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Mr. Tom Purves was appointed Chairman and CEO
of BMW US Holding Corp., effective May 1, 1999. His responsibilities
encompass all sales, marketing and distribution activities for the BMW
Group in North, Central and South America. In addition, he is now
responsible for the overall launch of MINI in the U.S. market.
Since assuming his post, Mr. Purves has led the company to achieve
groundbreaking success. Sales volume reached an all-time record of over
256,622 units in 2002, nearly one quarter of BMW Group's 1,057,344
worldwide sales.
Prior to arriving in the US, Mr. Purves was a Rover board member, a role
he assumed in June 1996. In this capacity, Mr. Purves oversaw the global
sales and marketing for the Land Rover, Mini, MG and Rover brands. Mr.
Purves joined the BMW Group in 1985 as Sales Director of BMW (GB) Ltd.
in Great Britain, where he assumed responsibility for all aspects of
sales, distribution, parts, service, dealer and manpower development.
During his tenure as president of BMW (GB) Ltd., the company soared to
the second largest BMW export market after the USA, and in June of 1990,
he was appointed Managing Director of BMW Great Britain Ltd.
Mr. Purves began his automotive career with Rolls Royce Ltd. Car
Division, as an apprentice engineer. His role with the company evolved
to include several management positions in various fields including
sales in Europe, Africa, and the Middle East.
In 2001 and 2003, Automotive News named Mr. Purves an "Automotive
All Star" for his achievement in the auto industry. In addition,
Mr. Purves serves on the board of directors of the Automotive Youth
Educational Systems Inc., a non-profit organization launched in 1995 to
help automotive dealers fill the need for qualified technicians.
Mr. Purves was educated at Daniel Stewart's College in Edinburgh,
Scotland.
Date of birth: November 25, 1948
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