Mercedes-Benz Italy celebrates its first 50 years

Mercedes-Benz celebrates its first fifty years of official activity in Italy, where the Stuttgart company has sold over 2 million units to date, including cars and vans.
To celebrate Mercedes Benz’s 50 years of activity in Italy, a parade of ancient and modern cars took place through the symbolic places of Rome. The show was opened by the 1954 300 SL Coupè W198 “gullwing” driven by Radek Jelinek and Marc Langenbrinck who as from 1 June assumed the responsibility of CEO of Mercedes-Benz Italy.
Five decades marked by the bond between two cultures, the German and the Italian, which have integrated over the years, with a presence on the territory that goes far beyond the simple commercial vocation. A story that begins on April 18, 1973 in Rome, when the German car manufacturer, riding the wave of change and innovation that was affecting the automotive sector and mobility in general, founded Mercedes-Benz Italia. The official Stella branch was opened in Rome, in via degli Abruzzi 3, and was initially dedicated exclusively to the sale of commercial and industrial vehicles. 75% owned by the parent company and the remaining 25% by Autostar, importer of cars since 1959 and creator of the Italian commercial network.
For Mercedes in Italy, the 1970s represented the growth of the organization, processes, assistance network and, from 1978, the birth of Merfina, the official captive finance company. Hans Breithaupt present at the event today together with Marco Ruiz, Benito De Filippis and Vittorio Braguglia, was the first to lead Mercedes-Benz Italia as CEO. In the 1980s Mercedes tripled its volumes in Italy compared to the end of the 1970s. These were the years of the cars designed by the Italian Bruno Sacco, head of the Stella style centre, from whose pencil the W201 came out in 1982, the Mercedes 190 which would influence all subsequent production of the Stella. The sales and service network, and the entire organization manage well the expansion of the range upwards with the new S, the SEC and the legendary G.

The 90s were the years of the great success and growth of Mercedes-Benz in Italy: from 40,000 cars and vans in 1989 to over 80,000 in 1999. Product offensives broadened the range in all directions. From the K factor of the Kompressor engine which makes the new Stars powerful even under two litres, to the SLK and CLK which renew the myth of the Roadster and Coupè with the Star speaking straight to the heart of a wider public sensitive to performance. And then the A-Class, the smart, the ML, without forgetting the Vito, the V-Class and the Sprinter which mark the transformation of commercial vehicles into premium Vans. But the product was not enough to do this. The organization was set up. The margins of the concessionaires from fixed became variable according to the results. A sector dedicated to the management of second-hand vehicles and fleets was created to accompany the growth towards new targets. And fundamental were the marketing and communication that made the new models that arrived on the market even more desirable through a clear positioning. Meanwhile, in 1995 in via Giulio Vincenzo Bona in Rome the new, current and future headquarters of Mercedes-Benz Italia were inaugurated.
The 2000s are the years in which sales of Mercedes-Benz Italia peak. From 80,000 to over 120,000 in 2007. Marketing becomes crucial for launching new products and for smoothing the curves of the life cycles of cars. These are the years up to the present day of great visibility for the brand thanks to the numerous event activities and the attention to the sports closest to the brand with a strong turn towards a younger and wider audience.