Harley-Davidson had big plans to bring electric motorcycles to a younger generation of riders. Its majority-owned subsidiary, LiveWire, was supposed to lead that push. But years after going public, sales remain far below expectations, net losses since 2022 have added up to more than $350M, and the company has now brought in a restructuring specialist to take control.
The major leadership shakeup
LiveWire CEO Karim Donnez resigned effective Oct. 21, according to a regulatory filing. The following day, the company added two directors and formed a special committee to review its financial options.
The committee, led by William Cornog and David Barse, has broad authority to evaluate potential financing deals, asset sales, recapitalizations, and other strategic transactions.
On Oct. 25, LiveWire appointed Roy Gallagher of Ankura Consulting Group as its chief restructuring officer and principal executive officer.
Gallagher brings more than a decade of experience in leveraged loans and distressed debt. LiveWire is paying Ankura $140K per month for his services.
The appointment suggests LiveWire's immediate priority has shifted from growing its business to figuring out how to keep it financially viable.
Kids' balance bikes outsell LiveWire's motorcycles
LiveWire 2025 net revenue by segment, $M
Pie chart. STACYC balance bikes: Revenue ($M) $19.6. Electric motorcycles: Revenue ($M) $6.1.
Buyers never showed up
LiveWire once expected electric motorcycles to become a major growth business. At its first investor day, the company projected annual sales exceeding 100K motorcycles by 2026.
The reality has been very different. LiveWire sold just 653 electric motorcycles in 2025, up from 612 the previous year.
High prices, charging limitations, and slower-than-expected consumer adoption have made it difficult to attract buyers.
Harley-Davidson CEO Jochen Zeitz acknowledged that electric vehicle adoption had not developed as the company originally expected.
Meanwhile, LiveWire's smaller business has been doing much of the heavy lifting. STACYC, its electric balance bike brand for children, generated $19.6M in revenue last year, compared with just $6.1M from electric motorcycles.
That leaves LiveWire in an unusual position where children's electric bikes bring in more revenue than the motorcycles it was built to sell.
The losses keep adding up
LiveWire has narrowed its losses since 2023, but the business remains far from profitable.
LiveWire's losses topped $350M in four years
LiveWire Group annual net loss, $M, 2022 to 2025
Bar chart. $M. 2022: Net loss ($M) $78.9. 2023: Net loss ($M) $110. 2024: Net loss ($M) $93.9. 2025: Net loss ($M) $75.1.
Net losses came to $78.9M in 2022, $109.6M in 2023, $93.9M in 2024 and $75.1M in 2025, about $357.5M across the four years. However, motorcycle sales remain too low to support its operating costs.
Cash reserves are also shrinking. LiveWire held $52.9M in cash at the end of June, down from $82.8M at the end of 2025.
There have been some signs of improvement. Second-quarter revenue climbed 55% to $9.1M, while electric motorcycle deliveries increased to 267 from 55 a year earlier.
But higher sales haven't translated into meaningful profits. Inventory write-downs tied to its S2 motorcycles pushed gross profit close to zero.
Over the past 12 months, gross margins remained near negative 11%, while adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization were approximately negative $63.5M.
LiveWire is selling more motorcycles than it did a year ago, but it still hasn't found a way to make the business profitable.
What happens to Harley
Harley-Davidson remains LiveWire's controlling shareholder and manufactures its S2 motorcycles under contract. The company has continued supporting the business since the transaction that took LiveWire public.
That investment has become increasingly difficult to justify as losses accumulate and demand falls short of early projections.
The restructuring committee now has authority to explore a potential sale, financing arrangement, or other transaction. With just 151 employees at the end of 2025, LiveWire faces a much different future than the one envisioned when it entered the public markets.
Investors will get another look at the numbers when LiveWire reports third-quarter results before the market opens on Thursday, Oct. 29.
The company won't hold a separate earnings call. Instead, Harley-Davidson management will discuss the business during its own webcast, although its reported segment figures may differ from LiveWire's standalone results.
The next update should offer more clarity on LiveWire's cash position and whether recent sales improvements are enough to slow its losses.
For Harley-Davidson, the question is no longer how quickly electric motorcycles can become a major growth business. It's how much more the company is willing to spend before deciding what comes next.
