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Henry Ford II embarked on a trip to numerous Ford facilities in Europe and met with their respective leaders in 1948 in an effort to assess the company’s health following World War II.
The early years in the tenure of Hery Ford II are known for the reorganization and centralization of Ford Motor Company. With World War II in the rearview mirror, Ford’s European operations were in need of a fresh start.
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Henry Ford II drove the 250,000th post-war Ford vehicle built at the company’s Dagenham plant during a visit in 1948.
Henry Ford II and advisor Graeme Howard, an automotive industry and military veteran, set off for Europe in early 1948 to assess wartime damages and what remained of the company’s assets across the continent, as well as to identify any potential areas for growth. Post-war demand for personal vehicles was high there, as it was in the U.S., but Ford was hamstrung by material and labor shortages and increasing government regulation across Europe.
Ford and Howard toured the company’s facilities and talked with their managers, while also surveying the political, financial, and industrial landscape at each destination, as well as Ford’s products. They determined that ownership and administration of Ford’s European operations in Europe, and later elsewhere, would need to be governed by the American parent company. The visit also led to the realization that the continent’s customers preferred smaller cars with lower maintenance costs and diesel engine options.
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A statue of company founder Henry Ford, grandfather of Henry Ford II, was unveiled along one of the stops in the latter’s visit.
The trip also coincided with the announcement of the creation of Ford International Company, a wholly owned Ford subsidiary intended to assist in Ford’s international operations to improve their products, modernize their methods, and shore up other aspects of the business. Ford International Company oversaw operations of Ford companies, branches, and dealers in nearly 80 countries. In June 1948, the organization brought together 30 leaders of Ford’s overseas operations in Dearborn to share their experiences and plan for the future.
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Following World War II, Henry Ford II knew the company’s international operations needed the same modernization as in the U.S.
Howard was elected vice president and director of Ford’s International Division. He had been hired after a lengthy career with General Motors, and while he brought a “dynamic addition” to company leadership, according to historians, clashes with other leaders led to him leaving the company in 1950. While his time with Ford was brief, Howard had helped centralize Ford’s overseas business during a chaotic time.
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Ford Motor Company had operations in nearly 80 countries by the late-1940s but faced numerous challenges in many markets.
Henry Ford II would make at least one more trip to Europe in 1954, but that first tour made for a critical turning point in company history, helping to turn a patchwork of disparate ventures into a successful, enduring international operation.
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