Arctic Cat to Be Revived
Having acquired Arctic Cat for $247m in cash in 2017, Textron has sold the Minesota based snowmobile manufacturer, having closed down operations at its Thief River Falls facility earlier this year. In a statement included in its 2024/2025 Q1 fiscals, the sale is described as a 'Divestiture' and simply stated that - "we have completed the previously announced strategic review of the Powersports product line. On April 23, 2025, we closed on the sale of the Powersports business, including the Arctic Cat brand and its operations."
The buyer is an investment group and Brad Darling, a former Arctic Cat Vice President, and currently president and CEO at Canadian all-terrain vehicle (ATV) maker Argo. The terms of the deal are undisclosed.
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| Photo Credit: Arctic Cat |
Darling is quoted in a news release as stating: "Today is the start of a new chapter, one where Arctic Cat returns to the race, but with a powerful understanding: This race is never-ending, and our intent is to lead."
Having been closed by Textron in January, it is unclear at this time when the production lines will start up again, but a 2026 snowmobile lineup has already been confirmed. Darling will continue to lead Argo as he takes on duties at Arctic Cat. The companies will be operated separately, though there could be synergies between the two businesses, the release said.
Arctic Cat was founded by Edgar Hetteen in 1962, and the company has been operating in Thief River Falls since then, manufacturing snowmobiles, ATVs and side-by-sides.
Arctic Cat was part of Textron's specialized vehicles segment that includes other brands such as Tracker boats, E-Z-Go golf carts, Jacobsen lawn mowers and Cushman utility vehicles. Textron runs mostly aircraft and defense businesses.
After a 17-year tenure at Arctic Cat, Darling assumed the role of CEO and president of ARGO in 2016. Founded in 1967, ARGO is the worldwide leader for amphibious Xtreme Terrain Vehicles (XTVs).
The malaise surrounding Arctic Cat's fortunes is just one of the many corporate 'unwinds' that have been seen in the powersports industry in the past couple of years.
It was announced a few weeks ago that Indian Motorcycle owner Polaris Industries was to close the Idaho based Timbersled business that it had acquired in 2015.
The issues have also affected the Marine sector. BRP had recently announced its plans to exit its marine operations. The Canadian company has now announced that it is selling its Alumacraft assets to Bryton Marine Group, a family-owned company operating in Washington State, US, and British Columbia, Canada. Alumacraft is a manufacturer of aluminum fishing boats based in Saint Peter, Minnesota.
At the beginning of April 2025, BRP also announced that it had unloaded its Australia based Telwater aluminum boat brand - to Yamaha Motor Australia.
Update: Having announced an ambitious 2026 snowmobile lineup just days after the acquisition of Arctic Cat was confirmed, Brad Darling's investment group moved to confirm that it is to re-hire over 300 of the Arctic Cat workers that were laid off by Textron.
