On May 9, 2024, an article was published detailing LiveWire’s strategic move back to Harley-Davidson’s historic headquarters at Juneau Avenue in Milwaukee. Reflecting on the height of the pandemic, Harley-Davidson had transitioned its office employees to remote work in March 2020. CEO Jochen Zeitz later suggested in an October 2022 interview with Bloomberg that this change improved work-life balance by allowing employees to work from home while spending time with their families. Despite the return of many employees to the office as things began opening up, Harley-Davidson maintained its remote work policy, resulting in underused office space at its headquarters.
Recently, Harley-Davidson has repurposed some parking lots into a park and events space for both the company and the local community. However, the office spaces remain largely vacant. This underutilization will soon change as LiveWire, Harley-Davidson’s electric motorcycle division, consolidates its operations in Milwaukee.
In the 2024 Q1 financial results released on April 25, 2024, LiveWire’s CEO Karim Donnez expressed satisfaction with the launch of the S2 Mulholland. Donnez highlighted that LiveWire now holds the position of the number one on-road electric motorcycle retailer in the U.S. As part of its strategy to expand market leadership, LiveWire is working on design, engineering, and sourcing initiatives aimed at reducing vehicle costs and optimizing business expenditures.
Donnez emphasized that moving operations to Milwaukee will create synergies and efficiencies while fostering a closer connection to LiveWire’s heritage. The company’s California lab, based in Mountain View, will also relocate to Juneau Avenue in the coming months, as reported by Wisconsin Public Radio. A spokesperson for Harley-Davidson confirmed that this move would occur in the second half of the year, with further announcements regarding plans for the space expected soon.
Despite experiencing growing pains since its spin-off via a SPAC merger in 2022, LiveWire’s 2024 Q1 quarterly report offered some positive news. Previously, the company estimated annual losses for 2024 to be between $115 million and $125 million. However, the Q1 report revised this estimate down to a loss of $105 million to $115 million, representing a $10 million improvement. While incremental, these steps are a positive direction for the company.
LiveWire’s return to Harley-Davidson’s headquarters is seen as a beneficial move that could provide the support it needs during this transitional period.
