Ducati is officially back with a bang!
The Ducati nameplate is synonymous with achingly beautiful motorcycles that not only move the body but stir the soul. Local Ducatisti are in for a treat as it seems that the reintroduction of the brand to South Africa is finally gathering steam.
After months of radio silence, Ducati can officially say they are back and ready to serve you a dose of Italian flavour. The brand is set and ready to paint the town red after months of behind-the-scenes planning and setup have finally concluded, and Ducati is ready to start selling bikes in earnest. We first heard about the ambitious plans during a whistle-stop trip to Italy last year at Ducati World Bike Week, where the top brass at VWSA filled us in on the initial plans for the brand locally.
Related: World Ducati Week 2024
After we returned to SA, however, it all went quiet, and we couldn't help but wonder if it was all smoke and mirrors. Little did we know that the ball was seriously rolling, and the unfortunate crew at VWSA, soon to be Ducati South Africa, were dealing with some serious administrative roadblocks that set progress back months.
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Planning sorted
According to the new head of Ducati SA, Tertius Cronje, the approach that the new team took was not just to jump in feet first and hope for the best, but rather a strategic step-by-step implementation to ensure that all the bases were covered, and that meant months of work getting compliance certification from ICASA sorted, official homologation of the entire model lineup done, setting up aftersales systems, customet care lines and eventually Ducati Financial Services.
Major work has also been done on the dealer network. Three official sales outlets are ready to go before the end of the year, and several more outlets are planned for the future. Ducati Claremont is set up and ready to sell the first cohort of bikes that arrived this month, with Ducati Centurion continuing its sales. The exciting addition to this is Ducati Johannesburg, which will retail out of brand new shiny premises in Sandton, inside the RACE! Headquarters (old Audi Sandton building).
This is, however, only the first step with new dealers planned for Durban, Port Elizabeth, George, Bloemfontein and Mpumalanga.
Best foot forward
There is also now a fully comprehensive after-sales service that includes roadside assistance, parts and accessories, monitoring software, rider gear and apparel and a customer call centre to assist riders in need. Ducati is also planning a full-scale assault, bringing all the Ducati models to SA, which means everything from a Scrambler to a Panigale will be available to local buyers, and the best part? SA will be on the Europe and North America production timelines, meaning that we will get the bikes as soon as the big world markets get them, and there will be no waiting around for 10 months for stock to filter down to the tip of Africa.
This sounds very promising, but consumers will remain sceptical for now. We believe that this steady approach is what is going to make the difference. Yes, it's taken some time to get things established. Still, with the groundwork laid and the Volkswagen Group's vast logistics and backup systems at its disposal, Ducati SA is set to take the fight to the premium motorcycle segment.
You can now engage with the brand through its new website and social media sites, such as Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. Stay tuned for more information as it becomes available soon.
