Page Overview: BMW Group - The Next 100 Years - Reflections
Classic BMW models standing in the desert.
Reflections Our future has a history.

The BMW Group is playing a crucial part in shaping the mobility of the future – and constantly reinventing itself in the process. Its evolution from aircraft-engine manufacturer to premium mobility service provider is quite unique. The company’s pioneering spirit and characteristic forward momentum make it a trailblazer for the automotive industry – and guarantee another 100 years of visionary moments.

The BMW Group reflects on five characteristics that testify to its consistent focus on the future and form the basis for the powerful forces that will drive the next 100 years of progress and the mobility of tomorrow and beyond.

We successfully manage premium brands.

Image composition consisting of different BMW kidney grille shapes.

A changing brand.

In the expansion, realignment and constant development of its core BMW brand, the BMW Group has consistently demonstrated a deep brand awareness. Both in terms of brand image and vehicle design, the BMW brand has always remained true to itself and, at the same time, driven innovation forwards.

Four MINI models from different eras side-by-side.

New life for iconic brands.

In 2001 and 2003, the company led British brands MINI and Rolls-Royce to new success through technical perfection. With these and its core BMW and BMW Motorrad brands, the BMW Group offers a broad but coherent premium portfolio.

A BMW i3 and a BMW i8 driving side-by-side through town.

Taking electro-mobility to the next level.

With the launch of its new BMW i sub-brand, the company proved in 2013 that premium mobility and sustainability are inextricably linked – blazing a trail for the industry and taking the age of electro-mobility to the next dimension.

Our actions are geared to the future.

A map of the world showing different BMW Group offices.

The drive to be a global pioneer.

In the early 1970s, the BMW Group began opening its own sales companies worldwide. After initial successes in Europe, the company established operations in the US in 1975 and was the first Western manufacturer in Japan in the 1980s. International growth was followed by new production locations in South Africa, the US and China. Today, the BMW Group operates 31 production and assembly facilities in 14 countries; 14 research and development locations in five countries and a global sales network with offices in more than 140 countries.

A BMW 3 Series sprayed with graffiti.

Ready for change.

In 2007, the company's future orientation was given a name: Strategy Number ONE. With this strategy, the BMW Group anticipates radical technological change – actively shaping this so-called "iconic change" and already working today on the mobility of tomorrow.

Side view of a BMW 2002 and a BMW R 80 G/S motorcycle.

Rethinking mobility.

The BMW Group is not afraid to leave the beaten path. On numerous occasions, the company’s innovative concepts have created new market and vehicle segments that define the entire industry to this day – for example, BMW’s "New Class", which made the sports car family-friendly for the first time, or BMW Motorrad’s GS series, which combined road and off-road capabilities.

We conduct ourselves in a
responsible manner.

BMW Group staff having a lively discussion.

Dialogue knows no boundaries.

The BMW Group fulfils its responsibilities towards society, its employees and natural resources. As a global company, it is committed to intercultural dialogue.

Display of selected publications from the BMW archives.

Responsibility for our own actions.

Acting responsibly also means confronting the past: The company is a founding member of the "Remembrance, Responsibility and Future" Foundation and faces up to its own history during the Third Reich.

The BMW Concept i8 concept vehicle from BMW Group.

Thinking about tomorrow today.

In the field of alternative drive trains, the BMW Group has demonstrated the innovative spirit and courage of a pioneer: The company has been conducting intensive research into the use of hydrogen as a fuel since the mid-1980s. With BMW i, the BMW Group enables all-electric everyday mobility. BMW i thinks beyond the car: assuring sustainability throughout the value chain and through a whole range of complementary mobility services.

We grow from our challenges.

Image of the opening ceremony of Plant Dingolfing.

Vision leads the way out of the crisis.

The oil crisis of the early 1970s presented the automotive industry with a huge challenge: While some questioned the future of the car, the BMW Group decided in November 1973 to open a plant in Dingolfing. As a result, once the crisis was over, the company was ready to take off and in a stronger position for the future.

Historic photo of the BMW R32 production.

From aeroplanes to two-wheelers.

The 1919 Treaty of Versailles, which prohibited Germany from manufacturing aircraft engines, represented a major challenge for BMW. Its engineers initially modified the IIIa aircraft engine to create the M 4 A 12 stationary engine, which could also be used to power boats, tractors or trucks. At the same time, the company continued looking for new business and ultimately settled on motorcycles in the early 1920s.

The tip of the BMW Cylinder Towers emerging through a blanket of fog.

Staying strong – even during the financial crisis.

In the 2000s, armed with its forward-looking corporate strategy, the company was able to maintain its position in fluctuating markets and emerged from the 2008 global financial crisis stronger than ever.

Constantly reinventing ourselves.

Architecture of the BMW Group company building.der BMW Group Unternehmensgebäude.

Shaping a company.

From the dynamic aesthetic of its four brands to futuristic architecture, BMW Group design has always been defined by functional styling – based on the principle “form follows function”.

A BMW Art Car driving through an American city.

Shaping our vehicles.

BMW Group vehicles are not only characterised by visionary ideas, but, in the case of the BMW Art Cars, they are also the fastest works of art on the planet. A total of 17 exceptional artists from around the world have contributed to this collection since 1975 – from Andy Warhol to Roy Lichtenstein to Jeff Koons.

An urban panorama with the mobility apps available in this particular city.

Shaping change.

Today, the BMW Group is a leader in future-oriented concepts and technologies for vehicle connectivity. The company will continue to expand this position through its portfolio of innovative customised mobility services.

Learn more.

Architecture motif of BMW Welt in Munich.
Future Views.
A partly cut-off BMW M1 next to a BMW i8.
BMW Group History.
Former plant entrance with “Bayr. Motoren Werke” lettering.
BMW Group Classic.