The Swedish-founded Arctic Cat is now throwing in the towel. The factory in the US will no longer build snowmobiles and ATVs. 560 jobs will be lost.
The Swedish-founded Arctic Cat is stopping production of snowmobiles and ATVs.
The factory in Minnesota, USA, has been home to the production of these popular vehicles for many years.
But now it's over. The current owner, Textron, has decided to shut down production and lay off 560 employees.
The decision comes after a period of weak demand for Arctic Cat products. In a statement to dealers, the company wrote: – Consumer demand for products like this remains weak.
Production of the last snowmobiles and ATVs is expected to be completed in the spring of 2025. After that, the factory will be closed indefinitely.
Textron, which bought Arctic Cat in 2017, has chosen to prioritize its investments in the aerospace and weapons industries. The decision leaves a gap in the snowmobile market, where Arctic Cat has been a popular model.
The company was founded in 1960 by Edgar Hetten, a Swedish-American with roots in Malung, Dalarna. Hetten immigrated to the United States as a young man and settled in Minnesota.
The inspiration for the Arctic Cat came from a neighbor who had built a vehicle to get around in the snow. Hood took the idea and refined it. This led in 1954 to the founding of Polaris, which ended up as a pioneer in snowmobiles.
A few years later, Hetten founded Arctic Cat. He died in 2011 at the age of 90 at his home in Minnesota. The closure of Arctic Cat is yet another example of how the manufacturing landscape is changing, with China taking over a larger share of global production.
Several European car brands have also ended up in Chinese hands. Some have even been closed down again. The most famous is probably the story of Saab.
The factory in Trollhättan never got back to work after going bankrupt for the second time in a few years in 2012. The latest news is that all equipment from the factory is to be sold. Read more about it here .
