Imagine the following conversation:
Friend A: Bro, I got a new bike!
Friend B: Woah, awesome! Which One?
Friend A: Husqvarna...
Friend B: That’s a car right?
Friend A: Not Verna.. Husqvarna...!!!
Friend B: Husk-verna?
Friend A: Hooosk-varna!!
Friend B: Ussk-verna?
Friend A: Forget it, just call it a ‘Husky’!
And, that’s exactly what Husqvarna (Hoosk-varna) is more commonly known as all over the world, ‘Husky’. I thought we should clear the air before we dive into the real story.
However, the real Swedish pronunciation of Husqvarna is as follows:
Now to the actual story.
Celebrating 10 years of strategic partnership, Bajaj Auto and Austrian brand KTM have announced that they will start rolling out the Husqvarna brand of motorcycles globally by 2018.
Founded in 1903, Husqvarna Motorcycles is the second-oldest motorcycle brand in the world and KTM acquired its long-term licence agreement in 2013. Currently, Bajaj Auto owns a 48 per cent stake in KTM.
Like KTM, the Husqvarna bikes will also be made at Bajaj Auto’s plant in Chakan, near Pune, where it is expected that there will be a substantial increase in the number of KTM and Husqvarna units from 1,00,000 units in 2017 to 2,00,000 units in the next couple of years.
It is said that the expansion will begin with three Husqvarna models – the Vitpilen 401, Svartpilen 401 and Vitpilen 701 – which will initially be manufactured in Austria and then slowly be shifted to Bajaj’s Chakan plant in late 2018.
Currently, there are several KTM models that are being manufactured at the Bajaj plant in Chakan. These include the 125 Duke, the 200 Duke, 250 Duke, 390 Duke, RC 125, RC 200 and RC 390. Thankfully, like the KTM bikes, the upcoming Husqvarna models will also be offered for sale in the domestic market.
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