Polaris 2014 Annual Report Download - page 21

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2014
Q: How is the new manufacturing facility in
Poland helping you capture sales potential
moreeconomically?
A: Due to regulations in Europe, our O-Road Vehicles
have to be on-road capable, too. So far, we’ve imported
our North American-built ATVs,
RANGER
s and
RZR
s,
then homologated them for European on-road use.
With our local manufacturing plant, we can produce
factory-homologated vehicles ourselves, to improve
the quality and reduce the total cost of our products.
We expect to save approximately $20 million a year
once we ramp up to targeted capacity.
Q: Additional benefits of local manufacturing?
A: We’ve reduced lead time for our distributors by 50
percent and are getting products to customers faster.
Q: Middle East and Africa sales grew more than 30
percent in 2014. What drove the growth?
A: One factor was that we doubled Motorcycle
sales, capturing some of the on-road potential Mike
mentioned. There’s an anity for American brands in
the Middle East, and we provide a credible alternative
with our motorcycle brands. Another sales driver
was the launch of our first regional Camp
RZR
UAE in
Dubai. The three-day community event created a lot of
buzz in social media that led to increased sales for our
RZR
product. We have now made it an annual event. A
third growth factor was expanding our distribution into
several new countries and markets in the Middle East
and Africaregion.
Q: How will you capture even more Motorcycle
sales in the future?
A: In Europe, the 800- to 1200-cc mid-size segment
is a very big category that we haven’t played in until
now. Our new, 1133-cc Indian Scout opens the door
to those customers. Also, having a broad portfolio
with two motorcycle brands is attractive to people
who want to distribute bikes in the region. They may
come to us first for the more well-known Indian
brand, but then they want a Victory to add to their
dealership. This is helping us expand distribution
into Tier2 cities in Europe.
SURESH KRISHNA //  VICE PRESIDENT OF EUROPE, MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA
 Europe
 Australia/New Zealand
 Middle East/Africa
 Latin America 
 Asia
68%
12%
9%
7%4%
2014 // INTERNATIONAL SALES BY GEOGRAPHY
WITH OUR NEW MANUFACTURING FACILITY IN OPOLE, POLAND, WE’RE IMPROVING THE QUALITY
AND LOWERING THE TOTAL COST OF EMEA-TARGETED ATVS,
RANGER
S AND
RZR
S.
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