Harley sales rev up

Harley Davidson: Outlaw chic

The iconic US motorcycle maker, Harley Davidson, has marked its 100th anniversary with its strongest ever quarterly sales figures.

The Milwaukee-based company said it had sold a record 76,000 bikes worldwide in the three months to June, a 16% increase on the same period last year.

The firm's buoyant motorcycle sales helped lift total revenues by 22% on the year to $1.2bn (£720m), while profits were up 40% at $202m.

Harley's strong performance comes despite economic uncertainty and hesitant consumer spending, and contrasts sharply with lacklustre growth across the US motor car industry.

Heritage brand

The company, which traces its origins back 100 years to a garden shed in Milwaukee, narrowly avoided bankruptcy in the mid-1980s after America's bikers switched en masse to cheaper, faster Japanese machines.

But Harley has prospered since then through astute marketing, cashing in on the aura of outlaw chic lent to its bikes in films such as "Easy Rider" and "The Wild One".

In the process, it has built up one of the world's most valuable consumer brands.

Harley Davidson motorcycles are particularly popular with middle-aged professional men eager to buy into Harley's image of outsider cool.

The company is currently offering a range of 100th anniversary commemorative models, including the much-fancied VRSC V-Rod, a high-tech machine capable of competing with high-performance European or Japanese bikes.