Laurenz Schaffer, since the year 2000 director of the Munich studio of the BMW Group subsidiary DesignworksUSA, will be taking on the position of the President of the California based company on 1 December 2009.
"With his many years of experience in numerous areas of design, Laurenz Schaffer has made a significant contribution to strengthening DesignworksUSA as an international driving force of BMW Group Design and in making the studio an appealing partner for external customers. The success of our concept of inter-acting, interdisciplinary transfer of know-how to the mutual benefit of both the BMW Group and external DesignworksUSA clients is largely attributable to Laurenz Schaffer," states Adrian van Hooydonk, Director BMW Group Design. "Working for our brands BMW and MINI and for companies such as Siemens, HEAD, Sony or Starbucks, he and his team in Munich have consistently paved the way for innovative products and strategies."
Schaffer, born in 1967, first worked as a product designer with renowned design studios in Stuttgart, Munich, and San Francisco, before joining the Munich studio of BMW Group DesignworksUSA in 1998. In the year 2000 he took over the management of the Munich studio. From the start, Laurenz Schaffer was fascinated by the concept of this unique subsidiary which, with its studios in California, Munich and Singapore, has acquired international renown in the world of design. "As an external studio with close links to the BMW Group and with customers from outside the company we are able to acquire know-how in many different industries and design areas. This benefits both sides", says Schaffer.
In his new function Laurenz Schaffer will focus in particular on the ongoing development of DesignworksUSA as an international studio for product, automotive and transportation design, and as a specialist in brand strategy.