Just a FYI, Bayerische Motoren Werke doesn't translate directly to "Bavarian Motor Works." It really translates to "Bavarian Motor Factory." "Works" certainly sounds better, though.
Who controls BMW?
Emil Quandt is the man who laid the foundations. He married the daughter of a rich textile manufacturer and took charge of the company in 1883. It was his son Günther, though, who was the driving force behind the Quandt conglomerate. when he died in 1954, the Quandt group was a sprawling empire of cross-ownerships and holding companies involving about 200 firms. It also owned about 10% of car company Daimler-Benz and about 30% of BMW.
But BMW was an ailing company. By 1959, its management suggested selling the whole concern to rival Daimler Benz. Herbert Quandt, one of Günther Quandt's sons, was close to agreeing such a deal, but changed his mind at the last minute. He increased his share in BMW and was instrumental in turning the company around.
In the years following Günther Quandt's death, the family empire was split several times as company holdings were disentangled and distributed among the heirs of his sons Harald, who died in a plane crash in 1967, and Herbert, who died in 1982.
BMW is currently controlled by Herbert Quandt's third wife, Johanna and her two children Susanne and Stefan.
The Quandts are multi-billionaires, although it is difficult to put an exact figure on their wealth. They do not give interviews and are very publicity shy. Pictures of family members are hard to come by. The family has been closely involved in BMW's affairs for four generations, playing a decisive role in picking its chief executives and holding two seats on the company's supervisory board. The current board members are drawn from the fourth generation of Quandts: Stefan, 33, and his sister Susanne Klatten, 37, joined the board in May 1997.
In 1995 they transferred their shares from personal ownership to three company holdings, a move which made it more difficult to sell the shares on the stock market. The family said this was a demonstration of its commitment to BMW. Thomas Gauly, a spokesman for the family, insists that the Quandts do not own BMW to make a quick buck. They hope for value creation in the long run, and they do not just look at the financial bottom line. According to Mr Gauly, the Quandt family wants a firm to treat its employees well, and behave in a socially responsible manner.