INTERVIEW
SA is vital to BMW’s global strategy
Mark Smyth spoke to BMW board member Ian Robertson on the company’s game plan going forward
General Motors might not see any reason to remain in SA, but according to Ian Robertson, board member for sales and marketing at BMW, the opposite is true for the Munich-based company. Chatting to him on the banks of Lake Como, it was clear that the company is as committed as ever to SA. On the subject of General Motors’ withdrawal from SA, Robertson says diplomatically: "That’s their strategy. We’re different." Being different means investing billions of rand in the company’s plant at Rosslyn, which will switch in 2018 from producing the 3 Series sedan to manufacturing the X3 SUV. "There are huge supply constraints on X models from Spartanburg," he says of the current X plant in the US. The plant is at full capacity, particularly with new models set to join the line-up, such as the X2 and luxury X7. To alleviate pressure on the US plant and in view of the declining market for medium sedans worldwide, the decision was taken to move some X3 production to SA and China. "We need a broa...
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