| Author | Message | ||
     Daves |
Ding, Ding, Ding! We have a winner! No dealer is going to admit," Yeah we suck and we don't know how to work with a product that doesn't sell itself,one we don't care about and never wanted in the first place" Yep, them Buells just don't sell around here, sounds a lot better to the dealer. Not true, but sounds better. Dave | ||
| Bomber |
cooooooool -- do I win some cool aid? I'll take the funny kind Kenny Kesey used to hand out, if I can pick! | ||
| José_quiñones |
What I have been told is similar but they say it in a nicer way: We are so busy selling/servicing HD bikes that the Buells were not worth the extra hassle, so we dropped them. | ||
| Gowindward |
I'm telling you it's a "boutique" brand! Yes, and you have to know how to market and sale that brand. I live in a small town with a small college in town. Went to the hardware store this evening on the 12R. As I'm inside one of the college kids that works there is outside just looking all over my bike. He can not get enough of the eye candy. I walked out and and hes says "It's GORGEOUS!" I asked if he had ever seen one before and he said only in magazines. "Man it's GORGEOUS"..again. LOL He tells me he's a student and working part time so he can buy a bike in the spring. Asked if I lived in town hoping to see the bike again. I pointed out some of the bikes unique features told him it was powered by an H-D motor and how fun it it to ride and how smooth it handles. He wanted to know where I bought it, and I told him of the H-D dealers in the area that carry them. The beginning of a love affair for that kid! | ||
| Outrider |
Geez, you guys really don't know Dave. He isn't a trophy hunter...He's out for the MEAT!!! | ||
| Dale |
One of the reasons I bought a Buell was for the dealer support of H-D. What is next? H-D going to let some dealers drop the V-Rod or Dynas. Somebody better get their act together. | ||
| Mikej |
Dale, Some H-D dealers won't work on Shovelheads anymore, if it ain't Evo or newer they send you elsewhere. | ||
| Bomber |
this is not confined to HD dealers -- stroll into a yamaha dealer with, oh, let's say, a 1980 SR 500 -- they give you the number to the Museum of Science and Industry, and chuckle | ||
| Raraf |
True dat! My po' 78 XS650. I have seen a few HD dealerships that don't want to carry the V-Rod anymore. I wouldn't mind seeing them on a "gotta get rid of em" sale! | ||
| Mikej |
Dealers that don't want the V-Rod either? Veeeeery interesting. Now that may be a foot in the door for folks that want to open up a Buell only shop, call it the NewHarley/Buell shop and carry Buells, V-Rods, and any new products the company produces that doesn't fit the standard lifestyle format. The times are getting interesting. | ||
| R1DynaSquid |
Or maybe its a slow sellout? They dwindle the number of dealers down & then pull the plug. Not making accusations, just wondering. | ||
| Bomber |
that would be a rational act, except for the numbers of sales | ||
| Daves |
It's not that Dyna, trust me. Dave | ||
| Rick_a |
The reason most H-D dealers won't work on older bikes is because H-D has discontinued a lot of parts for those bikes. They'd rather let the aftermarket shops source/fabricate what is needed. They say it's a safety issue. Most won't install or warranty aftermarket internal engine components or chassis parts. | ||
| Court |
>>>Or maybe its a slow sellout? That's an inaccurate statement. The Buell light has never shown brighter. I will be, within the next week, writing a tome to lay to rest some of the BS that's festered on the internet. Things, my dearly bechapped friend, are happening at Buell that are so exciting they have come to be known as "Troll Bowlers". Anyone want to sell me their Buell stock? <G> | ||
| Crusty |
Yeah? Are they going to release a T variant? That'll get my juices flowing. | ||
| R1DynaSquid |
Wasn't a statement Court, merely a thought I tossed out there. Personally I think pruning the Buell tree of the dead wood is a good move. So long as they dont overdo it & cause the rest of the tree to die. | ||
| Ingemar |
Things, my dearly bechapped friend, are happening at Buell that are so exciting they have come to be known as "Troll Bowlers". Would that be dealer related or product related (or both)? Would it affect mainly Buell in the States, or Buell internationally? On what scale? | ||
| Elvis |
Here's an interesting chart. It compares Buell revenue since 1999 with Harley (bike) revenue. The 2004 numbers are projected by averaging the first three quarters of 2004 and using that average for the 4th quarter (Buell in Black, Harley in Red).  I've always felt that Buell's long term potential is much better than Harley's in general. Harley already owns the cruiser market. There has to be some point at which Harley is going to find it hard to continue the kind of growth they're used to. If they're smart (and Harley may be a lot of things, but they've never been dumb when it comes to making money), Buell has the potential to provide that growth by simply taking larger and larger bites out of an already existing market. The way Harley has been growing some dealers probably do feel that they have "too much business" at the moment and don't want to bother with Buell (or V-Rods). I'd say those dealers are short sighted. | ||
| Bomber |
it's gonna have to be a tome to lay to rest internet sillines, Brer Court -- the net is like th back of the fridge, things grow all on their own with benefit of light, facts, or good sense good luck with that -- Im looking forward to reading of your work! | ||
| Glitch |
Well I guess I was just lucky enough to live next to SMHD. They simply said if we're gonna sell the product we best support it. They not only do good work and have a great staff, but they'll go out of their way to get you what you need/want. I will be, within the next week, writing a tome to lay to rest some of the BS that's festered on the internet. I should like to reserve a copy now if I could. | ||
| R1DynaSquid |
HD just released their sales & profit numbers for the 3rd qtr & it was in yesterdays paper. Something to take note of & I find it particularly interesting given the notice of some dealerships losing the Buell lineup. Sales to date vs the same period last year are down a little over $2 million for Buell. Is that part of the reasoning behind the decision? | ||
| Glitch |
Is that part of the reasoning behind the decision? One would think. If you're running a business building products, and some of your distributors are running off customers with nonsupport, and underselling the reliable distributors by using E-bay. Wouldn't you want to trim the distributors that are doing such things? (Message edited by glitch on October 15, 2004) | ||
| Elvis |
Wow Dyna, you should be a politician with that ability to cherry pick numbers. Revenue for 3rd quarter 2004 was a little lower than revenue for 3rd quarter 2003, but look at the year. Revenue for the first three quarters of 2004 was 13.4% higher than revenue for the first three quarters of 2003. (and for comparison, over that same period, Harley revenue was only up 9.7%) (Message edited by elvis on October 15, 2004) | ||
| Bomber |
further, I'll warrent that the plans to cull the dealer herd have been in the making for at least 90 days -- more likely, 180 to 270 -- large corporations seldom make decisions of this import and announce them quickly -- thus, these plans are not due to the 2004 3rd quarter numbers | ||
| Blake |
Greg (R1DynaSquid), You sure like to sow the seeds of insidious malcontent. I'm asking you here and now to please go away from this site. I am dead serious. Please cease your participation here. | ||
| Vegasbueller |
Court: you mentioned Buell stock. Isn't that the same as HD now? If not will you give me their symbol? I have a nice bonus check coming soon, and would love to invest a few dollars. Thanks! Nick | ||
| R1DynaSquid |
Nothing insidious at all. In the article from the AP it claims HD profits roar up 20% for the 3rd qtr. Halfway thru the article it states "sales of Buell motorcycles fell to $18.3 million from $20.4 million in the year-earlier period". Thats a press release from HD not me. You love to jump on me when all I have done is present facts...isnt that what you want? Facts? Elvis, that 9.7% number according to the article is actually a decline in HD sales as opposed to the 3rd qtr of 2003 which was fueled by the 100th anniversary sales. But revenue for the 3rd qtr just on bikes still rose 18%. | ||
| Elvis |
Dyna, I apologize if I assumed you had more information than you did. I was going from Harley financial reports, not the article you were reading. If the article only focused on 3rd quarters, then you only had access to partial information. If you're really interested in how Buell is doing consider this. As I said when I posted the chart above, I projected the fourth quarters for both Harley and Buell by simply averaging their other three quarters. That method could be off, but I'll bet it's close. With that projection, Buell will finish 2004 with approximately 84,640,000 in revenue. Harley will finish with 3,914,161,000. That will show Buell growing at a rate of 12.0% from 2002 to 2003 compared to Harley's 14.6% for the same period. From 2003 to 2004, Buell will have grown approximately 11.3% more while Harley will be at 8.1%. Comparing 2002 numbers to 2004, Buell will have numbers 26.4% higher while Harley will be at 23.8%. Personally I think Buell has potential to do much better than that, but they're still doing a bit better than Harley over the past few years, so the idea that they are in trouble seems a bit silly (unless you believe Harley itself is in trouble). | ||
| Blake |
Greg, Maybe you missed my request. Please cease your participation on this Buell enthusiasts' discussion board. I am requesting as a custodian of the site for you to cease posting here. |
