- Company founded by Gary Burrell and Dr. Min Kao.
- Leased office in Lenexa, Kansas and hired a dozen engineers to design and build first GPS prototype.
- Originally called ProNav, company name later changed to Garmin.
1990
- Opened manufacturing facility in Taiwan with a dozen employees.
1991
- First product — GPS 100. Priced at $2,500, it had an immediate backlog of 5,000 units.
- Segment-specific GPS 100s targeted aviation, military, survey and marine.
1992
- Opened office in the U.K.
- 83 employees worldwide.
1993
- First portable GPS with moving map — GPS 95 for aviation.
1994
- 100,000 units sold since inception.
- First GPS certified for IFR approaches — GPS 155.
- GPSMAP® 200 marine chartplotter.
1995
- Fastest nonstop voyage around the world completed using GPS 75.
1996
- First integrated VHF radio and GPS — GPSCOM 170.
- Company moved headquarters to Olathe, Kansas.
1997
- 1 million units sold since inception.
- GPS 12 and GPS III handheld navigators.
1998
- First GPS mapping-enabled mobile phone — NavTalk®.
- First portable mapping GPS for cars — StreetPilot®.
- Revolutionary GNS 430 integrated avionics system.
- GPS 45 won Freeman Pittman award for innovation in marine industry.
1999
- eTrex® handheld GPS navigator.
- GNS 530 integrated avionics system was introduced.
2000
- Selective Availability terminated, increasing accuracy of GPS.
- Garmin became publicly traded company, gaining financial backing to continue its growth.
- Taiwan headquarters moved to Sijhih, Taipei.
- 3 million units sold since inception.
2001
- First portable with voice-prompted directions — StreetPilot III.
- Delivered 25 new products to market.
- BlueChart® marine cartography.
- Building expansion in Olathe, Kansas.
- Broke ground on aircraft maintenance and flight certification facility.
- 1,329 employees worldwide.
2002
- First GPS-enabled PDA — iQue®.
- First GPS-enabled two-way radios — Rino®.
- Co-founder Gary Burrell retired from executive duties.
- Added 2 new automated assembly lines at Taiwan facility.
2003
- Groundbreaking G1000® integrated glass cockpit.
- First GPS-enabled wrist-worn fitness device — Forerunner®.
- Acquired UPS Aviation Technologies, Inc., in Salem, Oregon.
2004
- Garmin Marine Network integrated system.
- Gary Burrell retired from Board of Directors.
- Expanded headquarters in Olathe, Kansas.
- Expanded manufacturing in Olathe and Taiwan.
2005
- Revolutionary personal travel assistant — nüvi®.
- Garmin Mobile® first introduced.
- Acquired MotionBased Technologies.
- 14 million units sold since inception.
- 3,034 employees worldwide.
2006
- Garmin store opens in Chicago and is the only navigation destination store in the world.
- Acquired Dynastream Innovations, developers of innovative wireless technology.
- Opened second manufacturing facility in Jhongli, Taiwan.
- 19 million units sold since inception.
- 4,750 employees worldwide.
2007
- Cliff Pemble appointed President and COO.
- Acquired distributors in France, Germany, Italy, and Spain.
- Acquired Digital Cyclone and Nautamatic Marine Systems.
- Opened third manufacturing facility in Linkou, Taiwan.
- Relocated U.K. headquarters to Southampton.
- Aired first Garmin Super Bowl commercial.
- 31 million units sold since inception.
- 8,500 employees worldwide.
2008
- Garmin named global leader in navigation.
- Voice-activated navigation — nüvi 800 series.
- First navigation-centric smart phone announced — nüvifone™.
- Acquired distributors in Austria, Finland, Belgium/Luxembourg, Denmark, Portugal and Sweden.
- Opened offices in Australia and China.
- Announced title sponsorship of Team Garmin professional cycling team.
- 48 million units sold since inception.
- 8,900 employees worldwide.