Harley Davidson 2010 Annual Report Download - page 3

In a year when the economy continued to place a stubborn
damper on consumer spending in many markets, we expanded
our international presence, saw improved results from
our motorcycle business driven by the transformation of our
operations, and returned Harley-Davidson Financial Services
(HDFS) to solid protability. While there is still a lot of
hard work ahead, we are condent that we are positioning
Harley-Davidson for ongoing improvement and success.
Our 2010 results reect both our progress and the continued
challenges of the broader economy. Although retail sales of new
Harley-Davidson® motorcycles decreased 8.5 percent worldwide
on a full-year basis versus 2009, fourth quarter retail sales
were nearly level with the prior-year quarter, decreasing 1.0
percent worldwide and 0.2 percent in the U.S. We are encouraged
by the direction at retail, yet continue to be cautious in our
2011 motorcycle sales outlook. Throughout 2010, we worked
diligently to manage supply in line with demand, and we
remain committed to this as it is key to maintaining our premium
brand positioning.
Harley-Davidson made great progress
in 2010 on transforming our company
to be leaner, more agile and more
effective than ever at delivering great
products and an outstanding
experience to our increasingly global
community of customers.
We are pleased with the improvements we were able to achieve
in our protability this past year. Income from continuing operations
more than tripled to $259.7 million compared to the prior year as
HDFS returned to the black, reporting operating income of $181.9
million compared to a loss of $118.0 million in 2009, and operating
income from motorcycles and related products rose 20.6 percent
to $378.8 million.
Delivering on Our Strategy
At the center of our progress on improving our performance and
moving toward growth lies the strategic direction we introduced
in late 2009. We moved this strategy into high gear in 2010,
focusing our investments in ways that will further strengthen the
powerful Harley-Davidson brand, provide the exibility to be
more customer-responsive than ever, continue to lower our cost
structure, foster continuous improvement throughout the
organization and promote growth globally.
Two primary areas of focus under our strategy are the trans-
formations currently under way in manufacturing and product
development, which will make Harley-Davidson truly world-class
when it comes to meeting and exceeding customer expectations.
02 Lean Forward 03Harley-Davidson, Inc. 2010 Annual Report
Keith E. Wandell
President & Chief Executive Ofcer