Harley-Davidson ? True Determination
It's been said, "It's one thing to buy a product, and it's another to tattoo it on your body."
You won't find too many people in the 40 to 50 year old bracket that won't be able to tell you a story about owning, riding, or working on a Harley-Davidson. When they tell you the story, watch them closely?their eyes will look off into the distance and their voices will get low. You will know they are going back to a time that they miss.
Hard to believe that in 1903 Harley-Davidson produced only three motorcycles. In 2005 Harley-Davidson ships to over 60 countries worldwide. This is one of the biggest success stories ever told in spite of over coming the "bad boy" image, attempted hostile take overs, foreign competition, high metal prices, and a total management overhaul. "Harley-Davidson tuned around by selling not just motorcycles, but nostalgia." [Bateman, 568]
A brief history of Harley Davidson is necessary for you to understand a true American rags-to-riches story.
In 1901 at the young age of 21, William S. Harley completed a blueprint drawing of an engine designed to fit into a bicycle. Two years later Harley and 20-year old Arthur Davidson made public the first production Harley-Davidson motorcycle. Their factory was a 10 x 15-foot wooden shed with the words "Harley-Davidson Motor Company" crudely scrawled on the door. Arthur's brother Walter later came on board and joined the company. Today the company employs 9,580 and is a Fortune 500 company (#368). In 2002 Harley Davidson was considered the #1 stock to own.
Later that year C.H. Lang of Chicago, IL became the first Harley Davidson dealer and sold o ...