Ducati was founded in 1926 by the
three Ducati brothers, Bruno, Adriano, and Marcello. At first, the company did
not manufacture motorcycles but managed electrical components. On June 1, 1935,
the cornerstone of the Ducati Company factory in Borgo Panigale was laid.
The new complex was an extremely
modern and ambitious project intended to establish an industrial and
technological centre in Bologna. However, in 1944, the Borgo Panigale factory
was razed to the ground during the Second World War. During the war, the Ducati
brothers studied and planned new products to be introduced at the end of the
conflict.
In 1946, the Cucciolo appeared – a
small auxiliary motor for bicycles destined to become the most famous in the
world. First sold as a bicycle attachment, it soon acquired a frame of its own.
In a short time, the Cucciolo became a real miniature motorcycle. Thanks to
Cucciolo's success, the Ducati became an affirmed trademark in the mechanical
sector.
In 1952, Ducati’s first two-wheeler,
the 175cc Cruiser, took shape in the form of a motorcycle. It had an electric
starter and automatic transmission. In 1954, engineer Fabio Tagnoli joined the
company. His expertise made Ducati come up with several spectacular models by
the end of 1956. These models include the Tourist 174, the Special, and the
Sport, which could reach up to 135 km/h of speeds. It was a benchmark for the
time. All these models were presented to the public at the 1957 Milan Salon.
Beginning in 1955, Tagnoli also
devoted three years of his time and effort to work on a desmodromic system. It was
adopted on the 250cc bike ordered by the famous English racer Mike Hailwood in
1960. In 1968, Ducati increased the power of its production series bikes when
they came up with the 450 Mark 3D. It could go over 170 km/h and was the first
production Ducati motorcycle to feature the desmodromic system.
Ducati entered Indian two-wheeler
industry by tying up with Precision Motors, a unit of the Shreyans Group, in
2008. After this, Precision Motors became the sole importer and retailer of
Ducati motorbikes in India. However, the partnership failed to take off,
resulting in Ducati’s sudden exit from the Indian market. In 2013, Ducati
announced its re-entry into India and formed Ducati India Private Limited in
2014. This marked the official launch of Ducati bikes in India.
Delhi
and Mumbai were chosen as the primary locations to set up the new, dedicated
dealerships in India. AMP Group led the development of AMP Superbikes in
Gurugram for Delhi/NCR region. Further, the Infinity Group was chosen as the
official retailer for Mumbai. Later, the dealerships were also opened in
Ahmedabad, Pune, Bengaluru, Kolkata, and Chennai. Initially, the Ducati bike
models offered in India were the Monster 821, Monster S2R, Monster 795,
Hypermotard, Hyperstrada, Diavel 899, Diavel 1299, and the Panigale R.