Posts
438
Joined
3/13/2017
Location
Avon, IN
US
Edited Date/Time
9/29/2017 7:03am
I personally say absolutely not, I'm not an industry mogul ; however being the average joe thats the target demographic - I would never buy a bike because it's whats been winning. The same goes for my favorite rider, I wouldn't go buy it just because thats what he's on that season. Maybe its just me.
I thought I heard suzukis sales were in the toilet when RC was dominating? Anyway, what brought me to make this post was listening to the latest pulpmx show where they were talking about how great a hire Reed would be a RB KTM and how much attention he would bring to ktm. Perhaps they were looking at it from a sponsorship interest point of view rather than selling bikes. Thoughts?
I thought I heard suzukis sales were in the toilet when RC was dominating? Anyway, what brought me to make this post was listening to the latest pulpmx show where they were talking about how great a hire Reed would be a RB KTM and how much attention he would bring to ktm. Perhaps they were looking at it from a sponsorship interest point of view rather than selling bikes. Thoughts?
Yes, I skipped the suzi year... Lol
The Shop
Little buddy, you won't get a green one till you get good on your blue one.
Pit Row
Very few Hon/Yam/Kaw/Suz dealers prominently feature MX/off-road bikes, hiding them behind ATVs, street bikes, even generators. Walk into a KTM/Husky shop and it's an entirely different vibe.
While KTM has made significant strides in SX/MX, off-road events are a sea of orange (and now white). The Austrian's openly listen to their constituency, resulting in a wide variety of options. It's difficult to imagine Japan developing and releasing a 350 race bike; meanwhile, the 350 has become KTM's best-selling displacement.
Race results can impact sales, but it lags far behind brand loyalty. Honda and Yamaha both saw KTM's success and have released off-road versions of their MX counterparts, which is encouraging. Can they take a significant percentage of KTM's market share? Maybe, for those who are already loyal to red or blue. Race wins will help, but the orange army has a tremendous head start.
Kawasaki has always been a down to earth company that helps the amateur more than any other manufacturer year after year. Plus yeah, We Build Champions
I will probably be a Husky FC350 owner soon, not because of the E start, but because of the way KTM/ Husky takes care of their customers when the machine fails. Yes, customer service means much more to me than who is riding the machine at the races.
My buying decisions are now based on performance (bike tests, word of mouth, innovation) and the deal I can get. With that said I ride a KTM350 SXF. Its a niche bike and KTM does a great job filling those niches that Japanese brands skip. Plus they introduce a great deal of innovation and their generation cycles through sooner so you see massive updates quicker. Someone mentioned above that KTM & Husky are committed to off-road racing...which I totally agree. If you open a KTM or Husky dealership you aren't selling bikes for a 6 year old beginner, you're selling race bikes.
Post a reply to: does racing/certain riders sell bikes?