The rumors have been flying for months and now it’s official, pending Euro regulatory approval—car manufacturer Audi will acquire Ducati Motorholdings. Those who are familiar with Ducati’s history see yet another suitor seeking her hand, yet another board of directors overseeing her production. Will she ever find a real home? Over the many years her suitors have even included a local connection, Texas’ own Texas Pacific Group (TPG), which owned Ducati from 1996-2005 before selling to Investindustrial Holdings SpA. Please see the end of the article for the Ducati ownership timeline.
According to Motorsports Newswire, Audi AG is acquiring from Investindustrial Group the tradition-steeped Italian sports motorcycle manufacturer Ducati Motor Holding S.p.A. The transaction will be completed as quickly as possible once authorized by the competition authorities. The Supervisory Boards of Audi AG and Volkswagen AG approved the acquisition today in Hamburg.
Audi Chairman Rupert Stadler: “As a sporty, global premium brand, Ducati is an excellent fit for Audi.” Audi adds the Italian bike maker to its two Italian car marques, Lamborghini and Italdesign. Another building block in the Company’s growth strategy thus falls into place. Rupert Stadler, Chairman of the Board of Management of Audi AG, declared: “Ducati is known worldwide as a premium brand among motorcycle manufacturers and has a long tradition of building sporty motorcycles. It has great expertise in high-performance engines and lightweight construction, and is one of the world’s most profitable motorcycle manufacturers. That makes Ducati an excellent fit for Audi.”
Ducati has manufacturing operations at its headquarters in Bologna and at its own factory in Thailand. It maintains a series of importer companies in strategic markets. Experts predict that the motorcycle market will enjoy strong growth over the next few years, especially in Asia. In 2011, Ducati sold around 42,000 motorcycles and employs around 1,100 people.
The company was founded by Adriano and Marcello Ducati in Bologna in 1926. Known originally as Società Scientifica Radiobrevetti Ducati, it initially built parts for radios. It ventured into the manufacture of motorcycles in 1949.
The Supersport model has been one of Ducati’s lynchpins. Here are several of the famous classic 70s SSes from the Ducati designers
The GT model of the same ara
All photographs are courtesy of Ducati SpA.
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s page
Ownership
Since 1926, Ducati has been owned by a number of groups and companies:
- 1926—1950 Ducati Family
- 1950—1967 Government IRI management
- In 1953 split into Ducati Meccanica-now called Ducati Motor and Ducati Elettronica-now called Ducati Energia
- 1967—1978 Government EFIM management (control over day-to-day factory operations)
- 1967—1973 Headed By Giuseppe Montano
- 1973—1978 Headed by Cristiano de Eccher
- 1978—1985 VM Group
- 1985—1996 Cagiva Group ownership
- 1996—2005 Texas-Pacific Group (US-based) ownership and going public
- Headed by CEO Federico Minoli, 1996-2001; returning for 2003—2007
- 2005—2008 Investindustrial Holdings SpA
- 2008-2012 Performance Motorcycles SpA
- An investment vehicle formed by Investindustrial Holdings, BS Investimenti and Hospitals of Ontario Pension Plan
- 2012-present The Audi unit of Volkswagen Group reached an agreement to buy Ducati for €860 million (US$1.2 billion). Volkswagen chairman Ferdinand Piëch, a motorcycle enthusiast, had long coveted Ducati, having missed an opportunity to buy the company years before, but analysts doubted a tiny motorcycle maker would have a meaningful effect on a company the size of Volkswagen, commenting that the acquisition has “a trophy feel to it,” and, “is driven by VW’s passion for nameplates rather than industrial or financial logic”. Italian luxury car brand Lamborghini was strengthened under VW ownership.
