Revival Strategies Of the Royal Enfield Indian Motorcycles

Royal Enfield is the oldest motorcycle model in the world that is still in production. The company originated in Redditch, Worcestershire and was dissolved in 1971, but production in India continues to this day. The 1963 Royal Enfield Indian Motorcycle was the last to use the "Indian" name attached to Royal Enfield and sold in America...

While Royal Enfield was most popular for its production of motorcycles, it made numerous other things, like rifle parts, lawnmowers, and bicycles. Their logo was a picture of a cannon with the motto "Made like a gun, goes like a bullet.

By 1955, the Indian Enfield began producing Bullet motorcycles with license from a UK based Brand, and by 1962, they were constructing complete bikes. Even when the Royal Enfield suspended in 1971, the Indian company in Chennai carried-on the productions and bought the rights to the name "Royal Enfield" in 1995 and it is 2009 and they are still in business.

The Indian Motorcycle Company in America experienced the most trying times, in the year 1950. A company called Brockhouse Corporation had been financing the unsteady Indian company and bought it in the same year. Some unlucky management decisions led to splitting of the Indian unit into two: one for the sales, and one for manufacturing.

The manufacturing arm could not meet the retooling costs for an overhead valve engine, and it closed in 1953. Some Indian purists consider that to be the end of the "real" Indian motorcycles. But the sales arm of the company did not fold.

Since Brockhouse Corporation had the rights to the name after Indian manufacturing went under, they began importing Enfields and selling them as Indians from 1955 to 1970. This was an early example of "badge engineering," and it was not successful. Though dealerships still carried the Matchless/Indian name after 1959, the Indian name was dropped from motorcycles.

Quarrels as to who will earn the brand name became a big issue during that time of Indian Motorcycle history. The Enfield Chief was still produced in 1960 - a rebadged Enfield 700 cc twin fitted with the fender guards, saddlebags and other Indian paraphernalia.

However, Associated Motorcycles of Britain bought the Indian name in 1960. In 1963, the Berliner Motor Corporation overpowered the U.S distributorship of Associated Motorcycles and the Indian name was completely erased for good. These details of the deal became life-like in form of trademark and branding disputes till 1999.

In the mid 60s, Floyd Clymer took the sales arm of the Indian company. He was a racer, author, motorcycle dealer, and a magazine publisher. Clymer tried to repair the Indian brand for the last five years or so, by incorporating Indian nameplates to Italian Velocette-based bikes and also had prototype built based on the original Indian V-twin design. However, unfortunately, the icon was the only one ever made.

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