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There's no denying that BMW’s cars, especially models like the previous 7-Series and Z4, have stepped up their game recently in the looks department lately, even going so far as to influence automotive design across the globe and across the brand spectrum. That change is mostly thanks to Chris Bangle, who resigned from the German automaker earlier this year to focus on his own pursuits, but other unnamed figures have also played an important role in BMW design over the past several decades.
One of them is Laurenz Schaffer, who has worked at BMW for the past 11 years. Formerly at the Munich branch of BMW’s acquired DesignworksUSA, Schaffer will now head the design firm’s American studio in California.
Schaffer is actually replacing Verena Kloos as president of DesignworksUSA. Kloos will be returning to Germany to take control of BMW’s context design and advanced development division in Munich.
While the design firm is not just pigeonholed to the auto industry, its influences can be seen in BMW’s cars. For example, a former director is Adrian van Hooydonk who is now the chief of design at the German automaker.
[AutoWeek]
