The smart car idea was to create a vehicle easy to park and short enough to allow nose-in parking. The smart cars length of 250 centimeters would equal the width of a regular parking slot, allowing two or three Smarts to park in the space as one normal car. The project, started by Swiss watch manufacturer Swatch, was nicknamed the Swatchmobile. The name Smart is an acronym for Swatch Mercedes ART. Intended to use innovative features (such as a hybrid engine) and be affordable for young people, the Smart car had similar design objective to the Citroën 2CV of the 1940s. Swatch CEO Nicolas Hayek sought an established car maker to produce his Swatch car. After General Motors reviewed and rejected the project as potentially unprofitable, Hayek found a partner in Volkswagen. Due to VW's own financial weakness at the time, plans never reached a final stage so Swatch teamed up with Daimler-Benz. The purpose-built factory complex Smart ville in Hambach, France, was established in 1994 as a joint-venture of Daimler-Benz and Swatch. An Australian dealer web site provides the following summary of the beginnings of the product: How everything began: In 1993 Mercedes-Benz started a feasibility study on a subcompact car. Together with the Swatch Group Ltd. they founded the Micro Compact Car AG in 1994. The Smart car city-coupé celebrates its world première at the IAA in Frankfurt,in 1997 and is one year successfully launched in nine European countries. The Smart Car is available in 25 countries all over the world and has sold 750,000.