An interesting press release landed in my box this morning. It was titled “A Fresh Start for the GEMBALLA Brand” and was from a PR firm in Germany. They got me there and I read the entire thing. It seems someone has snatched up the GEMBALLA name and some of the assets and hopes to breath new life into the brand. Not a bad plan given the 30 year history of the brand and the instant name recognition. They probably secured what they needed for pennies on the dollar.
Personally, I’ve always loved GEMBALLA (take a look at my post about them as a tuner here: Gemballa: Super Tuner for the Porsche Stars) and I hope they make a good run at it. Would love to see them succeed, especially if they can capture some of the essence of the original brand.
On a related note, I’ve not heard any more word of Uwe Gemballa. Seems to still be missing. Anyone heard anything?
Here’s the full press release:
Leonberg, 23 August 2010. For around 30 years the brand GEMBALLA has been a global name in the performance improvement and modification of predominantly Porsche vehicles, and in the construction of own-brand vehicles based on Porsche body shells. GEMBALLA has made a name for itself as one of the most extreme Porsche tuners and has received worldwide attention with its modified Porsches such as the GEMBALLA Avalanche, which is based on the Porsche 911, or the GEMBALLA Mirage GT, based on the Porsche Carrera GT.
Since August 16, 2010, Andreas Schwarz (40) has been in charge of the emotional GEMBALLA brand. Schwarz reserved the rights of the old company that had already been broken up by liquidators and shut down, and founded a new company, GEMBALLA GmbH. The company headquarters are located at Mollenbachstraße 17 in Leonberg.
“With a totally new company and an investment of millions, we are now looking towards a secure future”, says managing director (CEO) Andreas Schwarz. The educated Swabian is a sports car expert, who has many years’ experience in upgrading and marketing luxury high-class automobiles. Together with investor Steffen Korbach, the new creator of GEMBALLA cars has made cost-efficient plans.
“As well as the rights to the name, we’ve also purchased some assets and are starting off with 22 employees”, Schwarz continues. “We plan to continue the GEMBALLA design line following the old models. We’re already working on various concepts for the Porsche Panamera and the new Porsche Cayenne among others.”
The main goal: to expand and develop the GEMBALLA brand as a manufacturer. Without facing too much time pressure. Currently, Andreas Schwarz is making plans in motor tuning and the marketing of parts such as bodykits, rims, brakes and suspension systems.
“We’ve got enormous potential in this area that can be taken advantage of – the recognition of the GEMBALLA name with its near 30-year tradition really helps”, says Andreas Schwarz.
That is why we will see automobile creations from GEMBALLA in the future – with a breath of fresh air for the brand and reliable business under the GEMBALLA name. The showroom in Leonberg is now open for customers and all interested parties.
For more information, go to www.gemballa.com.
[Source: Gemballa GmbH]
looks like heaven as a car to me and? i wonder if it looks like that how fast and how good is it how does it sound im thinking one of the best ?
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