Market reports – KTM continues to chart its course – Used KTM

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KTM continues to chart its course

Market reports - KTM continues to chart its course - Pre-owned KTM

The "small" Austrian manufacturer, still widely connoted "off-road", continues to trace its route on the niche of road motorcycles. It even became a priority for 2006, thanks to the 990 Adventure and an expanding network..

Despite the drop in off-road conditions, KTM manages to increase its sales by 4.2% compared to last year. The Austrian firm was able to convince the French, who literally emptied its stocks of road vehicles.

Moreover for 2006 the president of KTM France, Karl Pernull, wants 30% of his models sold to be road cars, thanks to the development of this network..

Moto-Net: What is your assessment of 2005? ?
Karl Pernull, President of KTM France: 2005 was a very positive year for KTM. The highly anticipated launch of the 990 Super Duke accelerated our entry onto the road and met customer expectations as we have sold all the models on the market. But 2005 was also a good year for our traditional segments (motocross and enduro), since our distributors currently only have new models in stock..

Moto-Net: Which are your best-selling models and why ?
K. P.: As for the off road, the 125 EXC and the 85 SX sell well and this is very important, since they are beginner’s bikes. These are the entry models to the brand. The 300 and 400 EXC are also among our successful products. Finally, our road models have found their audience since our stocks are completely exhausted !

Moto-Net: Which ones are less successful and do you know why ?
K. P.: The 950 Adventure did not run this year. The competition offered more advanced models and that is why we reacted by developing the 990 Adventure which offers ABS and injection.

Moto-Net: What was the pleasant surprise of this year ?
K. P.: It was without a doubt the 950 Supermoto, which really won over buyers. Much more than we expected !

Moto-Net: Which was the worst ?
K. P.: The Olin circular !

Moto-Net: Will KTM’s commitment to 125 and 250 lead to the release of a hypersport model ?
K. P.: The prototype has already been unveiled and we are working on it, but no decision is definitively made about it..

Moto-Net: Where is your MotoGP adventure? ?
K. P.: For a brand of our size, it remains an adventure but the results (in particular the title of world constructors’ champion) encourage us !

Moto-Net: Harley and Triumph progress respectively by 21% and 56% thanks to their range of motorcycles with "strong character". Are the KTMs lacking? ?
K. P.: By reading the specialized press and from customer feedback, it is clear that our motorcycles do not lack character! Our road models are part of KTM’s particularly sporty philosophy. In France, we lack a road history and we are a little locked into the "off-road" perception that the customer has of us. We must therefore continue to develop our road network.

Moto-Net: What are your goals for 2006 ?
K. P.: We are betting first on the launch of the 990 Adventure, which is equipped with injection and ABS. And this time, we are going to change our minds to make the 950 Supermoto available in sufficient quantities! We also wish to further expand our network by conquering specialist road distributors. Today 23% of the models sold by KTM are road models. We hope to reach 30%.

Moto-Net: Are you satisfied with your network ?
K. P.: Yes, we are satisfied with our network. Our distributors have achieved the performance of having at the end of the year only new KTMs in stock. We currently have 81 distributors, most of them multi-brand. By 2008, we will have to exceed 100 distributors while keeping the will, as I have already told you, to further develop our road network..

Interview by Matthieu BRETILLE

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