Guests from outside Germany who come to Affalterbach to visit the factory immediately see that they are being expected: They are welcomed by their national flags flying on the flagpoles in front of both showroom and CEO building.
It has become a much-appreciated habit: AMG greets guests who come to Affalterbach from all around the world by flying their national flag in front of the showroom and the CEO building. Over the years, AMG has built a stock of around 100 flags ranging from Argentina to Vietnam. This "collection" is continuously added to with every new country that features in the weekly list of visitors. To date, the most frequently flown flag was the USA's "Star-Spangled Banner", with Switzerland, the UK and Australia next in line. Visitors come from smaller countries, too, such as Sri Lanka, Vietnam, or Mauritius. By the ways, the latter's flag is not blue like the legendary stamp but four-coloured.
When factory guides take their guests across the courtyard in front of the showroom heading towards the engine plant, they often casually point to the flag, mentioning that AMG has put it up to thank guests for their visit. Which in turn causes most of the guests to give flag and guide a "can this be true?" look and, right on cue, to pick up their phones or cameras to take a commemorative photo.
Some flags help start a conversation. The Mexican flag, for example, tells a whole story – that of the founding of the first Aztec capital of Tenochtitlán, which is today's Mexico City. According to Divine prophecy, this city was to be founded at the place where an eagle was found sitting on a cactus – growing on an island – and devouring a snake.
In other cases, you have to look very closely to see which flag is flying. The Netherlands and Luxemburg for instance only vary in the shade of blue in their tricolour, and the Australian and New Zealand flags are very similar, too. Both feature the Union Jack and the Southern Cross. If all the stars are red, the guests come from New Zealand. If stars are white and complemented by a fifth star, AMG is extending a welcome to Australians. There is one thing these two countries have in common, though: They are among the countries with highest per capita number of AMG cars worldwide.
