Interesting developments on the EV side of the motorcycle industry, as Energica & Dell’Orto have decided to team up on making electric drivetrain systems for small and mid-sized motorcycles.
The move does not mean that Energica is about to burgeon its lineup with smaller electric motorcycles, but instead it means that Energica will follow Dell’Orto’s lead as a product supplier for other OEMs.
One of the more interesting announcements to go unnoticed at the EICMA show in Milan, was that Vibram was looking to get into the motorcycle industry.
Known best for its five-toed “shoeless” shoes, the Italian company actually has a rich history, which includes being part of the first successful summit of K2 (arguably the most difficult mountain to climb in the world).
Now Vibram makes its business selling rubber soles to shoemakers, with the company’s brand gaining traction (pardon the pun) in the B2B realm with partners like CAT, Danner, The North Face, and many others.
Now looking for new markets to penetrate, it only makes sense to see Vibram coming to the motorcycle industry.
Motorcyclists probably recognize the name Continental for its work in the tire industry, but the company has its fingers in a number of key elements in the motorcycle industry.
Continental is the third largest automotive parts supplier worldwide, and there is a good chance that more than a few parts on your motorcycle (ABS, dash, suspension, etc) comes from the German brand.
So, we shouldn’t be too surprised to hear that Continental is developing what it calls “swarm intelligence” for motorcycles, through the Continental eHorizon platform. If you have no idea what that means, it’s cool. More simply put, Continental is trying to make Waze for motorcyclists.
I know what you are already thinking, everyone and their mom already has an action camera. To make matters worse, GoPro (the leader in this realm) has seen its stock price drop in what can only be described as a complete free fall for the past month, thanks mostly to lagging sales.
So, how can action cameras be the next, next big thing in the motorcycle industry? The answer is a simple one, if you will allow me to explain.
The next, next big thing for motorcycles isn’t the cameras themselves – those are basically already at commodity status for consumers – but instead the future for action cameras resides in integrated camera platforms for motorcycles, and other action sports.
There is a lot of business school “bullshit bingo” in that last statement, so let me break it down to you in human-speak.
Motorcycle brands need to realize how consumers are using their vehicles, and adapt to meet those needs directly. In this case, it means offering an integrated video recording solution with their motorcycles.