The history of GM, the world’s largest automobile manufacturer, began in 1908. The company was founded by William Durant in the year 1902. Astute businessman that he was, Durant realized that the future lay in automobiles. and not in the carriages. The company was initially founded as a holding company for Buick. In the latter part of the year, the company acquired Oldsmobile, followed by ownership of Cadillac, Oakland, and Elmore the following year.

Many of the automobile companies were in dire straits during the difficult years of the early 20th century. The stock market panic of 1907 put many small businesses in financial trouble. Many of these companies operated on the credit of various bankers. This was a golden opportunity for Durant, who proceeded to buy smaller automakers and companies that made auto parts and accessories. In 1908, these various companies merged into a single unit, thus creating the new entity GM. This marked the exciting beginning of the real GM story.

William Durant was a flamboyant businessman whose curious mixture of genius and overreach brought GM to its heights and plunged it into financial trouble. In 1910, bankers were forced to step in to prevent GM’s financial collapse, and Durant was removed from the company he had founded. But by 1911, the company had advanced enough in the international market that the General Motors Export Company was established to handle sales outside the US and Canada.

Durant managed to use another company he formed, Chevrolet, to get back into power at GM during 1915, and GM’s history from 1915 to 1920 is full of success. During this time, the Cadillac was extremely successful. In 1918, GM purchased the operating assets of Chevrolet Motors. But, soon the United States was hit by an energy recession and in 1920, Durant again found himself out of business.

During the financial boom of the 1920s, GM’s history practically shone with success. Car sales hit the 4.5 million mark, and the auto industry now had three giants: GM, Ford, and Chrysler. GM now had a brilliant engineer-turned-industrialist at its helm. Alfred Sloan, who was later hailed as his marketing genius, had slowly worked his way through the ranks at GM. His marketing genius breathed new life into GM that was beginning to be overshadowed by Ford.

Ford’s philosophy of giving the public the best value for money offered little variety. But Sloan and GM were interested in giving the public more than a black box. Stylish colors, features, and comfort became the company’s new motto. GM also made a groundbreaking offer: the public could now buy a car on credit. GM’s five brands – Pontiac, Cadillac, Buick, Oldsmobile and Chevrolet began to change each year with the focus primarily on appearance and styling. This strategy paid big dividends. Ford was pushed into the back seat again by GM.

The Great Wall Street Crash of 1929 abruptly ended all of GM’s expansion plans for the time being. GM shares fell pretty badly. But in the early 1930s, GM recovered and bought the Yellow Coach bus company. In 1930, GM purchased the Electro-Motive Corporation, the builder of internal combustion engine railcars. The next 20 years saw GM-powered diesel locomotives running on American railroads. December 31, 1955 is another milestone in GM history. GM became the first company to earn more than a billion dollars in a year.

There was a time in GM’s history when it was the largest corporation in the US. GM’s history also shows that there was a time when GM was the largest employer in the world. But of late, GM has been plagued by financial problems. In November 2005, GM posted a $4 billion loss and some 30,000 employees were laid off. 12 plants were closed.