Starting a new car company from scratch, without the multi-billion dollar budget of the big names in the industry and the right connections, is close to impossible.
Over the years, many visions were shattered by taking the wrong decisions, or not squeezing everything out of it, but while several start-ups were buried by the harsh environment, one of them withstood the test of time: Koenigsegg.
Read More: Why The Koenigsegg Jesko Absolut Could Hit Over 330 MPH (532 km/h)
Founded by Christian von Koenigsegg in 1994 and headquartered in Angelholm, Sweden, over the years Koenigsegg managed to be mentioned in the same breath as Ferrari, Lamborghini and Porsche. However, it wasn’t easy for the brand to leave its mark in the super sports car class, and there were times when its future was in question.
Von Koenigsegg was only 22 years old when he started the company, and took a huge gamble that has since paid off. Production of the first car started in 2002, and nearly two decades later, the team, which currently counts around 200 employees, has only built around 150 vehicles in total.
All the effort that went into engineering all Koenigseggs turned out to be a pain for the big boys like Bugatti, especially with the speed and performance records that allowed the Swedish company to make a bigger name for itself in the automotive world.
What’s the secret? “This sounds a bit boring, but it’s just a lot of hard work,” says Von Koenigsegg. “If I can give any advice, it’s like, stay focused of course. Don’t give up when it’s really miserable and dark, that’s when you really need to keep on working even though it’s painful and looks impossible and you should stop everything and your body tells you should stop. But that’s when you really need to keep on working and pushing, otherwise there is no chance. At least if you want to do something as complicated as this, I’m sure there are easier ways to start a company.”
We don’t need to tell you that Koenigsegg’s advice applies to any field of work, so it’s a life lesson from the man who dared to take on the very top of the car industry and prove his point. Apex One’s interview with von Koenigsegg was shot in Sweden in 2018 and only recently made its way to the web.