ICFAI UNIVERSITY, HYDERABAD

BUSSINESS HISTOY REPORT ON

“VOLKSWAGEN- BRIEF HISTORY”

SUBMITTED BY:
DEBASHIS 21BSPHH01C0328 04
CHATTERJEE
HARSHITA KULLA 21BSPHH01C0457 09
KUNAL CHOUDHARY 21BSPHH01C0595 14
CHICHULA PAVANI 21BSPHH01C0313 19
HARSH PATWA 21BSPHH01C0450 24

SUBMITTED TO :
G. ASHOK KUMAR SIR
 INDEX

SERIAL NO. PARTICULARS PAGE NO.

1. INTRODUCTION 1-2

2. EXCUETIVE SUMMARY 3-5

3. ABOUT THE FOUNDERS 6- 9

4. BUSSINESS GROUP & 10-12

INDUSTRY

5 BUSSINESS GOWTH & IT’S 13-17

IMPACT

6 COPING WITH THE CHANGES 18

7 TIMELINE AND MAIN EVENTS 19-25

OF VOLKSWAGEN

8 REFRENCES 26
INTRODUCTION
Volkswagen Group is a global automobile manufacturer, leading the passenger car segment with
9.8MM sales and ranking among the top 5 brand-driven OEMs in 2015.

a) Company Overview: Volkswagen is dedicated to delivering “safe and

environmentally sound” vehicles. The company’s main brands include Volkswagen
AG, Audi, Porsche, Skoda, operating in over 30 countries with a focus in the European
countries and China.
b) Sandal: In august 2015, Company officials admitted to installing a “defeat device” in
diesel cars sold in the U.S market. Following this, Volkswagen has faced several
challenges in the marketplace. Explicit costs include recall costs, government fines,
legal fees, and a projected loss in operating income. Analysis of the current financial
situation has concluded an accumulated cost around 15.6MM. Additional, non-
quantifiable costs include decreased brand equity and losses in employee and investor
confidence. While Volkswagen has already issued press releases and allocated
appropriate compensation for affected vehicles, there is still room in regaining consumer
trust and growing the company moving forward.

Customer mapping is also known as geographical market analysis and it is the Easiest Way to
Identify Where your customers come from and who they are .This project focuses on to know
the profile and from which geographical part of Jodhpur. The potential customer of Volkswagen
cars can be and what is the customer behavior of various users of cars like how many cars do
they have and after how much do they like to change their cars. The whole survey has been
done in various parts of jodhpur city like Mogra village, Banar Army Area, Old pali road ,New
pali road, Industrial Area, Housing board, Sastri nagar etc.

So in this research I studied the mapping of the customers and behavior of the customers. So,
overall it was a great learning experience for me to get such introspection about the automobile
industry and various aspects related to its marketing strategy.

INTRODUCTION OF AUTOMOBILE INDUSTRY

The automobile industry has changed the way people live and work. The earliest of modern cars
was manufactured in the year 1895. Shortly the first appearances of the car followed in India. As
the century turned, three cars were imported in Mumbai (India) ; within a decade there were a
total of 1025 cars in the city.

The dawn of the automobile actually goes back to 4000 years when the first wheel was used for
transportation in india. In the beginning of 15 th century, Portuguese arrived in China and the
interaction of the two cultures led to a variety of new technologies, including the creation of a
wheel that turned under its own power. By the 1600s small steam-powered engine models were
developed, but it looks another century before a full- sized engine-powered vehicle was created.
Brothers Charles and Frank duryea introduced the actual horseless carriage in the year 1893. It
was the first internal-combustion, motor car of America, and it was followed by Henry Ford’s
first experimental car that same year.

Nearly 18% of the total national income is being incurred from the automobile industry. From
this we can estimate how important the automobile industry is in the improvement of GDP of a
country . In India, the automobile industry has a growth rate of 10-12%.

INDIAN AUTOMOBILE SINCE 1947

Its fascinating drive through history, which begins as a story of isolation and missed opportunities
to one of huge potential and phenomenal growth. India’s fixation with socialism and planned
economies on the automotive industry in its formative years. The goal at that time for
independent India was self-Sufficiency was simply not considered.

Dependence of foreign technology swabbed and manufacturers were forced to localize their
products; import substitution became the order of the day. Though we learnt to localize, the cars
we made were all outdated designs with little or no improvements for decades. The automotive
industry stagnated under the government’s stifling restrictions and the Indian car buyer was on a
waiting list that at one point stretched to eight years!

This attempt at self-reliance failed miserably because of the industry’s isolation from the best
technology. The Japanese and later Korean auto industries were also highly protected in their
formative years but they never shut the door on technology. Instead, they relentlessly tapped the
best talent pools in the world to absorb the know-how to produce good cars.

One of the most important in the Indian automotive industry’s history was written by Maruti. It
marked the Indian government getting into the far business in the early 1980’s a radical shift in
thinking after decades of treating cars with disdain. The Maruti 800 went on to become the
staple car of India and put a nation on wheels. This little car set a benchmark for price, size and
quality and structured India as a small car market.

It wasn’t till 1993 that things started to change for the Indian car buyer. With the liberalization of
the economy, a host of international car markers rushed in. But most of them were in for a shock
as Indian customers rejected their product. Indian customers refused to allow the glitter of
prestigious brands blind them to the outdated and overpriced products they were offered.

The Indian consumer wanted super value, and rewarded the brands that delivered it,
handsomely. This was ironically due to the license raj that forced Indian car markers to be
innovative and develop products frugally. India’s frugal engineering skill has now caught the
world’s imagination, and an increasing number of car markers are preparing to set up major
capacities here. People’s aspirations are rising and so are their mistakes, and have got their
finger on the pulse of the market. Get the right product and the rewards are handsome.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Customer mapping is the easiest way to identify where your customers come from and who
they are.

Customer Mapping Analysis may include:

● A customer profile to understand where to find more like them.
● Market penetration and market share reports showing performance in existing markets
and expected performance in new markets.
● Market ranking reports allow companies to prioritize resource deployment into
new markets.
Customer Mapping helps to know market potential by using following steps:

Map Customer Locations:

Create a “pin map” of where your customers live. Find out at a glance what parts of town you
draw from and where to advertise. If you have your names and address in a data file, you can
order right now with no payment required in advance.

Identify Your Trade Area:

Map your customers to see what your trade area is. Compare your customers with the market
potential to see your market penetration.

Define Customers Profile

Once you have your customers mapped, you can analyze the demographic characteristics and
define a profile of your best customers. From this it is a short step to finding more potential
customers like them.

Target Your Advertising

Given your trade area, and your customer profile, you can focus advertising to the places and
media that are most likely to hit your target market.

Customer Mapping

Customer mapping shows organizations which neighbourhoods and markets they are serving
with their products. The results of customer mapping can often be surprising and show trends
that were otherwise unknown.
In addition, customer mapping can be applied not only to an entire client database, but also to
selected kinds of customers such as:
● Those who have bought certain products, or certain services
● Those whose purchases exceed a specified amount

To gain the greatest value from customer mapping, it can be combined with market share
analysis to reveal the strongest areas that are being reached, and those that are not being
reached.
Strategies for Customer Mapping

What is a geographic market worth to your business? Mapping Analytics will help you find the
answer. Market potential can be expressed as a function of :
● The number of customers purchasing
● Amount purchased
● Frequency of purchase

Bottom Up or Top Down Market Analysis

It all depends on your specific needs. Mapping Analytics can advise you on the best approach to
sizing any market.
● A bottom up approach to market sizing starts with your customers. How much and often
do they buy? What is their profile? How many potential customers do you have in the
market based on your customer profiles? How can you reach them?
● A top down approach starts with market and industry dta. It takes a close look at a
geographic market area and profiles the consumers and business to let you know their
propensity to buy your products and services.
Mapping Analytics has expertise in both these approaches to market sizing. We also have a
wealth of data sources through partnerships with the best data providers in the industry. We
can match the right data for market analysis to your business and market strategy.

Cluster Analysis for Customer Mapping

We often use lifestyle clustering systems to size consumer markets. Clustering systems under
the premise that “birds of feather flock together” That means people with similar buying
behaviours and demographic profiles tend to live close together. This helps you identify
neighborhoods or markets where your potential is highest.

● Cluster analysis identifies key segments in the population that are more likely to
purchase your products than the average consumer.
● Knowing in which clusters people reside provides a reasonable means of understanding
and predicting how they will behave.
● Understanding which clusters are more likely than others to purchase allows.

Access Market Opportunity

Market analysis services from Mapping Analytics will provide the key intelligence we need to
rank and prioritize markets.
The top new geographic markets to target based on customer or revenue potential and which
markets where we currently do business have untapped potential. Gaining this market
understanding is essential to growing and expanding our business. But it isn’t enough on its
own.
Demographic Site Selection

When we work with Mapping Analytics, we will discover demographic site

selection.Leads to sound business site selection decisions. We include a series of
important analyses when helping we select new sites, including:

● Customer profiling
● Mapping customer locations
● Competitive analysis
● Trade area development and mapping
● Demographic, Census,and market data analysis
● Market potential analysis

Customer Profiling

Customer profiling services from mapping analytics create descriptive segments or groups
of your customers. Each segment has specific defining characteristics. A customer segment
is not as simple as applying a demographic label, such as “women aged 45-54” or “ business
with revenue>500 milion.

Those descriptions alone won’t tell you enough about your customer. For example, not all
women aged 45-54 have the same tendency to purchase your products. So a profile like
this may not help you so much, and you may waste resources marketing and selling to the
wrong people.

That’s why Mapping Analytics takes a more comprehensive and disciplined approach to
customer profiling. We use your own customer data, lifestyle cluster data, and analytical
techniques. The result is a more accurate description of your customer that can be used to
identify areas where you can find more of your best customers.

Mapping Customer Attitudes

By surveying consumers about their attitudes toward the leading products in a market,
marketers can map customers' dominant attitudes toward products. Market research
companies such as Simmons conduct detailed interviews to gather the data needed to
identify clusters of buyer attitudes.
ABOUT THE FOUNDERS

IDEA BEHIND THE ORIGINATION

One of the most famous automobile companies the world has heard of is Volkswagen.
Almost every country around the world has heard of this name and has also probably come
across one of their vehicles. On May 28,1937 the government of Germany under the control
Adolf Hitler of the Nazi trade union, the German Labour Frontforms a new state-owned
automobile company, then known as Gesellschaft zur Vorbereitung des Deutschen
Volkswagens mbH. Later that year, it was renamed simply Volkswagen.
Volkswagen means “people’s car”, It was initially Hitler’s idea that was later developed and
produced to achieve an affordable and fast-moving car. Hitler wanted this car to be used by
the mass and enjoyed by the common people. The project of designing the car started before
World War II but the production got halted due to the war. After the war had ended the
project of designing this car became the focus of Hitler’s attempts in reviving the auto
industry of Germany. The first-ever Volkswagen car was manufactured by Ferdinand Porsche
However, the original operator of Volkswagen is the German Labour Front.

ROLE OF GERMAN LABOUR FRONT

Three functionaries of the German Labour Front (DAF), Paul A. Brinckmann, Alexander
Halder and Werner Boltz, sign the articles of association establishing the “Corporation to
prepare the way for the German People’s Car “ before a notary public in Berlin. The stated
purpose of the company is the “planning and technical development of the German People’s
Car”.
The three directors of Volkswagenwerk GmbH and staff from Porsche KG set off on a four-
week trip to Detroit in order to broaden their knowledge of Ford’s mass production methods
and to buy specialist American machinery. They also recruit a number of German-American
experts employed at Ford.Franz Xaver Reimspieß, an engine designer at Porsche KG, created
the Volkswagen trademark, the ”letters V and W contained in a circle”. The registration
application was filed on October 1, 1948 and the trademark was registered with the German
Patent Office on November 21, 1953. The plan was to carry through with this Nazi prestige
project which was aimed at improving the image of its leisure time organization. The
Volkswagen was the main attraction of the international automobile show in Berlin in the
early 1930s, not as a brand name, but as a classification
DESIGN FORMULATED BY

Ferdinand Porsche was born on 3rd September 1875 in

Austria. From a very early age, he showed immense interest
in technology and electricity. After joining Bela Egger & Co.
he continued his job along with his education at Technical
University in Reichenberg. In the year 1897 and 1898, he
made a number of inventions like the wheel-hub motor run on
electricity, the electric car, etc. The wheel-hub engine
invented by Porsche received acclaims worldwide in 1900 at
World’s Fair. Porsche was honoured with a doctorate degree
in 1917 because of his achievements at the Imperial Technical
University. In 1931 Porsche formed his own company. It is
during this time in 1934 he got busy in Hitler’s project of
making “people’s car” and came up with the Volkswagen Car.
Porsche later along with his son made history by designing the famous Porsche cars for sports
in 1950.

GROWTH OF THE COMPANY

During the 1950s, Volkswagen was already considered a symbol of West Germany‘s
economic miracle. Just like the Beetle itself, the company‘s success resulted from a
conspicuous profile and constantly improved engineering. The factory‘s capacity as well as
the rationalization offensive introduced in 1954 created the technical prerequisites required
for the standardized production of the V W 1200. Volkswagen was able to shape its long-
term growth strategy by combining mass production, global market orientation and the
integration of its workforce.
Europe‘s economic recovery and the struggle for industrialization of Third World countries
resulted in an advantageous situation for the export of Volkswagens. As it turned out,
international trade based on bilateral agreements proved beneficial for Volkswagen. The
dollar shortage in most countries temporarily weakened the American competition, but the
export possibilities of the German rivals were limited by production capacities. As a public
company, Volkswagen could hope for the support of the federal government, which, by
negotiating trade agreements, opened up export possibilities for the German industry. With a
market share often reaching 50 percent of the entire German automobile export business,
Volkswagen was the most important earner of foreign currency and the leading German
automobile exporter during the 1950s.
Volkswagen celebrated its greatest triumphs on the domestic market, where the Beetle
became a symbol of Germany‘s economic miracle. The dream of a popular automobile that
was born around 1900 thanks to the birth of a new engineering era and which was later
abused by the Nazis for their own political ends, finally flourished in a late but equally
terrific manner. The Beetle was the best selling automobile of the decade and had a market
share of around 40 percent. Engineering and design created the halo of a ”classless“ auto
representing the self-confidence of a growing consumer society and the fundamental change
of the passenger car from being a luxury item to becoming a consumer good for all segments
of the population
Mass production of the Beetle and the flourishing export business helped Volkswagen reach a
leading position in Europe. Thanks to greater productivity, the company built twice as many
automobiles in 1964 as the second place manufacturer. In Germany, Volkswagen reached a
share of almost 33 percent in the passenger car market, and more than half of newly
registered vans carried the Volkswagen trademark. Volkswagen overcame the switch from a
seller‘s market to a buyer‘s market during the earlier 1960s without a slump in sales by
adding the V W 1500 to its product range and by increasing its presence on international
markets. In 1963, the world‘s largest automobile exporter sold about 60 percent of its
production to European markets and to the United States, where the Beetle‘s popularity was
comparable to its dominance at home

THE NEW GENERATION

The transformation of the model mix within just a few years was accompanied by far-
reaching changes in production. In order to apply the high level of mechanization of the
Beetle to the following generations of Volkswagens shaped by a wide variety of models
innovative engineering and organizational production procedures were required. To this end,
the company embarked on an investment program involving 2.5 billion DM between 1972
and 1975, with which the technical basis for the production of a new range of products was to
be created. The plants in Wolfsburg and Emden were equipped with a suspension assembly
system in 1973 allowing for production that is more flexible and for improvement of
assembly conditions. The use of electronic data processing greatly aided rationalization, for
example in the press shop, where production was now directed and controlled centrally. The
company reduced the production of air-cooled engines, while increasing capacities for water
cooled engines and included new engines with the appropriate manual and automatic
transmissions in its program.

NEW BRANDS, NEW MARKETS

Volkswagen initiated forward-looking cooperative ventures in the Asian-Pacific region,
which drew attention to itself as a potentially important export market due to its dynamic
economic growth and lower production costs. The licensing agreement signed with Nissan in
1982 strengthened Volkswagen‘s presence on the Japanese market and gave the company the
opportunity to closely observe the flexible and productive system set up by Japanese
manufacturers. Although the Volkswagen Group rose to become the leading foreign
automobile importer in Japan, protectionist measures blocked a further expansion of the
exports business. It was only after the Japanese market opened during the late 1980s that the
requirements for a volume-oriented export strategy came into existence. Volkswagen Audi
Nippon K.K., which grew out of the consulting firm ”Volkswagen Asia Ltd.“ during mid
1989, could start establishing an independent sales system.

The Volkswagen Group initiated strategic change during the severe global recession of
1992/93. Volkswagen concentrated more closely on highlighting product diversity as well as
increasing productivity and earnings power. Group modernization was linked with a
globalization process aimed at establishing highly-efficient production sites and effectively
reshaping the functional division of labor in the global production network. The Wolfsburg-
based automaker was responding to structural problems specific to the industry and the
company itself which became more pronounced during the recession as sales plummeted.
Price competition, particularly from the Japanese automotive industry increased the pressure
on the global player to streamline and cut costs, while market saturation in Western Europe as
the economic upturn triggered by German reunification petered out dampened growth
expectations. Volkswagen‘s attempts to improve the diesel and gasoline engines and to make
its vehicles environmentally friendly are manifested in technical innovations. Volkswagen
proves its creativeness in this field by developing a highpressure pump-jet injection system
especially for the 3-liter Lupo and which is gradually being integrated into the standard
production for other Volkswagen Group models. The new direct-injection technology lowers
fuel consumption by 15 percent, while improving torque and performance.

GROWTH ANTICIPATED
Volkswagen anticipated that automotive financial services be of great significance to global
vehicle sales in 2021, particularly in the context of the ongoing challenges posed by the
Covid-19 pandemic. It is believed that the company is well prepared and overall for the future
challenges pertaining to automotive business activities and for the mixed development of the
regional automotive markets. The brand diversity and presence in all major world markets,
our broad and selectively expanded product range, and our technologies and services put us
in a good competitive position worldwide. As part of the transformation of our core business,
we are positioning our Group brands with an even stronger focus on their individual
characteristics, and are optimizing our vehicle and drive portfolio. The focus is primarily on
our vehicle fleet’s carbon footprint and on the most attractive and fastest-growing market
segments. In addition, we are working to leverage the advantages of our multiband Group
even more effectively with the ongoing development of new technologies and the
enhancement.

They predicted deliveries to Volkswagen Group customers will be significantly up on the

previous year in 2021 – assuming successful containment of the Covid-19 pandemic – amid
continued challenging market conditions. Challenges will arise particularly from the
economic situation, the increasing intensity of competition, volatile commodity and foreign
exchange markets, securing supply chains and more stringent emissions-related requirements.
THE BUSINESS GROUP AND INDUSTRY
The Volkswagen Group designs, manufactures and distributes passenger and commercial
vehicles, motorcycles, engines, and turbo machinery and offers related services including
financing, leasing and fleet management. In the year 2016, the group became world's largest
automaker by sales, overtaking Toyota and kept this title in 2017, 2018 and 2019 by selling
10.9 million vehicles. It has maintained the largest market share in Europe for over two
decades. The Volkswagen Group ranked seventh in the 2018 Fortune Global 500 list of the
world's largest companies.
The Volkswagen Group sells passenger cars under renowned luxury brands like Audi,
Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini, Porsche, SEAT, Skoda and Volkswagen marques. They sell
light commercial vehicles under the Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles brand. The motor
cycles under the Ducati brand and heavy commercial vehicles via the marques of listed
subsidiary TRATON which are MAN, Scania, and Volkswagen Caminhoese Onibus . It is
divided into two primary divisions namely the Automotive Division and the Financial
Services Division and as of 2008 it had approximately 342 subsidiary
companies. Volkswagen Group has two major joint-ventures in China (FAW-
Volkswagen and SAIC Volkswagen). The company has operations in approximately 150
countries and it operates 100 production facilities across 27 countries.
Volkswagen was founded in 1937 to manufacture the car known as the Beetle. The
company's production grew rapidly in the 1950s and 1960s, and in 1965 it acquired Auto
Union which subsequently produced the first post-war Audi models. Volkswagen launched a
new generation of front-wheel drive vehicles in the 1970s including the Pass
at, Polo and Golf. Golf became its bestseller. Volkswagen acquired a controlling stake in
SEAT in 1986 making it the first non-German marque of the company and first acquired
control of Skoda in 1994then of Bentley, Lamborghini and Bugatti in 1998 after that of
Ducati, MAN and Porsche in 2012 and finally of TRATON in 2013. The company's
operations in China have grown rapidly in the past decade with the country becoming its
largest market. The Lower Saxony state owns a 20% share of Volkswagen since 1 January
2021.
Volkswagen Aktienge sells chaft is a public company and has a primary listing on
the Frankfurt Stock Exchange where it is a constituent of the Euro Stox x 50 stock market
index and secondary listings on the Luxembourg Stock Exchange and SIX Swiss Exchange.
It has been traded in the United States via American depositary receipts since 1988currently
on the OTC Marketplace. Volkswagen got delisted from the London Stock Exchange in
2013. The government of Lower Saxony holds 12.7% of the company's shares granting it, by
law and 20% of the voting rights.

THE VOLKSWAGEN GROUP COMPRISES THE FOLLOWING

VEHICLE MANUFACTURERS AND THEIR
CORRESPONDING BRANDS
● Audi AG: The Volkswagen Group has 100% ownership. The current company
was formed through the acquisitions of Auto Union from Daimler-Benz on 30
December 1964, and NSU Motorenwerke on 9 March 1969 . Audi was the sole
surviving marque from the Auto Union combine.
Automobile Lamborghini S.p.A.: The Volkswagen Group has 100% ownership.
AUDI AG acquired Lamborghini S.p.A. in September 1998.
● Ducati Motor Holding S.p.A.: It has 100% ownership by Automobile
Lamborghini S.p.A.; company was bought on 19 July 2
● Bentley Motors Ltd: The Group has 100% ownership. Volkswagen purchased
Rolls-Royce & Bentley from Vickers on 28 July 1998 however the purchase did
not include the license to use the Rolls-Royce trademark on automobiles which is
controlled by Rolls-Royce Plc BMW out manoeuvre. Volkswagen, succeeded to
obtain the rights to use the Rolls-Royce trademark on automobiles. From July
1998 until December 2002, BMW continued to supply engines for the Rolls-
Royce Silver Seraph and the Bentley division sold cars under both the Bentley
and Rolls-Royce marquees under an agreement with BMW.
● Bugatti Automobiles S.A.S. It has 100% ownership. Bugatti Automobiles S.A.S.
is a wholly owned subsidiary of Groupe VOLKSWAGEN France
s.a. Volkswagen acquired Bugatti International S.A. Holding in July 1998.
● Porsche AG: It has 100% ownership. Volkswagen AG purchased 49.9% of the
shares in Porsche Zwischen holding GmbH which is the holding company
of Porsche AGin December 2009. Volkswagen AG purchased the remaining stake
in Porsche AG equalling100% of the shares in Porsche Zwischen holding GmbH
which effectively became its parent company as of 1 August 2012.
● Jetta: It had joint ventures with First Automotive Works created in 2019.
● SEAT, S.A.: It has 100% ownership; initially in 1982 a co-operation agreement
with AUDI AG; 51% and 75% ownership in 1986, and full ownership in 1990.
SEAT was the first non-German subsidiary of the Volkswagen Group.
● Cupra :100% ownership by SEAT. SEAT's motorsport division SEAT Sport was
renamed CUPRA in 2018 and launched as an independent brand alongside SEAT.
● Skoda auto .: It has 100% ownership. Initially in 1991 a co-operation agreement
and 30% ownership; 60.3% and 70% ownership in 1994 and 1995 respectively,
100% ownership since 2000
● TRATON SE: It has 89.7% ownership. Formerly Volkswagen Truck and Bus,
TRATON is the holding company for Volkswagen Group's heavy commercial
vehicle operations.
● MAN SE (controlling shareholder) Acquired a controlling stake in July 2011,
making MAN the 10th marque of the Volkswagen Group. 94.36% ownership via
TRATON SE since March 2019.
● MAN Truck & Bus SE: 100% ownership by MAN SE.
● Volkswagen Caminhoes e Onibus(VWCO): It has 100% ownership by MAN SE.
Volkswagen's Brazilian heavy truck and bus division. Sold by Volkswagen Group
to MAN SE in December 2008 and from that point also known as MAN Latin
America. In November 2011, Volkswagen acquired a majority of the shares in
MAN SE, bringing Volkswagen Caminhoes e Onibus back into the group.
● Scania AB: It acquired controlling stake in July 2008, making Scania the 9th
marque of the Volkswagen Group. It has 100% ownership since 15 January 2015
- shares held via TRATON SE.
 ● Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles (VWCV), or German: Volkswagen
Nutzfahrzeuge (VWN): It has 100% ownership. Volkswagen's light commercial
vehicle division started operations as an independent entity in 1995.
● Volkswagen Passenger Cars: It is the founding and flagship marque of the
company and there is 100% ownership.
The Group also owns five defunct marques which are managed through the companies Auto
Union GmbH and NSU GmbH, both of which are 100% owned by AUDI AG:

● Auto Union (the Auto Union company, together with NSU Motorenwerke

AG (NSU), were merged into "Audi NSU Auto-Union AG" in 1969. The name
was shortened to "AUDI AG" in 1985, and the interlocked four-ring badge from
Auto Union is still used by AUDI AG.
● Dampf-Kraft-Wagen (DKW)
● Horch
● NSU Motorenwerke AG (NSU) – bought in 1969 by Volkswagen AG, and
merged into "Audi NSU Auto-Union AG". The NSU brand was not in use since
1977 while the former NSU manufacturing plant at Neckarsulm isstill used for
Audi assembly. The current AUDI AG shares trade under the ticker symbol
"NSU".

OTHER SUBSIDIARIES AND SHAREHOLDINGS:

● Italdesign Giugiaro S.p.A.: 100% ownership. 90.1% acquired via Lamborghini
S.p.A. in May 2010. Remaining shares transferred in July 2015.
● MOIA, new mobility services company, 100% ownership
● MAN Energy Solutions: The group has 100% ownership and the former power
engineering division of MAN SE was purchased by Volkswagen AG effective
from 1 January 2019.
● IAV: It has 50% ownership.
● Argo AI: It has 40% ownership since June 2020.
● Diconium: It has 100% ownership since January 2020
THE BUSSINESS GROWTH AND ITS IMPACT

OVERVIEW
For Volkswagen, following through on its corporate social obligation (CSR) is the
organization's method of adding to economical turn of events. Today, the guideline of
manageability is all around acknowledged across the globe. So, this guideline is a vow to
forestall the possibilities of people in the future being lessened because of the manner in
which we work together and burn-through assets. A reasonable methodology requires natural,
monetary and social goals to be aligned. As a worldwide association, Volkswagen is focused
on satisfying its corporate obligation and draws on the entirety of its imaginative strength to
make a powerful commitment to supportable versatility. The organization does this by
creating vehicle innovation that is as perfect and as proficient as could be expected.
Volkswagen's corporate moves additionally make into account the organization's obligation
to shield work and guarantee productivity in equivalent measure.As a decent corporate
resident, Volkswagen has been focused on its social duties since the very beginning. At the
Group's different locales all throughout the planet, social turn of events, social drives and
instruction are upheld in a similar way as tasks fully intent on creating provincial
constructions and advancing great wellbeing, just as undertakings identifying with game and
nature protection.

SOME CSR ACTIVITIES OF VOLKSWAGEN

THE WORK2WORK
Staff idea dispatched in 2001 is a program for representatives who can't keep working in
their unique post because of limitations of different sorts. Work2Work extends to them an
employment opportunity that suits their capabilities and capacities proper work that adds
esteem. Thusly, esteem appreciation becomes esteem creation.

THINK BLUE FACTORY

Volkswagen has focused on turning into the most creative and maintainable volume carmaker
in the auto world by 2018. To accomplish this objective, it has set up the drive ―Think
Blue.‖, which expects to make items and creation considerably more naturally friendly."Think
Blue. Industrial facility." is the name of the program with which Volkswagen means to lead
the way with regards to having a biological still, small voice. The brand has set its plants
various destinations in such manner: By 2018, the plants are to diminish the measure of
energy burned-through for every vehicle and for each fabricated part by 25%, to decrease
squander creation by 25%, to delivery 25% more up to date outflows from solvents, to devour
25% less water and to cut CO2 discharges by 25%. The utilization figures from 2010
structure the reason for these decreases. All destinations and focal workplaces are
cooperating on achieving these decreases, adopting a uniform strategy not just as in each
plant is doing its digit to arrive at the 25%target, yet in addition in that the locales are
teaming up to trade and foster thoughts.

 SUPPORT IN THE FIGHT AGAINST AIDS-

As one of the ventures shaping piece of its obligation to the country, Volkswagen gave
2,000,000 euro to another young place at its site in Uitenhage. This venture was intended to
take care of the development expenses and running expenses of the office for a very long
time. The middle is important for the LoveLife Foundation, and the battle against AIDS is a
key core interest. LoveLife runs 19 multi-utilitarian youth communities all over South Africa.
These focuses incorporate clinical offices, counsel rooms, a library, sports and sporting
offices and a nearby radio station. The LoveLife programs are controlled by deliberate public
youth government assistance association Ground breakers, along with around 4000 schools,
500 state centers and more than 150 neighbourhood non-government associations in South
Africa. Volkswagen is utilizing this undertaking to expand its neutralize AIDS in South
Africa.

AWARDS
Think Blue Factory under this name, Volkswagen pools its actions to accomplish an enduring
and persistent improvement in the natural similarity of its creation measures. The ambitious
objective: to accomplish a 25% decrease in energy utilization, squander, airborne
emissions,water utilization and CO2 outflows per vehicle created by 2018.

The GreenTec Award recognizes, for instance, the utilization of geothermal energy at the
Emden area. Because of elective fuel sources, the requirement for an extra nuclear energy
plant with a limit of 12,000 megawatt hours was stayed away from: another lobby for the
body shop was based on around 5,000 heaps, 3,000 of which are utilized to lessen water
temperature at a profundity of 20 meters. The water is then utilized for cooling the welding
gear, which thusly warms it up so it would then be able to be taken care of into the lobby
warming framework.
CRITICISM FACED BY VOLKSWAGEN AFTER
PERFORMING CSR ACTIVITY
Sadly, Volkswagen hand gone a time of clouded side possessing to the new arrival of Golf
7owning to fuel utilization which completely repudiated to the strategy of natural well
disposed, and the ecological activists were extremely worked up at the fuel utilization of the
new Golf, asserting the surpassed gas emanation. The dissent more likely than not come as a
discourteous shock to the vehicle maker and surrender a wake call to the monster. Likewise,
Greenpeace guaranteed that the auto monster has not made eco-friendly and fuel saving
vehicles, and Greenpeace additionally called attention to that Volkswagen "was utilizing its
solid political muscle to campaign against key climate laws" in spite of asserting that needed
to be "the most Eco-accommodating vehicle produce on the planet", which not just obliterate
the climate because of the enormous dislodging yet in addition identify with the unmerited
rivalry claiming to the illicit campaign. From previously mentioned, these huge relocation
vehicles made by Volkswagen, partly, harm the standing of Volkswagen and annihilate its
drawn out arrangement of maintainable improvement just as abuse the objective of CSR.

  SWOT ANALYSIS OF VOLKSWAGON

STRENGHTS:

1. Strong Brand Image

It claims 13 brands including well known brands Bugatti , Audi, Lamborghini,

Porsche, and Volkswagen. Different brands are Bentley, SEAT, Škoda , MAN, Scania
and business vehicles. With such assortment of vehicles it constructs a solid brand.

2. Presence All Over the World.

It works its activity in excess of 153 nations. It has 100 vehicle fabricating plants in
North and South America, Europe, Africa, Asia, and Oceania.

3. Strong R&D

It has solid innovative work segment which altogether works on new public interest,
plans, and mechanical developments of the vehicles.

4. Awesome Performing Brands

Volkswagen has been thoroughly developing well-performed cars among all

other brands.
 5. The Number of Employees

WEAKNESS:

1. Weak Position in Indian Market as well as in US Market

Only 3% market share captures in India and USA.

2. Most Cars are not Environment Friendly

We realize that carbon-di-oxide hurts the biological system. Three of their most
dynamic brands named Porsche, Lamborghini, and Bugatti radiates unnecessary
carbon-dioxide. Also, if any administration makes any move against it, it might
hurt the organization definitely.

OPPURTUNITIES:

1. Evolving Innovation:
It can change its innovation to greater climate cordial vehicles which offer them chances to
stay away from vulnerability.

2. Decreasing Fuel Price:

Vehicles which are more fuel subordinate, and will get more portions of the overall industry.

3. Rooms for Social Responsibility:

As they make vehicles which produce more carbon-di-oxide, they can change their
innovation for the advancement of the climate and satisfy social obligation.

4. Getting more grounded through Securing:

It has effectively been securing different organizations and getting bigger.

5. Increasing Interest of Transports Everywhere:

Popular of transports is expanding all around the world and its now 5% each year. This
development rate is offering freedoms to Volkswagen transports.
THREATS :

1. Carbon Dioxide Emissions Standards

Any administration put any limitation on discharging carbon-di-oxide, it will hurt the
organization.

2. Decreasing Fuel Price

With the diminishing fuel value, the interest of half breed vehicles will be going
down.

3. Other Strong Brands

Brands like Toyota, Fords are catching agricultural nations like Bangladesh, India
where Volkswagen holds a low part of piece of the pie.
COPING WIH THE CHANGES

The followings suggestions for Volkswagen to improve their brand image:

 Volkswagen could present more eco-friendly models that additionally transmit

substantially less carbon dioxide across the entirety of its auto image, subsequently
meeting new client needs for climate well-disposed vehicles and expanding brand
notoriety. Likewise, the expanding request on transports allows Volkswagen the
opportunity to build their income.

 Volkswagen perform less adequately in hardly any geographic regions on the planet,
for example, in the US market were Volkswagen acquired distinctly about 5% piece
of the pie as they neglected to draw in purchasers, so Volkswagen ought to especially
zero in on these spaces.

 Volkswagen's game vehicles that discharge high measure of carbon dioxide and
furthermore considered fuel wasteful which will influence the brand notoriety, so it
should be improved to reinforce their image picture.

 Volkswagen traveller vehicles is over the top expensive to purchase for lower and
furthermore working-class individuals, so Volkswagen should deliver vehicle that the
overall individuals can stand to purchase their item.

 Advertisements through TVs can impact numerous classifications of individuals. So

Volkswagen should attempt to focus on this section. We don't see or discover quite a
bit of the―"Volkswagen" ads in T.V.

 Volkswagen should try to increase the number of Service centres.

TIMELINE & MAIN EVENTS OF VOLKSWAGEN
1930s – Inception
This decade was under the rule of the National Socialist German Workers' Party a.k.a. Nazi
Party. During this decade there were certain independent engineers and companies that took
up the task of designing an affordable car for the people of Germany. Among these engineers
was Ferdinand Porsche, an Austrian-German and founder of the Porsche company, who in
1933 created the design for a family car that would come to be known as the People’s Car or
Volksauto.
Adolf Hitler backed this project as he wanted the citizens of Germany to be able to afford a
car at prices competing motorcycles. So Hitler chose to sponsor an all-new, state-owned
factory using Ferdinand Porsche's design in a town called Stadt des KdF-Wagens, now
Wolfsburg. It was created for the factory workers in 1938 for them settle down close to the
factory location.
The car body of the prototype was similar to what is known as the Beetle today. The
production of the cars began in 1939 but before any of them could be sold and dispatched to
the people, a war broke out, that we all today known as the Second World War. This
disruption lead to the production for the “People’s Car” to be halted and replaced with the
production of military vehicles that would be deployed in the battlefield.

1940s – A Dark Phase

As mentioned above During World War II, the Volkswagen (VW) plant was primarily used
to produce military vehicles, including the SUV-like Kübelwagen and the amphibious
Schwimmwagen. As the tensions between Germany and its oppositions was escalationg and
in many cases leading to all out war, the factory was ramping up its production. Nefarious
measures were taken by the Nazi Party to produce these vehicles.
By early 1940s more than 12,000 prisoners of war were working at the factory as slave labor.
Most of them repairing aircraft and building V1 rockets to bomb Britain. A lawsuit was filed
in 1998 by the survivors for restitution for the forced labour that took place. Volkswagen
then, to right a wrong, set up a voluntary restitution fund.
In the year 1945, the town Stadt des KdF-Wagens was bombed and captured by U.S. forces
and later handed over to the British. This could have been the end of the plant and thereby the
end of Volkswagen but Major Ivan Hirst, British Army Officer, had other plans. He took one
of the abandoned Kdf wagens, painted it green and exhibited it to the British Army which
then placed an order for 20,000 units of the car. Hirst and his German colleague Heinrich
Nordhoff, plans to start production were undertaken. 

(Car in the photo is the Kdf Wagen)

The name of the company was changed from Volkswagenwerk to Volkswagen. Offers to sell
the factory were made to representatives from France, America and Britain but they all
rejected the offer. In fact, the company was offered for free of charge to Henry Ford II but, he
did not see any potential in it and declined the offer.
In 1948 Volkswagen reorganized as a trust under West German control and introduced the
Volkswagen Type 2 commercial vehicles (van, pickup, and camper, and the Karmann Ghia
sports car). In 1949, the Volkswagen Type 1, which was the Beetle, was demonstrated and
sold in the United States for the first time. The immediate response was so dull that only two
units were sold that year, but the sales did soon pick up.

1950s – Switch Gears

In 1955 the company formed the Volkswagen Group of America to standardize its sales and
services in the United States. As a result of this, production picks up rapidly and over one
million units of the type 1 Beetles are sold in the next few years. A plant near Sau Paulo in
Brazil was also opened up in 1959.
This same decade saw the ad campaign by Doyle Dane Bernbach called “Think Small”, give
the car company a forward push in the market as the campaign resonated with a younger
crowd, who boosted their sales.

1960s - Stardom
During this decade changes were made to the Type 1 Beetle’s engine to upgrade from 1200cc
to 1500cc. and new models were introduces too. VW expanded its product line in 1961 with
the introduction of four Type 3 models (Karmann Ghia, Notchback, Fastback, and Variant).
In addition to the Type 3 models, in 1969 the bigger Type 4 models (411 and 412) were
introduced in the market. These differed significantly from previous vehicles with the notable
introduction of monocque/unibody construction, the option of a fully automatic transmission
and electronic fuel injection.
In the same year, Disney released the first in a series of movies called Love Bug about
Herbie, a VW Beetle with a mind of its own. The Love Bug was the second highest grossing
film of that year, earning over $51.2 million at the American box office.

This was not the end. 1969 also say Volkswagen merge two previous purchases — Auto
Union, owner of the discontinued Audi brand, and NSU Motorenwerke — to create what we
know as the modern-day Audi, Volkswagen’s luxury brand.
1970s – Change in Style

On February 17, the 15,007,034th Type 1 Beetle was made, taking over the Ford Model T
as the most produced model in the history of automobiles. But following it were a couple
of lousy years in terms of sales for the company. A change was desperately needed, if
Volkswagen wanted to stay competitive in the industry and this change was brought in by
adopted some of the Audi car designs.

First in the series was the Volkswagen Passat (Dasher in the US), introduced in 1973,
a fastback version of the Audi 80, using many identical body and mechanical parts. This
was followed by the Scirocco. It was coupe was designed based on the platform of the not
yet released Golf, it was built at Karmann due to capacity constraints at Volkswagen. The
pivotal model though, emerged as the Volkswagen Golf in 1974 and was marketed in the
United States and Canada as the Rabbit. Volkswagen even opened its first U.S. factory in
New Stanton, Pennsylvania, for North American production of the Rabbit in 1978.

(Volkswagen Golf aka The Rabbit)

In 1975 the Volkswagen Polo followed. It was a rebadged Audi 50, which was soon

discontinued in 1978. But the Polo became the base of the Volkswagen Derby, which was
later introduced in 1977. Passat, Scirocco, Golf, and Polo shared many character-defining
features, as well as parts and engines. They built the basis for Volkswagen's turnaround.

1980s – Bumpy Ride

In the 1980s, Volkswagen's sales in the United States and Canada fell drastically despite the
success of models like the Golf elsewhere in the world. Sales in the United States were
293,595 in 1980, but by 1984 they were down to 177,709. The introduction of the second
generation Golf, GTI and Jetta models helped Volkswagen briefly in North America.
In 1981, the second-generation Polo launched as a hatchback. In 1983 the range was
expanded, with the introduction of a coupe similar to a conventional hatchback, and the
Classic, a two door saloon. The Polo's practicality, despite the lack of a five-door version,
helped ensure even stronger sales than its predecessor.

1990s – Decade of Acquisitions

Early in the decade the Golf Mk3 and the Jetta arrived in North America but unfortunately
fewer than 50,000 VWs were sold here, a record low. But fortunately the Volkswagen’s New
Beetle and the fourth-generation Jetta (along with the 1996 incarnation of the Passat) boosted
the sales significantly in North America. To expand further in the luxury car segment,
Volkswagen acquired Bentley, Lamborghini and Bugatti.

2000 to Present – Still in the Game

30th July 2003, the last Type 1 Beetle rolls out of the production line in Puebla, Mexico. It
was car no. 2,15,29,464 and was immediately shipped to the Volkswagen museum in
Wolfsburg. A landmark achievement only a couple more can brag about.
July 2008, VW announces plans for a billion dollar investment in an assembly plant in
Chattanooga, Tennessee. The plant would make cars designed for North America, including a
midsize sedan that would compete with the Honda Accord and Toyota Camry. On October 26
of the same year, Porsche, which had been buying up VW stock, reveals a plan to assume
control of VW. A year later Volkswagen and Porsche announce a merger on May 6. In
October, VW announces it will take a 49.9% stake in Porsche for $5.75 billion. And in
December, VW takes a 19.9% stake in Suzuki, a deal valued at $2.5 billion.
VW is a global player with sales in the millions. VW posted record sales of 6.29 million
vehicles in 2010, with its global market share edging at 11.4%. In 2008, Volkswagen had
become the third-largest car maker in the world and as of 2016, VW was the second largest
manufacturer worldwide. Volkswagen was named in the top 25 largest companies in the
world by the Forbes Global 2000. From its inception in Germany, today the company
production facilities in India, Malaysia, China, the US, Mexico, Slovakia, Russia, Malaysia,
Brazil, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Portugal, Spain, Poland, the Czech Republic, South Africa,
Argentina and Kenya and continues to grow till today.
Road Ahead
One common thread that runs through the automobile sector is the recognition of adopting
Artificial Intelligence (AI) and offering an Electric Vehicle (EV) as a part of their products.
AI and EVs are undoubtedly the future as consumers become more tech dependent and
conservative in regards to the environment.

(Volkswagen Electric Vehicle)

AI is being applied by automobile companies to make the vehicles intelligent machines.
Volkswagen in 2019 invested 2.6 billion dollars in Argo AI, a startup focused on
developing self-driving vehicles. This is a step in the right direction for the company. One
big worry with self driving cars is safety but VW already being a trusted company can use
this to their advantage by alleviating fears and gaining market share.
Volkswagen announced bold plans to place a considerable focus on electric vehicles, with a
goal to, by 2025, launch at least 30 EV models, and have 20 to 25 percent of their total yearly
sales volume (2-3 million) consist of these EVs. The company aims to have electric versions
of all of its vehicle models by 2030, at a cost of 20 billion euros and 50 billion euros on
acquisition of batteries. Though VW is seeing its market share slip in countries, the above
mentioned bold steps, if things go according to plan, should be able to get back on track.
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