Dr. Wolfgang Porsche, Shareholder and Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Porsche Automobil Holding SE as well as of the Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG, is celebrating his 70th birthday on May 10, 2013. Matthias Müller, President and CEO of Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG, paid tribute to the “invaluable contribution” Mr. Porsche has made for the sports car maker.
“The fact that a member of the founder family is actively representing our company internationally is essential for many Porsche fans in their extraordinary identification with the brand and its products,” said Mr. Müller. “As the son of Professor Ferry Porsche, Dr. Wolfgang Porsche supports our company with the greatest personal commitment. He has shaped the development of the Porsche AG over the past 35 years as a Member of the Supervisory Board and since 2007 as Chairman of the Supervisory Board.”
Wolfgang Porsche was born in Stuttgart on May 10, 1943, the youngest son of Dorothea and Ferry Porsche, the founder of the Porsche sports car brand. His grandfather was the brilliant automotive design engineer who shaped the history of the car history with his Stuttgart automotive design engineering office. Wolfgang Porsche spent the first six and a half years of his life at the so-called “Schüttgut” in Zell am See, Austria, the estate of his grandfather Ferdinand Porsche. The family, and the company, returned to Stuttgart in 1950. Wolfgang obtained his Abitur (higher school-leaving certificate) in 1965. He also passed his journeyman’s examination as a metalworker. Afterwards, Porsche obtained his degree in Business Administration from the Vienna University of Economics and Business Administration. He received his doctorate in International Business in 1973.
At first, Dr. Wolfgang Porsche went into business as an independent entrepreneur: As Managing Director of JAMOTO, he became general importer of Yamaha motorbikes in Austria. He returned to Germany in 1976 and worked at the Daimler-Benz AG in Stuttgart as manager in various areas of domestic and foreign sales. In 1978, he was appointed a member of the Supervisory Board of Porsche AG, taking over the position of Chairman in 2007. He was also appointed Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Porsche Automobil Holding SE at its incorporation in June 2007. In addition, Dr. Wolfgang Porsche has been a member of the Supervisory Board of Volkswagen AG, Wolfsburg, since April 24, 2008.
Upon the death of his father Ferry in 1998, he was selected spokesman by the Porsche family. The father of four lives alternatively in Salzburg and the “Schüttgut” in Zell am See, which he acquired from the family estate. There, in Salzburger Land, he operates an Alpine organic farm with around 200 dairy cows. An ardent hunter, he has always felt close to nature. His enthusiasm for sports cars has been the focus of his life from his very early youth on. Over the course of decades, a private collection of vintage cars has evolved that contains numerous very rare Porsche vehicles, which he drives regularly.
Dr. Wolfgang Porsche has received numerous honours for his services to business. In 2005, he was awarded the “Great Golden Medal for Services to the Republic of Austria” by the Chancellor of Austria, the highest award granted by his homeland. For his services to the federal state of Baden-Württemberg, he received the Gold “Staufermedaille” Award. At the onset of 2012, Dr. Wolfgang Porsche was appointed Honorary Senator of Salzburg University and was admitted to the University’s Council in 2013.
