Essay examples --

Harley-Davidson has a very strong social-cultural force. Harley-Davidson has a traditional customer base of Caucasian men in the age range of 35-74 years-old. In 2012, nearly half of the sales of a new Harley-Davidson were to new customers who have never previously owned a Harley-Davidson. A unique aspect of Harley-Davidson is that they consider their employees to be their â€Å"only long-term competitive advantage.† A quote from their website states, â€Å"To us, our culture is as strong as the iron and steel we put into our bikes, and shines as bright as the chrome.† Some recent changes in the culture include a change in age demographic. Harley-Davidson sales have increased to selling almost half of their motorcycles to new customers. Sales to â€Å"young adults 18-34, women, African-Americans and Hispanics – grew overall at more than twice the rate as sales to [the] traditional U.S. customer base of Caucasian men, ages 35-plus† (Harley-Davidson). The customer base for Harley-Davidson is estimated at 50 million people and Harley-Davidson expects this to remain â€Å"stable and strong.† In the last five years, Harley-Davidson considers international dealers like India, China, and Brazil to be emerging markets. Additional, in that time frame international sales have increased over 5%. Lastly, Harley-Davidson has another quote: â€Å"All roads lead home.† Riders are usually encouraged to be involved in their communities and neighborhoods. The company engages in partnership activities with companies such as Habitat for Humanity, Boys and Girls Club, and the YMCA. Economic Changes Harley Davidson, Inc. has had a consistent increase in net income for the last three years per the consolidated Statement of Operations filed in February of 2013. Despite this... ...on in any material product liability claim against us could adversely affect our operating results or financial condition. Polaris mentions a risk of reliance upon intangibles. Beneficial to Polaris, however, is their cultural environment of innovation. They have the potential to continually keep ahead of this risk. Additionally, Polaris mentions the potential for product liability. Like motorcycles, all-terrain vehicles and snowmobiles can be risky to users when not used properly and maintained. Technological Changes Polaris does not actually mention any specific technological changes or risks in their financial statements apart from the reliance on intangibles. However, Polaris has similar risks to technological changes that Harley-Davidson does. Polaris offers unique apps and has a website that encourages an interactive usage between the user and the company.