Not to hijack the thread but Racine Harley just got bought out by House of Harley.

 

Another satisfied customer :>)

 

While we approach these topics as if they are there for you, they are businesses and as such, if they do not change, they will die. I don't like the change, but I am smart enough to realize that is my issue, not the Harley Dealers. The biggest issue I have in my business, is that marine (boating) dealers do not change. Typically they ride the horse until it drops, not trying new products or strategies. Therefore, I am hopeful that these Harley dealers succeed and I will still be able to buy parts as needed. That said, my local dealership just moved, opened a new modern cathedral. I hate it. But I am not a yuppie or even a millennial. Most new Harley's around here are being sold to millennial software engineers. If that was my income, I'd build a cathedral for them as well. They have a very different expectation of service, pay for it and get on with life. I am just lucky it is still around so I can have access to what I need.
On another point, privately owned single businesses are disappearing and nothing we can do will change this. The real question may be, can a small chain of dealerships survive. I hope so.

 

I bought from Dekalb Harley, it's a small dealership by today's standards. It was bought out by Windy City Harley-Davidson this year. So long as I get the same service I don't care who the owner is. So far, so good.

 

Looks like Windy City Harley-Davidson Group snagged 3 more dealerships.

Woodstock, McHenry and Lake Geneva.

I think that's 10 now.

Dekalb Harley is changing their name to Barbed Wire Harley-Davidson, which actually sounds better, to me. (I just bought a new 16 Limited from them too.)

I'm not sure having so many dealers under one owner is beneficial to the buyers, but I guess it's better than dealerships closing their doors.

 

Yea they said they were buying more when I was at Wild fire last month.

 

That sucks.

 

I thought that H-D had a policy of no more than 5 franchises to a single owner.

 

Kutter HD closed down it's on-line sales and then reopen under Broadtracker HD.

 

The same thing played out in the auto industry.

1. Started with family owned dealerships.
2. The most successful families bought multiple dealerships
3. Corporations bought out multiple families of multiple dealerships.

We are in between stage 1 and 2 it seems with HD, with #3 starting to happen on the early #2 cases.

My buddy's dad owned a BMW dealership in the Bay Area - I watched exactly what is happening play out there.

1. His dad owned a service station with a lot. When BMW came to America, he got a dealership selling cars out of that lot.

2. BMW took off, so he and his partner built a new dealership.
Dealerships are still family owned at this time. This is the small shop world of HD that we are losing right now / have lost.

3. BMW continued to grow, so they insisted that he move to a more modern dealership in a location they helped him choose.
Still family owned, but now more difficult for smaller dealers to meet the growing requirements. Those that could not began merging to reduce cost and more successful families bought multiple dealerships. This is the phase HD had been going through. Almost done with this part - the places that didn't/couldn't comply are gone now. Bad news - the early ones who moved are already in locations that aren't grand enough by the current Harley standard.
There was also a rebranding during this time, taking away the family names of dealerships and making everything "BMW of XXXCITY". Harley is doing this now too - but going to these wonderfully catchy names. San Jose HD became Lane Splitter.

4. BMW insisted that he move again, as they had started building the palace dealerships.
He told them get lost, you told me to build this place where I am. He lost his dealership. The dealerships are now corporately owned, all in grand new locations. This is the next phase for Harley, it seems.