Could Victory and Royal Enfield become step-siblings?
That might sound a bit wacky, but the parent companies for these motorcycle manufacturers (Polaris and Eicher Motors Limited) have announced a $50-million deal to “develop and market new products to meet the diverse vehicle needs in India and other emerging markets,” according to Powersports Business.
It seems like a bit of a strange move for Eicher – after all, they have plenty of market share in India already. But with other manufacturers like Triumph and even Harley-Davidson moving into their neighbourhood, maybe they decided to hitch up with with Polaris for a little stability. It’s not the first time they’ve done this – their trucking division has a thing going on with Volvo.
It’s not as if it’s a guaranteed long-term relationship; supposedly, both Eicher and Polaris will be investing the money over three years, with both parties putting in the same amount of dough for a 50 per cent share.
It’s still early days for the venture, but the word on the street is that the companies are already planning on moving in together; they’re supposed to be planning a joint manufacturing facility by 2015.
