In 1954, in the small town of Roseau, Minnesota, two brothers and a great friend, lovers of the outdoors, were looking for a better way to get around in the deep snow of the upstate.

By combining their manual skills and their collective ingenuity, Edgar and Allan Hetteen and David Johnson built the first Polaris snowmobile, assembled piece by piece in their workshop. And so Polaris Industries Inc. was born that year.

The very first snowmobile was sold for less than $500 to a sawmill owner. But over the next 65 years, the same ingenuity and spirit of adventure drove the company forward, delivering many industry firsts and smart ideas along the way.

In 1985, Polaris expanded its lineup into off-road vehicles with the release of its first quad, the Trail Boss, later joined by the world's first electronically fuel-injected quad, the Sportsman ® . This dynamic continued in the 1990s with the arrival of personal watercraft, Victory ® motorcycles and the first Polaris RANGER ® . When the American economy went through a difficult period, the manufacturer redoubled its efforts and released the RZR ® in 2007. This model not only changed the game on the market, but it invented a completely new genre: the SSV of sport-leisure.

In recent years, Polaris' brand portfolio has grown steadily. In 2011, the group acquired and relaunched the Indian Motorcycle brand and then, in 2014, created a new type of product, the Slingshot. The same year, Polaris inaugurated the Opole plant in Poland, its first production site outside of North America. The desire to provide a customer experience independent of the purchase of a Polaris vehicle has led to the addition of several brands of aftermarket parts, apparel and accessories such as 509, Klim, Kolpin and Transamerican Auto Parts. In 2019, Polaris acquired Boat Holdings LLC which further strengthens its presence in the outdoor recreation market.

Thus, the only snowmobile of the beginnings has metamorphosed into a good thirty brands covering different product lines. Far from being limited to snow, the Polaris catalog is now appreciated on all terrains and all continents.

In 2019, the company presented its new brand image accompanied by an updated corporate purpose, name, logo and emblem, as well as a new slogan: Think Outside. Behind this expression, is expressed the spirit of Polaris always: on the one hand to seek excellence, on the other hand to encourage outdoor activities by striving to offer original experiences and services to an audience new and ever wider.

“Our founders built the first snowmobile to venture further into the snowy woods of northern Minnesota,” said Scott Wine, CEO of Polaris. “For 65 years, we have applied this pioneering approach in everything we do, from the creation of the first automatic quad and the first sport-recreational SSV to the launch of the RIDE COMMAND system and many other technical solutions intended to facilitate the adventure. Through its wide current range, Polaris wants its customers to fully enjoy the joys of the great outdoors. Our new slogan, Think Outside, is the common thread running through all the products, services and experiences we offer. »