American Motorcycle Dealer AMD 250 May 2020 | Page 22

Question Marks
Over Expos
22
Germany: Motorcycles
-18.70% in March
AMERICAN MOTORCYCLE DEALER - MAY 2020
In Q1 motorcycle market share
terms, BMW is 'Top Dog' with a
massive 28.99% share in its
home market (8,778 units sold
YTD), followed by Kawasaki,
KTM, Honda, Yamaha, and
Harley-Davidson in 6th spot
(2,255 units sold YTD).
The top selling model was
BMW's R 1250 GS (3,028 units
YTD), followed by the Kawasaki
Z900, BMW R 1250 RS,
Kawasaki Z650 and BMW S
1000 RR. A record 10 of the Top
20 best sellers were BMW
models. Harley's best seller was
the Street Bob, followed by the
Sport Glide.
For context - the German
motorcycle market grew by
+4.38% to 113,039 units in 2019,
with PTW sales growing by
+6.53% to 165,311 units - both
the best performance since 2008
(excluding the rush to register
pre-Euro 4 models before the law
changed at the end of 2016).
German registrations YTD
2019
2020
60,000
-2.52%
40,000
TOTAL PTW
20,000
-8.99%
rest of 2020, and we have decided to
make several key decisions in the wake
of COVID-19 impacting public health,
communities, the motorcycle industry
and business on a global scale.
"In the best interest of our employees
and customers, the company will
withdraw from global trade shows for
the rest of the year, including INTERMOT
in Cologne, Germany, and the EICMA
exhibition in Milan, Italy."
Hubert Trunkenpolz, CMO at KTM AG,
said: "Trade shows are key business
milestones for the entire motorcycle
industry, but given the situation, public
health and the welfare of our staff are
higher priorities over the coming
months. We have taken this course of
action with a great deal of thought and,
as a company, KTM AG would be
pleased and interested if show
promoters, EICMA in particular, would
consider moving dates to 2021, when
we hope and expect the situation to be
settled and back to normal."
While neither manufacturer specifically
name-checked AIMExpo, planned for
Columbus, Ohio, in September, they did
both state, quite clearly, that they are
withdrawing from ALL exhibitions. So
those question marks must now hover
over the USA's principal industry Expo
too. Following what can only be
described as a clarion call for Expo
postponement by Trunkenpolz, other
OEMs are highly likely to follow BMW's
and KTM's lead in Europe, USA and
elsewhere.
The latest data from the IVM, the
motorcycle industry trade
association in Germany, shows
motorcycle registrations down
by -18.70% in March at 16,581
units, having been up 8.35%
(20,394 units) in March 2019.
The effects of the coronavirus
pandemic have been less
pronounced in Germany than
elsewhere in Europe, both in
terms of known cases and
resulting deaths, as well as in the
subsequent financial impacts.
Indeed, as this edition of AMD
went to press (16th April),
Germany was one of the
European markets already
announcing some loosening of
lockdown/shelter-in-place
regulations. Having been +6.38%
for January and February
combined (13,698 units),
Germany was -8.99% for Q1
(30,279 units YTD). In total PTW
terms, Germany was -15.81% in
March (22,987 units) and -2.52%
for Q1 (43,114 units YTD).
With the announcement that both
BMW and KTM are to pull out of
INTERMOT (Cologne, Germany,
October) and EICMA (Milan, Italy,
November), there are now serious
question marks over whether or not
either show will be able to go ahead.
BMW is one of the senior members of
the IVM, the German trade association
that owns INTERMOT, and so is, in effect,
one of the owners of INTERMOT.
Koelnmesse, the Cologne exhibition
centre where INTERMOT is staged, is not
involved in the INTERMOT ownership
equation. However, at this time,
Koelnmesse is closed until further notice
by its owners, the City of Cologne and
the North Rhein-Westphalia state
government. The Milan Rho exhibition
centre that hosts EICMA every
November is currently being used as a
field hospital for the hard hit city of
Milan and province of Lombardy.
In their statement (April 2nd) BMW
stated "this decision was made in order
to counteract current planning
uncertainty at an early stage" and "in
the interests of the greatest possible
security, predictability and
transparency."
BMW Motorrad will instead present the
world premieres and product highlights
planned for these motorcycle shows on
alternative platforms in autumn 2020.
In doing so, the company will
increasingly rely on its own formats and
digital communication channels.
For BMW to announce it is withdrawing
(also from EICMA/Milan) will be a
serious body blow to both shows.
BMW's absence will dramatically affect
visitor numbers and result in an even
greater reduction in aftermarket
exhibitor vendor numbers than there
has already been - especially those for
whom BMW models represent the
majority of their business, of which there
are usually many at INTERMOT.
KTM's announcement came 48 hours
after BMW's, and it is hard to think that
there wasn't coordination between the
two manufacturers, who have a track
record of working closely on strategic
issues.
Europe's largest motorcycle
manufacturer by unit volume (over
280,000 in 2019), KTM said that it had
"assessed their overall strategy for the
As the global motorcycle industry continues to be in the grip of a
medically induced coma, it is uncertainty that is the principal
enemy in economic terms. Forecasts for unemployment rates and
economic contraction vary wildly, reflecting a wide range of
differences between those who think the economies of Europe
and the United States could bounce back strongly in the second
half of the year, and those who see longer and darker economic
shadows being cast by the global pandemic. Either way, it is
imperative that the right balance is struck between the apparently
competing priorities of protecting public health and switching
economic activity back on. The priority must be to protect public
health first and foremost. That said, we all of us need to be able
to get the best possible grasp on the timings of the options we'll
each be faced with moving forward, so in addition to a modest
round-up of current OE news, here is an insight into what has
been happening to new motorcycle sales in Europe, and selected
other news from the international powersports market that is of a
more strategic nature...
MOTORCYCLE
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