US powersports manufacturer Polaris, which includes Victory and Indian motorcycles in a brand portfolio now also stretching from ATVs, side-by-sides and snowmobiles to electric vehicles and “quadricycle” light cars, has reported an 11 per cent increase in revenue to £488m during the first quarter of 2013. This led to a record net profit for the period, up by 26 per cent to £49.4m.
Harsh winter weather and a late spring hit both ATV and bike sales in the US domestic market, respectively down by about 15 and ten per cent, but Polaris claims to have bucked that downturn to some extent. Its on-road vehicle sales revenue during the quarter, consisting primarily of Victory motorcycles, fell by three per cent to £41.2m.
“While off-road vehicles and motorcycles faced challenging 2012 comparisons, we were again able to outpace the industry and increase market share in both product lines,” said Polaris cheirman and chief executive Scott Wine. “Our snowmobile business also generated strong retail sales and market share growth during the first quarter.”
Wine commented on the recent Polaris acquisition of French quadricycle maker Aixam Mega: “Two key tenets of Polaris’ long-term strategy are growing globally and growing through adjacencies,” he said. “Aixam Mega broadens our product-line portfolio, complements our GEM and Goupil businesses, boosts our European distribution network and enhances our competitive advantage in small vehicles.”
The company has now finalised the location of a new European factory in Opole, Poland. “This facility will add much-needed off-road vehicle capacity and serve our European markets with locally designed and manufactured products,” Wine added. “We expect to break ground during this year’s second quarter and the facility should be operational by the fall of 2014.”