Engaging the Audience

In the tumultuous 1970s, as the company fought to survive for long enough to implement its ten-year plan, Willie G was called on to use his design skills to keep the brand alive.

“The guy is an artistic genius,” Harley’s chief engineer at the time told Reid. “In the five years before we could bring new engines on-stream, he performed miracles with decals and paint. A line here and a line there and we’d have a new model. It’s what enabled us to survive.”⁶¹

These days, Willie G is something of a cult figure, mobbed by Harley enthusiasts wherever he appears.

“I’ve got to get a bag to put over my head,” he joked to Milwaukee magazine. “But seriously, it’s a mutual feeling. We don’t just sell a motorcycle and say goodbye. We try to have fun with our customers.”⁶²