According to the Milwaukee Business Journal, HD plans "headcount reductions" as part of an imminent "reset." The article says that HD's new CEO Artie Starrs "will be 'addressing this mismatch head-on' between corporate overhead, manufacturing capacity and overall operating expenses and the volumes of demand the motorcycle maker is seeing."

What that means is Harley isn't making money selling motorcycles – especially the electric ones (i.e., the LiveWire).

It hasn't been making money selling them for at least a couple of years now. The company's main source of positive cashflow is financing the sale of bikes – which is not quite the same thing as selling bikes. And merchandise – jackets and such – as well as licensing rights to the HD brand.

We are conducting a rigorous, end-to-end review of our cost base and operating expenses, supported by third-party specialists. Our current corporate overhead, manufacturing capacity and overall operating expenses are built for materially higher volumes than today's demand, and we will be addressing this mismatch head-on," Starrs told the MBJ.

Nothing about the why behind of all of this – which is simply that Harleys are, for the most part, expensive old men's bikes. When was the last time you saw a guy in his early 20s on a new Harley? I cannot remember the last time I saw one. A couple of years go, I did some work on an old Harley for a neighbor. I needed some parts to get the bike running, so I went to the local HD store in my area. The guys there were all middle-aged or older than that. The vibe was entirely different than the youthful vibe at the Kawasaki/Honda/Yamaha/Suzuki dealer I go to get stuff for my bikes. I don't own a Harley; not because I don't like them but because I cannot afford one – and I am not a guy in my young 20s anymore, either.