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Volkswagen Group today
completed its widely anticipated takeover of Turin-based
design and engineering house Italdesign Giugiaro, which
will lead to an intensification of their successful
cooperation, putting it on a new footing. This was
announced by both companies at a joint press conference
in Turin today. The Volkswagen Group will take a 90.1
percent stake in IDG, including the brand name rights
and patents. The shares are being acquired by Audi's
Italian subsidiary Lamborghini Holding S.p.A. The
remaining shares will stay in the possession of the
present owner family Giugiaro.
“With this shareholding in Italdesign, we are
participating in one of the most renowned design and
development companies with one of the richest traditions
in the automobile industry. Italdesign is the flagship
for creative Italian automobile design and has been
instrumental in shaping the face of the automobile
industry worldwide. As the creator of the Golf I,
Giorgetto Giugiaro laid a new foundation for Volkswagen
design in the 1970s,” Prof. Dr. Martin Winterkorn,
Chairman of the Board of Management of Volkswagen
Aktiengesellschaft, commented in Turin today.
The Volkswagen Group has enjoyed successful cooperation
with IDG for many decades. Giugiaro made a name for
himself not only with the Golf I, but also with concepts
for important models such as the first Volkswagen Passat,
Scirocco or the Audi 80. A comprehensive development
framework agreement was concluded in 2008. Volkswagen
and IDG are also collaborating closely on ongoing
projects such as the planned Volkswagen Up! model
family. Implementation of the agreement is also subject
to the standard approval by the relevant authorities.
“A new era in the strategic partnership between our
companies begins today. Italdesign becomes a permanent
member of the global Volkswagen family,” Winterkorn
said. “The Volkswagen Group will be continuing its model
initiative over the coming years and will benefit from
the capacity and competence of Italdesign. The company
will therefore be making an important contribution to
our 2018 global growth strategy,” Winterkorn continued.
IDG was founded in Turin by Giorgetto Giugiaro and Aldo
Mantovani in 1968. Both founders are considered pioneers
of modern Italian automobile design. Italdesign has also
acquired a reputation worldwide as a highly-competent
development center. Today, the company generates sales
of over €100 million and has a workforce of some 800
employees.
“Every drop becomes the sea when it flows oceanward. In
the last few days I ran into this sentence while I was
reading Sophie`s World by the Norwegian novelist Jostein
Gaardner. We are the drop. Becoming part of the
Volkswagen Group means revaluating ourselves and our
strength. Entering Volkswagen means to open up a
promising perspective for the company,” Giorgetto
Giugiaro said.
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