BMW committed to current structure in Chinese market, BMW China President states

Gasgoo.com (Shanghai July 15) - In light of quality concerns and management issues, rumors have been circulating across the media that BMW will restructure its Chinese sales branch. In an interview with Caijing earlier this week, BMW China President and CEO Karsten Engel denied the rumors, saying that BMW's German headquarters is very satisfied with the performance of its Chinese branch and that there is no need for it to make any drastic changes.

According to Mr. Engel (pictured), BMW has no plans to change the current structure of its operations in China. He added that BMW China's structure has been decided upon by consensus of the manufacturer's German headquarters, its domestic joint venture partners and dealerships in the country. If any major changes were to be made, they would first be decided upon at the manufacturer's biannual board of directors summits .

Mr. Engel made his transfer from president of BMW's German branch to president of its Chinese one earlier this year, replacing former China President and CEO Christoph Stark. Some in the media interpreted Mr. Engel's appointment as a sign that BMW is preparing to take more direct control of its Chinese branch. Just prior to Mr. Engel's arrival, Lu Yi, head of import sales, and Daniel Kirchert, senior vice president, both left BMW China.

BMW has been working on a slew of new development projects for the Chinese market, such as the expansion of its sales network and the addition of new models. Mr. Engel stated that the manufacturer is committed to improving both product quality and customer service as it aims to maximize growth opportunities in the Chinese luxury car market.