Dealers bask in Harley-Davidson's earnings report



GREENFIELD -- Around the world, when people hear Harley-Davidson, they think Milwaukee. So when the motorcycle giant announces a big year of business, the spotlight shines brightly on Brew City.

In 2011, nearly 250,000 new Harley-Davidson motorcycles hit the road. It sold nearly 6% more bikes, bringing in more than a half billion dollars of income from operations.

Don Cozza runs the House of Harley in Greenfield. When he heard the company saw its profits more than double from 2010, he wasn't surprised. Cozza believes there's pent up demand for H-D bikes. He says riders have been saving rather than spending the last few years.

"It's been a long three, four years where people have just been anxious about what's going on in our economy," said Cozza.

The 109-year-old company has grown exponentially since its Milwaukee founding.  While expansion continues in the U.S., the real growth potential is abroad.  It’s a possibility exciting city officials like Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett.

"The more we can have this brand exported to China and other countries the more jobs we can create here and that's what this is all about for me," said Barrett.

The positive earnings report comes on the heels of employee layoffs in December.