General Motors ("GM) the largest automaker in the world, came to fruition in 1908 through the shrewd business acumen of William "Billy" Durant, who in 1902 acquired holding interests in Buick, Oldsmobile and later on Cadillac and two other now defunct auto companies. Durant has the foresight to buy out small companies that built car parts and accessories and combined them into one large unit - GM.
From it's beginnings in the early 1900s through 1920 GM went through myriad changes due to the unstable economy and WWI. In 1910 GM was on the verge of financial collapse and Durant was forced to step down as its head by its creditors. By 1911 GM entered the international arena and established a solid sales market in Europe and Canada. During this time Durant founded Chevrolet and used this company as a foothold to regain control of GM but was once again removed during the recession of 1920.
GM turned control over to Alfred Sloan, a brilliant engineer turned industrialist. His visions and marketing genius brought new life to GM, which was being overshadowed by Ford. Sloan and GM took Ford's philosophy of "giving the public the best value for their money" several steps further. GM offered the public a variety of automobiles in different styles, colors, features and comforts. But the real gound-breaker was the introduction of buying a car on credit!
GM rebounded for the 1929 stock market crash by acquiring a diverse portfolio of companies such as the Yellow School Bus Company as well as Electro-Motion Corp., which built internal combustion engines for railcars.
While GM. along with many other American car producers, no longer corner the market on automobile manufacturing, GM is still one of the most strongest and and largest corporations in the world.
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