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Thread: From Bill Melvin him self.

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    From Bill Melvin him self.

    From Bill Melvin him self.

    first off I’m a super fan of Erik Buell. We have worked together closely and got along very well. He is as amazing an everyone thinks. He cares deeply about this brand and everything created here, and he also cares about the fans & dealers. And so do I. This is a good chance to give a little info.

    To answer your question, 3 years. I have been involved, funded, and owned EBR for 3 years. And proudly so. You have to race to live another day. We didn’t crash in turn 2. I didn’t bankrupt it, didn’t leave my dealers screwed, and we paid for every part order to suppliers up front in cash, no terms. The company is financially solvent & has no payables due.
    Do you have any idea what the cost is to try to operate a factory set up for 10,000 units a year with the worlds greatest motorcycle engineers & team? It’s not cheap. The truly amazing & experienced employees get paid well as they should. We paid them. For the big factory our volume was not there and not getting nearly close enough. I’ve seen some people online run the sales/cost estimates & they were way way off.
    I’ve sat in all the meetings, listened in the R&D room, ran the R&D numbers, & went ahead to fund new development, it’s not cheap. I’ve funded going to IMS shows across the country, it’s not cheap. I’ve funded development trips for the team overseas, it’s not cheap.
    I had 100’s of sleepless & stressful nights with my nuts on the line trying to fund a turnaround to keep the big factory running. I think some people who have not been involved first hand have a distorted view of what it takes. When others have the money and vision to do better we are here to listen, but it takes deep pockets. Cash talks & BS walks. We have listened & had to tell some groups to walk.
    I made the tough calls when I had to so that we could continue to take care of all of our obligations to the people we were working with. No bankruptcy and no unpaid bills. We have tried and done our best, when no one else would try. It’s not perfect, it’s the real deal. We wish the best for every EBR owner and are very glad we can still provide parts and support. And we are still here, building America’s Superbike.
    We’ve made bikes all 3 of my years. As noted above, we are financially sound & looking at what improvements are realistic for 2019. A smaller operation, we can continue to look towards the future.
    Race to live another day.
    Ride to live another day.

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    EBRforum ProvNov rb21's Avatar
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    EBRforum Expert Scott's Avatar
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    It's good to hear him talking so directly and frankly, but what I'd really like to see from him is not just a list of things they've done and how tough those things are, but what they plan to do and why we (and others) can buy a bike now and be confident they'll be here 5-10 years from now.

    Maybe he doesn't know that they'll be here 5-10 years from now and maybe I should applaud his honesty, but I think they'll have trouble selling bikes unless the people buying those bike feel confident that there's a long-term commitment.

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    EBRforum Newb gggGary's Avatar
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    Great post and laying on the line. Would like to hear updates as they happen. Gotta love guys that love motorcycles in a position to steer events, specially those attempting the made in USA route. Probably can be found elsewhere but the parts and incipient production is/are back in Troy? LAP is out of it now? has there been physical moves of the parts or has it always been in Troy? Sounds like the current too big factory needs to be vacated and a move made to a facility that matches more realistic production numbers. Course realistic is a very hard target to define. Honestly I'm not a "target customer" just an interested observer, trying to decide what to do with my newly acquired "new" 2014 SX. Might be best left as a museum piece, but DAY-AM I wanna RIDE it!
    2014 1190SX

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    Quote Originally Posted by gggGary View Post
    Great post and laying on the line. Would like to hear updates as they happen. Gotta love guys that love motorcycles in a position to steer events, specially those attempting the made in USA route. Probably can be found elsewhere but the parts and incipient production is/are back in Troy? LAP is out of it now? has there been physical moves of the parts or has it always been in Troy? Sounds like the current too big factory needs to be vacated and a move made to a facility that matches more realistic production numbers. Course realistic is a very hard target to define. Honestly I'm not a "target customer" just an interested observer, trying to decide what to do with my newly acquired "new" 2014 SX. Might be best left as a museum piece, but DAY-AM I wanna RIDE it!
    Bill Melvin is LAP, I hope he can pull it together.


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