After some 15 months in the role of President at S & S Cycle , I met with ex Harley-Davidson man Paul Skarie ( at the Drag Specialties NVP Dealer Expo , Madison , August 2022 ) and we started by talking about the impression and knowledge he had of S & S during his 14 years working at Harley-Davidson …
Paul Langley ' s decision to move on from S & S Cycle after six highly successful years at the helm before he took over from Fred Fox as Chairman at LeMans Corporation , left a vacancy for a new President at the Viola , Wisconsin home of ' Proven Performance - a vacancy filled by former Harley man Paul Skarie . Skarie had some 14 years at Harley , mostly in sales and management roles , and not least as Harley ' s senior man at its Sydney based Australian HQ at a time that saw strong growth for Harley in the southern hemisphere . We started by talking about his perception of S & S before taking up the role and how that affected his
' admiration and respect '
decision to throw his hat into the ring for one of the market ' s most prestigious - and potentially challenging - roles . " S & S is the most iconic name in the motorcycle parts industry , especially , historically , in the Harley aftermarket , and you can ' t work at Harley without being aware of S & S from day one . " Initially the perception was one of S & S as a competitor , with a little bit of frustration at that , but like most people that join Harley , that very quickly turned to admiration and respect . " After nearly 65 years of delivering ' Proven Performance ', developing and selling products that not only deliver on that brand promise , but are products that customers really do want , you can ' t help but respect the job that S & S does for Harley riders and the reputation it has always had for excellence . " So , going for the job was a no-brainer for me . I see it as a tremendous honor to have been selected and
' in-house emissions laboratory '
a huge opportunity to make a market contribution that really means something , because S & S really means something . " What is especially impressive about S & S is how it has maintained such a high level of product design and production quality and continuously managed to hire and develop such excellent people . All businesses see their people as their primary assets , or at least they should , and coming into S & S , I have been so impressed at the professionalism , skills and dedication that I am surrounded by all day , every day . " Consistency only comes about if you are continually reinventing yourself and maintaining your relevance , responding to market changes and recognizing the new opportunities that change brings . S & S has consistently done that ever since the 1950s , and I see my job as maintaining the environment in which that can continue to happen and we can continue to be quick to market ." We were sat in the S & S booth in the middle of the Drag Specialties NVP Dealer Expo in August . As we talked about the heritage he sees as his job as being to sustain and help prosper for future years , Paul motioned to the crowded hall saying " this is a great
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30 AFTERMARKET MOTO DESIGN - NOVEMBER 2022 www . AMDchampionship . com