For 30 years, Michael Schmidt has been a top name in Romania’s expanding luxury car business.
The Transylvanian-born entrepreneur created a car empire through his MHS Holding group, and has businesses in Romania, Germany, Austria and Spain. With a turnover of around €650 million last year and steady growth, Michael Schmidt has continued to strengthen its pole position in importing vehicles, marketing and service.
Automobile Bavaria
Born in the Saxon village of Crit, Brașov county, central Romania, he started his career in Germany, after emigrating there from Romania in the 1980s,writes Irina Pană of Forbes. Following the 1989 Revolution, the young businessman returned to his native country for emerging business opportunities. In 1994, he created the Automobile Bavaria Group, which became the largest BMW dealer network in Central and Eastern Europe.
In 2001, Mr. Schmidt expanded its portfolio into the commercial vehicle sector, introducing MAN trucks and coaches to the Romanian market, developing the MHS Truck & Bus Group, which became the largest and most successful MAN distributor in Central and South-Eastern Europe, as the importer with a hub in Austria.
At the same time, he gradually expanded his business to Germany and Austria, adding prestigious names such as RollsRoyce, MINI, Volkswagen and BMW Motorrad to his portfolio. The brand portfolio expanded two years ago, when it started operating as an INEOS Grenadier importer for Romania and an authorized dealer in Germany and Austria.
RollsRoyce Motor Cars
The latest business development came after RollsRoyce Motor Cars appointed Automobile Bavaria as the official car dealer based in Romania this year. Romania will become, after the Czech Republic and Turkey, the third country in the Balkans tol have an official RollsRoyce showroom, which will be part of the Automobile Bavaria complex in Băneasa. As an authorized car dealer, RollsRoyce Motor Cars Bucharest will be able to directly offer the full range of RollsRoyce products and services, giving customers in Romania extensive access to the brand’s portfolio and services. “RollsRoyce embodies individuality and luxury like no other brand, and our cars are the ultimate symbol of success, proudly bearing the Spirit of Ecstasy logo. This is the starting point of a new era for RollsRoyce customers in Romania, we are confident that the Flying Lady guides us towards a bright future in our home country,” Mr. Schmidt told Forbes.
MHS Holding, which groups the businessman’s businesses in Romania, Germany, Austria and Spain, recorded a business advance of 22% in 2023, up to about 650 million euros. The stake for MHS Group is to expand the portfolio of brands, to complement existing ones.
In 2023, the group sold 9,700 vehicles, and in the first nine months of this year sales approached 8,500 units.
Financial Crisis
The Schmidt Premium Cars business line was built by Mr. Schmidt together with his wife, Veronica Schmidt, who was with him in the development of this business and successfully represents the Rolls Royce brand. “My model is simple: to expand permanently, in times of crisis or good times. I think you come out of each crisis with something to gain, because you toughen up. The 2007-2008 years took me by surprise and the financial crisis caught me at its worst, he said. But I learned my lesson,” Michael Schmidt told Forbes Romania.
The last two years have been particularly dynamic for Michael Schmidt.
At the beginning of 2023, MHS Group expanded its operations by opening a branch in Marbella, Spain. This strategic move helped establish a presence in the Spanish market.
At the end of 2023, MHS Group strategically expanded its operations by launching a new location in Klagenfurt with the aim of increasing its presence and service offering in the region.
Starting this year, MHS Group acquired a new location in Salzburg, Austria, diversifying its portfolio to include sales and after-sales services for Honda cars as well as motorcycles. This strategic move not only expanded MHS Group’s portfolio, but also strengthened its market presence, enabling greater synergy and operational efficiency across its various business segments.
New hub
In an effort to better serve its customers in south Bucharest, the MHS Group opened a new hub on Bucharest’s ring road, strategically positioned to meet the growing demand for both vehicle sales and comprehensive after-sales services in this part of the city. In addition, the MHS Group has launched a new subsidiary specifically dedicated to fleet customer management, offering customized solutions for enterprises and organizations with vehicle fleets.
This year, MHS Group invested in the modernization of its latest acquired location in the northern part of Bucharest, transforming it into a BMW Motorrad showroom and service, offering a completely new experience to its customers. In the short term, the MHS Group intends to expand its after-sales activities in the passenger car sector in Romania. This expansion aims to increase after-sales capacity and provide improved support to its customers in these regions, increasing customer satisfaction by reducing waiting time for service repairs.
Green energy
Mr. Schmidt’s investments go beyond the automotive field. After completing a €2 million investment in green energy by installing solar panels on the roofs of its properties in Romania to produce renewable energy on-site, the MHS Group plans a new investment of €2.5 million in the short term. It aims to create a photovoltaic park in the southern part of Romania, with the main objective of setting up a solar power plant to produce electricity. This green energy initiative has already yielded positive results, leading to a decrease in utility costs starting in 2023, according to the group’s officials. By generating renewable energy on-site, the group’s officials believe they reduce their environmental footprint, but also gain financially by reducing utility expenses.
21st place
1.6 billion lei
Michael Schmidt
64 years old | Bucharest, Vienna
PHOTOS | Rolls-Royce Motor Cars purrs back into Romania with new dealership
