Harley-Davidson president retires

Harley-Davidson’s President and Chief Executive Officer, James Ziemer, will retire in 2009 ending a 40-year career with the company.

Ziemer took over the job from Jeff Bleustein, one of the original executives who bought the company back from bowling-ball manufacturer AMF in 1981. Bleustein was CEO for eight years. Zeimer is relatively young, at 57, but there is no indication his departure relates to performance.

Harley-Davidson’s sales and profits have started to slip for the first time in two decades.