Harley-Davidson Brand Becomes a Museum

The Harley Davidson (NYSE: HOG) brand is one of the most iconic brands in history, and Harley Davidson customers are extremely loyal to their brand.  In fact, Harley Davidson has come to symbolize the ultimate goal of relationship branding with over 1 million members around the world in the Harley Owners Group (HOG).  A new tribute to that brand opened on July 12, 2008 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin (the home of Harley Davidson) – the Harley Davidson Museum.

The Harley Davidson Museum includes 3 buildings on 20-acres.  It’s a unique setting that offers green space and park benches, restaurants and a retail store that are open to the public year-round at no charge.  Tickets are required to view the exhibits inside the museum building, which include a chronological gallery of one-of-a-kind motorcycles, photos, videos, memorabilia, a Elvis section and more.

This seems like a natural extension for a brand like Harley Davidson, even given the large scale.  There are already Harley Davidson stores (check out the picture above of the Harley Davidson store at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida), a variety of Harley Davidson merchandise, and even a Harley Davidson Cafe in Las Vegas, Nevada.  A museum seems to make sense.  What do you think?

Image: Susan Gunelius