Polaris to close western Wisconsin plant in 2026

Minnesota-based powersports company Polaris will close one of its manufacturing plants in western Wisconsin later this year.

The company confirmed to 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS that it will wind down operations at the Osceola, Wis., facility over the next year and then close the plant.

It comes three months after Polaris announced plans to sell its majority stake in Indian Motorcycle to focus more on the “most attractive areas for profitable growth.”

As part of that decision, Indian Motorcycle opted to move production of its powertrains from the Osceola facility to a plant in Spirit Lake, Iowa later in 2026.

Polaris said that move means there isn’t enough production volume at Osceola to continue operations at that facility, and other plants will pick up the remaining manufacturing needs.

Employees at the Wisconsin site, which total around 200, aren’t expected to be impacted until this summer, according to a company spokesperson.

“We recognize the difficulty this change will mean in the lives of employees, and we are committed to supporting them through this transition. We will offer separation benefits and outplacement assistance to impacted employees, as well as support relocation opportunities,” the Polaris spokesperson said.

Founded in Roseau in 1954 and now headquartered in Medina, Polaris employs roughly 15,000 people and is among the world leaders in snowmobile, ATV and UTV sales.
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