BMW sells Husqvarna to Pierer Industrie AG

At the start of this week, we caught wind that BMW could be negotiating the sale of Husqvarna to KTM, with an announcement expected to officially confirm the rumour by today.

We spotted the news on British website, MCN, with the explanation that “high-placed motorcycle industry sources” tipped them off. However, Transmoto’s European Correspondent, Jonty Edmunds, got in contact with us as he suspected a twist in the story – and he was right. There’s a subtle but significant difference regarding the company that’s taking Husky on. You can read Edmunds’ article on Enduro21.com here.

German-giant BMW purchased Husqvarna from MV Agusta in 2008, but the baton has now been passed to Pierer Industrie AG, a stand alone company set-up and owned by Mr Stefan Pierer (CEO of KTM Sportmotorcycle AG). The company has, with immediate effect, acquired and taken over in full, Husqvarna Motorcycles. The company, the recently modernised factory in Varese, all parts, stock and staffing are now owned and controlled by Pierer Industrie AG.

A press release is yet to come from Pierer Industrie AG, however, the BMW Group released the following statement. “The BMW Group is realigning its BMW Motorrad business. In the context of changing motorcycle markets, demographic trends and increasing environmental demands, BMW Motorrad will expand its product offering to exploit future growth potential. The focus of the realignment will be on urban mobility and e-mobility. By restructuring the segment, the BMW Group will concentrate on expanding and utilising the resources of the BMW Motorrad brand. Therefore the BMW Group signed a purchase agreement with Pierer Industrie AG (Austria) for the acquisition of Husqvarna Motorcycles. The acquisition will proceed subject to approval by anti-trust authorities. Both companies have agreed not to disclose the purchase price.”

It’s suspected that over the next six months, Pierer Industrie AG will evaluate the co-operation potential with the KTM/Husaberg group. It’s also expected that the Husqvarna Motorcycle brand will be re-launched later this year. What the re-launch will entail, however, is not known yet.

And so, the next chapter in Husqvarna’s chequered history begins. While we now have the answer to the ‘who’s going to acquire Husqvarna’ question, what everyone now awaits is information regarding what’s next? What does Pierer Industrie AG have planned for the brand?