Problem in the US is demand driven, not supply driven. I was talking with the owner of Cascade Moto (Triumph / Guzzi dealer in Portland, OR) last summer, and he mentioned his frustration with new riders. He had a standing offer to all new riders that he would sell them a small bike (125?), and a year later he would buy it back at the same price if they were moving up. Nobody would take it. Not manly enough for them.
All the major Japanese makers had tried bringing small displacement bikes to the US, but they never sell well enough, long enough, to be worth the hassle. The problem is that the people who need the experience most are the least likely to get it.