Opel
Current Logo With Slogan
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| Aktiengesellschaft | |
| Industry | Automotive |
| Founded | January 21, 1863 |
| Founder | Adam Opel |
| Headquarters | Rüsselsheim, Hesse, Germany |
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Number of locations
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11 manufacturing facilities in seven countries |
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Area served
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Key people
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| Products |
Automobiles Commercial vehicles |
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Production output
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 1,057,000 vehicles (2013) |
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| Revenue |
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Number of employees
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35,428 (2013) |
| Parent | General Motors |
| Divisions | Opel Performance Center |
| Subsidiaries | |
| Website | opel |
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Footnotes / references |
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Adam Opel AG (Opel, pronounced [ˈoːpl̩]) is a German automobile manufacturer headquartered in Rüsselsheim, Hesse, Germany, subsidiary of the American group General Motors. The company designs, engineers, manufactures and distributes Opel-branded passenger vehicles, light commercial vehicles and vehicle parts for distribution in Africa, Asia, Europe and South America. Opel designed and manufactured vehicles are also sold under the Buick brand in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and China, the Holden brand in Australia and New Zealand, and the Vauxhall brand in Great Britain.
Opel traces its roots to a sewing machine manufacturer founded by Adam Opel in 1862. The company began manufacturing bicycles in 1886 and produced its first automobile in 1899.
Opel became a share-limited company (German: Aktiengesellschaft) in 1929; General Motors took a majority stake in Opel that same year. General Motors assumed full control in 1931 and today Adam Opel AG is a wholly owned subsidiary of General Motors Company. Although Adam Opel AG continues to be a share-limited company, shares of the company are not publicly listed. Adam Opel AG is the parent company of General Motors UK Limited, better known as Vauxhall, and various other General Motors subsidiaries.
During the 1970s and 1980s, Opel and Vauxhall ranges were rationalised into one consistent range across Europe.
The company was founded in Rüsselsheim, Hessen, Germany, on January 21, 1862, by Adam Opel. At the beginning, Opel just produced sewing machines in a cowshed in Rüsselsheim. Above all, his success was based on his perfectly customized sewing machines. Because of the quick growth of his business, in 1888 the production was relocated from the cowshed to a more spacious building in Rüsselsheim. Encouraged by success, Adam Opel launched a new product in 1886: He began to sell high-wheel bicycles, also known as penny-farthings. Besides, Opel's two sons participated in high-wheel bicycle races and thus promoted this means of transportation. Therefore, the production of high-wheel bicycles soon exceeded the production of sewing machines. At the time of Opel's death in 1895, he was the leader in both markets.
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Wikipedia