Quandt and Klatten Family: Is there a Single Family Office?

Where does the wealth from the Quandt and Klatten family come from?

The Quandt’s are one of the most famous families in Germany’s industry. Günther Quandt, born in 1881, inherited many cloth factories from his father. Through the first world war, the company further grew in other sectors. The heirs of Günther Quandt – Herbert and Harald – managed and increased the family’s wealth after the death of Günther in 1954. The family is mainly known for the restructuring of car manufacturer BMW. Today, besides many other holdings BMW is the main part of the wealth of the Quandt and Klatten family (Susanne Klatten is the daughter of Herbert Quandt’s third wife Johanna).

How did the family company BMW develop?

The car manufacturer BMW was founded in 1913 by Karl Rapp as “Rapp Motorenwerke GmbH”. In 1922, the name changed to “Bayerische Motorenwerke” (BMW). In the beginning, the company mainly built airplanes and motorcycles. Today, the company is globally known for its upper-class cars. After the engagement of the Quandt family the company grew and got profitable again. In 2018, revenues were at €97.5B. Susanne Klatten and Stefan Quandt own 46.8% of the shares. Yearly dividend payouts to the Quandt family are over €1B.

Do the Quandt and Klatten family have a single family office?

The main holding of the Quandt and Klatten family is the substantial stake in BMW. But, besides that, there are also different family office investment vehicles of the Quandt family. Mainly known is the HQ Trust, which is a multi family office owned by the Harald Quandt Holding. It was founded by family members in 1981 to manage the family wealth. In 1988, the firm was opened for investments from external investors and thereby turned from a single to a multi family office. HQ Trust invests in private equity, real estate and capital markets. Susanne Klatten and Stefan Quandt are investing through own vehicles which can be called single family offices.

How are the Quandt and Klatten families investing?

As previously said, the HQ Trust multi family office is engaged in private equity, real estate and capital markets. Private equity investments are done through external funds as well as through direct investments. Susanne Klatten is strategically investing through the SKion GmbH. The company invests in companies with revenues between €0.3-2.5B, mainly in industry, services, renewables, optics, medtech and diagnostics companies. Furthermore, SKion also invests smaller amounts in water technology companies. Stefan Quandt’s investment company focues (besides BMW) on digital security, renewable and smart grid and credit rating companies.

Picture source: Frank Albrecht

This article is part of our detailed report “The single family offices of Europe’s richest families“.