Headquartered in Gothenburg, Sweden (~475km from Stockholm), The Volvo Group’s main business is the production, distribution, and sale of trucks and equipment. The company also supplies marine and industrial drive systems and financial services.
It is important to note, though, that this Volvo operates as a completely separate entity from Volvo Cars, the company who makes SUVs, sedans, coupes, and various other types of vehicles, which are mostly for non-commercial consumption. Although separate companies, The Volvo Group and Volvo Cars share the same brand name, logo, and headquartered city.
At its inception in 1911, SKF (a large Swedish ball bearing manufacturer) intended Volvo to be a trademark for a new series of ball bearings. This idea was short lived. However, the name Volvo (which is Latin for “I roll”) became the name for a new Swedish car, pioneered by two SKF employees.
THE VOLVO GROUP
Fun Facts
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Mack Trucks and Renault Trucks are subsidiaries of Volvo.
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Volvo and Volvo Cars have operated as separate entities since Volvo Cars was sold off in 1999.
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In 2014, The Volvo Group operated at a 2.23b kr profit ($255m USD) and made 282.95b kr in revenue ($32b USD).
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In 2014, Volvo Cars operated at a 960m kr profit ($110m USD) and made 122b kr in revenue ($14b USD).
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Volvo Cars’ largest markets are the US, Sweden, China, and Belgium.