Indian Motorcycles has been around since 1901, but it’s changed hands from one motorcycle company to another over the years. Today, Polaris Industries owns Indian Motorcycles and produces the bikes at Spirit Lake, Iowa factory. This post will discuss where Indian motorcycles are made and how you can buy an Indian motorcycle today.
Some history
Indian Motorcycle was established in 1901 by George M. Hendee and Carl Oscar Hedstrom, who used their nicknames as the brand name. In 1919, Hendee sold his share of India to a group of investors, including Ralph B. Rogers, who became president and manager of India. When Rogers died in 1925, management of Indian passed to Robert Moore, a former racing teammate of Hendee’s who had managed sales at GMC Truck while attending law school.
They started in England.
England is home to today’s Best Motorcycle Companies and some of the top-quality brands, like Triumph and Royal Enfield. Most modern European bikers love riding a Royal Enfield, invented in England. The company started small, but it became one of India’s largest manufacturers, producing some of its best bikes right here in England.
The first showroom in America
The Indian Motorcycle Company was founded in 1901 by George M. Hendee and Carl Oscar Hedstrom, who manufactured bicycles. The company agreed with Hendee Manufacturing Company (HMC) of Springfield, Massachusetts, to build engines for their bicycles. In 1907, HMC signed a licensing agreement with Curtiss to use their patented internal combustion engine to power motorized bicycles and motor scooters, but not motorcycles.
After the first world war, they came back to India.
The first Indian motorcycle was manufactured in India by BSA (Birmingham Small Arms Company) at their factory in Birmingham, UK. However, after World War II, it became untenable for BSA to continue manufacturing and selling bikes as a loss-making subsidiary activity, leading to its closure. In 1948, Enfield India took over the 500cc Royal Enfield Bullet production with minimal changes from BSA’s design. This model was produced until 1955 when it was replaced by an updated version designed and developed entirely in-house by Enfield engineers. This model continued in production until 1967 when it was replaced by an all-new 750cc model, which remained in production until 1971 when a slightly revised version of the original 500cc Bullet design took over.
They also had some competition at that time.
The Best Agencies (with motorcycle clientele) took their business model differently and appealed to them with guerrilla marketing. They sold directly to customers, appealing to their passion for individual expression and performance. When demand grew rapidly, they turned to established manufacturers like Bajaj Auto Ltd. (200 million scooters sold), Hero Honda Motor Co. Ltd., and Yamaha Corp. They provided both capital and existing production facilities.
How they stand today
Indian Motorcycle stands as an iconic symbol of American culture. However, despite its historic nature, India has to follow a rigorous development process to ensure that it can continue to produce motorcycles for years to come. If a bike isn’t done right, it won’t be profitable—it must pass high standards, and there is no room for error. Fortunately, India has some of the best agencies in place (and on-call) to ensure everything runs smoothly throughout production.
Conclusion
Indian Motorcycles has been manufacturing and designing some of the most popular American motorcycles. Indian Motorcycles have quickly become one of America’s best-selling brands, making it one of our country’s Best Motorcycle Companies. Every year more than 300 thousand people ride on Indian Motorcycles alone.
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