bike would feel like riding a jet according to Levatich.
He was then asked about the target customer base for the new electric bike. He said that the customers would be young adult riders who live in cities like New York and not just New York; in most cities all over the world this bike can be useful due to its response. Bikes like LiveWire can actually attract more investors and the other two bikes, Harley-Davidson Inc (NYSE:HOG) is going to launch later this year are street bikes and all this is very different from what Harley-Davidson Inc (NYSE:HOG) as a company did so far. Levatich was asked about this and he said that the company is looking to invest in all segments and has plans to invest more. However, the new electric bike is still running as a prototype and based on the feedback, Harley-Davidson Inc (NYSE:HOG) would further decide on it.
Levatich was then asked about the cost of the bikes and the cost of maintenance because the Lithium Ion batteries are very expensive and making the bike cost effective is an important aspect of business. He said that the company is looking to get the feedback and reduce the cost as technology advances.
To end with Levatich was asked if Harley-Davidson Inc (NYSE:HOG) has planned to team up with Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) in the Gigafactory project and he said it has not been finalized yet and that his company has got a lot of opportunities to partner with similar companies and this would also help the company to tell the world that Harley-Davidson Inc (NYSE:HOG) is going electric.
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