October saw another blow to the motorcycle retail landscape, as the Opus Motor Group announced the closure of its Iron City store in South Shields. The branch had been open for 18 months, selling KTM and Royal Enfield, but the firm, which also owns Iron City Leeds and Kia Stockton, announced its closure on 8 October, citing challenging market conditions.
The managing director of Opus, Sohail Khan, explained to BDN the reasoning and background behind the decision. It’s a frank, illuminating story that offers valuable insight into the industry’s broader issues.
Firstly, Khan outlined the situation the company faced. “The closure of Iron City Motorcycles South Shields reflects the broader challenges currently facing the UK motorcycle retail sector. While this decision was difficult, it allows us to consolidate our operations and strengthen our position for the future.”
He spoke about the broader context within the market. “The motorcycle industry experienced an extremely challenging 2024, with several dealer closures and increasing pressure on businesses to maintain positive cash flow. Summer 2024 saw multiple prominent dealerships close including Marsh Holdings Limited, Streetbike, Groombridge Motorcycles, Saltire Motorcycles, Gear4 and Completely Motorbikes.
The delighted Iron City Motorcycles team shows off its 2023 MCN award. From left: Sean,senior technician; Bella, service supervisor; Sohail Khan, managing director; James, general manager and Mo, clothing assistant“The South Shields closure is not entirely related to KTM’s well-documented financial difficulties, but it has had an impact. While KTM entered self-administration in November 2024 with debts of approximately €3bn, Iron City Motorcycles’ multi-brand portfolio – including Harley-Davidson, Kia, and our extensive used car and used motorcycle operations – has insulated us from single manufacturer dependencies.”
A major issue identified by the Iron City boss is customer confidence. Essentially, people took fright when KTM’s woes became public. “The South Shields dealership opened too recently to establish itself before KTM’s public issues dominated customer interactions,” he said. “Parts and motorcycle shortages further eroded confidence. Over the past six months, customers have been vocal online about issues with supply and customer service, largely beyond our control. Royal Enfield performed better than we expected, but as a smaller brand, it couldn’t sustain the premium retail location.”
The impact of the Euro 5+ pre-registration situation is well known to BDN readers, and Khan cites it as a key issue. “December 2024 saw a 114% spike in registrations as dealers pre-registered Euro 5 stock ahead of Euro 5+ regulations, creating an oversupply of discounted motorcycles. Meanwhile, other KTM dealers who were not insulated began the distress selling of product. That, combined with a more general shift in the market toward smaller, more affordable 400-800cc motorcycles, has significantly reduced margins.”
It’s unclear whether Iron City will move its Royal Enfield business to Leeds. But the Opus Group seems to be in a strong position now, with a top Harley-Davidson outlet in Leeds, and the backup of its Kia Stockton car dealership, as well as a thriving used car business.
“Our Leeds location continues as a premier Harley-Davidson dealership,” said Khan, “With a leading reputation as a used motorcycle retailer and more than 100 bikes in stock, this site is also one of the top-performing parts and accessory retailers in Europe for Harley-Davidson.
“Our Stockton Kia location goes from strength to strength and is on track to retail more than 1300 cars in 2025. Stockton is an established used car location with more than 100 used vehicles in stock.
“And our property division also expanded last year with the acquisition of land to allow for further expansion of our used car operation.”