Tell us a bit about yourself. Where are you from and what motivates you?
I’m a native of Swabia in southwestern Germany, where my family has been established for a very long time. I can trace my roots in the region back to the fifteenth century, mostly to blacksmiths, later engineers, in addition to the local mixture of farmers and craftsmen. Down-to-earth people who were convinced that through education, commerce and hard work, you could make the world a better place. This is where I’m at home, though I always wanted to go out into the world as well. Together with my wife and our three children, I spent several years living in Canada and the U.K. I’ve always had a passion for business. I’m driven by entrepreneurial spirit, but at the same time dependability is very important to me. I’ve worked for the same company for over thirty years, and I’ve known my wife since our school days. The people here are quite devout, so you learn early on that you have to reflect on life and its meaning. And when you do that, you realize you need to take advantage of the opportunities and talents that life has to offer. I quickly saw that working for an automotive company could bring me together with a wide variety of people. And since this company operates globally, I hoped to experience a lot of different places.
Today you’re in charge of the strategic growth of the heritage parts division at Mercedes-Benz AG.
Actually, I had planned to retire when I turned sixty. But then our CEO persuaded me to help him make Mercedes-Benz a pure luxury brand. That involves relaunching our heritage and returning the brand development to its origins.
