The history of Škoda did not begin on four wheels, but on two: enthusiastic "velocipedists" and patriots Václav Laurin and Václav Klement decided to turn their passion into a profession and produce bicycles under the "Slavia" brand name. The new brand quickly became synonymous with quality and innovation. At that time, L&K soon became the second largest bicycle manufacturer in the Czech Republic.

Four years later they built bicycles with an auxiliary motor, the so-called 'motocyclette'. These bikes soon became very popular and won some prizes in racing competitions, and became the second pillar of the fledgling company. Mladá Boleslav motorcycles were in great demand not only in their Bohemian homeland, but also abroad.

Encouraged by this success, Laurin and Klement got on four wheels and presented their first automobile, the "Voiturette A". The vehicle convinced customers with its low price, as well as with its practicability and robustness. This small 7 hp car was the first spark for a year of successful company development under the name L&K, accompanied by the introduction of other successful models.

In 1924, the L&K factory was partially destroyed by a major fire, which led to the company merging with the engineering giant from Pilsen (Škoda) and spelling the end of the Laurin & Klement company. Throughout the 20th century, which included two world wars and a socialist planned economy, Škoda's commitment to building high-quality cars did not waver.

In March 1991, the company enters into a partnership with Volkswagen. The company name is also new: Škoda, Aktiengesellschaft der Automobilindustrie. Three years after the merger with Volkswagen, the new Škoda FELICIA model was born. The cooperation with Volkswagen, the largest European automobile manufacturer, proved to be very successful and took production to a new level.

The Škoda Octavia was the first model to be completely redesigned after the fall of the Iron Curtain and the merger with Volkswagen. It gave the decisive impetus for the rapid transformation of Škoda into one of the recognized global players. Since its launch, more than five million Škoda Octavias have been produced and counting.

2016 marked the beginning of Škoda's foray into the rapidly expanding SUV segment, in which the brand had previously been represented by the successful YETI. The first model of this new strategy was the Škoda Kodiaq, soon followed by the Škoda Karoq.

With the Vision E study, the company provided an outlook on the future of individual mobility for the first time. The five-door SUV coupe can travel up to 500 kilometers purely electrically, and meets the requirements for level 3 autonomous driving. Škoda is working intensively on the electrification of its model range and will be offering five all-electric models by 2025.

With the launch of our "iV" sub-brand, we are entering the era of e-mobility. Not only will this include all of our electrified models, but it will also create a connected ecosystem. The Superb iV and the CITIGOe iV are just the beginning. The first all-electric Škoda based on the Volkswagen Group's MEB platform will follow in 2020.