Boss of major car brand suddenly quits ‘for very different industry' after turning around troubled automaker
Italian Luca de Meo could be swapping gearsticks for Gucci glasses
END OF THE ROAD Boss of major car brand suddenly quits 'for very different industry' after turning around troubled automaker
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THE CEO of a major car brand has stepped down after five years in the hotseat - and is reportedly set for a dramatic career switch-up.
Luca de Meo was appointed the chief exec of Renault Group back in January 2020.
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Renault Group CEO Luca de Meo is reportedly switching to the luxury goods market
Credit: AFP
However, after after five years in the role, he is departing to "pursue new challenges outside the automotive sector", the carmaker said.
Reports suggest that could could see him running the company behind luxury brands like Gucci and Yves Saint Laurent.
De Meo is the man behind Renault's Renaulution business plan which aimed to restore profitability while turning the carmaker into a next-gen auto company.
The plan paid off, with the French firm posting a record operating profit last year of 4.26bn euros.
During de Meo's rein, the Italian oversaw the launch of a number of SUVs, the resurrection of the Renault 5 as an electric vehicle.
The 58-year-old also helped turn the Alpine into an electric performance brand.
De Meo is set to leave on July 15, with Renault Group hunting for a new CEO as part of what the auto giant described as their "already defined succession plan".
Sources in both the UK and on the continent have linked the departing de Meo with a move into the luxury goods market.
There is speculation he will be appointed the new chief exec of Kering, who also own Balenciaga and McQueen.
In a statement, de Meo said: "There comes a time in one's life when one knows the job is done.
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"At Renault Group, we have faced immense challenges in less than five years! We have achieved what many thought impossible.
"Today, the results speak for themselves: they are the best in our history.
"We have a strong team and an agile organization. We also have a strategic plan ready for the next generation of products.
"That is why I have decided it is time for me to hand over the baton. I am leaving a transformed company, poised for the future, to apply my experience to other sectors and embark on new adventures.'
De Meo's decision to step down has come as a shock to the automotive industry.
While Renault's success has made him a man in demand, he has previously denied wanting to leave the French automaker.
He was formerly linked to Stellantis, the company behind car brands like Vauxhall, Citreon and Chrysler, but instead insisted he still had a job to do at Renault.
In an official statement, Renault board chairman Jean-Dominique Senard said: "For five years, Luca de Meo has worked to restore Renault Group to its rightful place.
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Renault is now searching for its next CEO as part of its succession plan
Credit: Shutterstock Editorial
"Under his leadership, our company has returned to a healthy foundation, boasts an impressive range of products and has resumed growth.
"Today, the entire company joins me in thanking him for all these years and all the collective challenges successfully met."
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June 16 (Reuters) - Francois-Henri Pinault's reported decision to hire Renault boss Luca de Meo is an audacious but necessary move to address the twin challenge of sagging sales and mounting debt at luxury group Kering ( opens new tab, investors and industry players say. De Meo's turnaround credentials were enhanced by his work at French carmaker Renault ( opens new tab, but he has much to do if he is to replicate the successes of cross-sector heavyweights such as Robert Polet and Leena Nair. Pinault, son of founder Francois and CEO of Paris-listed Kering since 2005, has struggled to contain a deepening rot at star brand Gucci while embarking on a shopping spree that has stretched the French conglomerate's balance sheet and that of controlling family holding Artemis. By stepping aside to let de Meo run a luxury sector giant, Pinault has acknowledged the urgent need to address Kering's problems, including the 75% drop in its value since the summer of 2021, according to Reuters conversations with industry experts and investors. "It's a bold move ... We now have a CEO (de Meo) who is a great professional," said Ariane Hayate, European equity fund manager at Edmond de Rothschild. "There's now a real willingness by Francois-Henri Pinault to take a step back after years of underperformance." Kering's share price rose by more than 12% on Monday, on track for its best daily performance since 2008. The group's expected swoop for de Meo also suggests that its problems are bigger than perceived from the outside and go beyond Gucci, said one large European investor on condition of anonymity in discussions relating to individual investments. Despite his lack of experience in the luxury sector, de Meo does bring skills that can help Kering at this critical juncture, industry players say. Having successfully managed a turnaround at Renault, he is likely to accelerate a Kering cost-cutting push that includes store closures, real estate sales and redundancies to reduce its more than 10 billion euros ($11.6 billion) of net debt, according to two industry players and one person who knows him. De Meo will also need to address Kering's planned acquisition of the 70% of fashion brand Valentino that it doesn't already own. Kering bought 30% in 2023 for $1.9 billion and intends to buy the remainder in 2028. The purchase from Qatari-backed luxury fund Mayhoola could cost a further 4 billion euros, Kering's annual report said. Options included in the original deal might force Kering to buy the other 70% as early as next May, company filings show, which could require partial payment in Kering shares, Kering finance chief Armelle Poulou said in April. "Coming from outside the industry, de Meo's learning curve is going to be super steep, but at the negotiating table he could do well," said one person familiar with Valentino, declining to be named owing to the sensitivity of the matter. Mayhoola, which does not have a press office, did not respond to a request for comment sent to its corporate email address. A person close to the fund described de Meo's expected arrival at Kering as good news. De Meo's most pressing challenge, however, is Gucci. The Italian label has struggled since star designer Alessandro Michele left in late 2022 and the company's recent appointment of creative director Demna from Balenciaga disappointed investors. Coming with three decades of automaking experience, de Meo may initially focus on costs, said a Kering adviser who declined to be named, while luxury sector adviser Mario Ortelli said it could be difficult for de Meo to come from a different industry and give an opinion on a creative designer. But the aforementioned cross-sector successes of Polet, Nair, Vigna and Marchionne offer hope for de Meo. Polet, who joined Gucci as CEO in 2004 after a 26-year career at Unilever, is credited with reviving the label after the departure of famed designer Tom Ford. Nair switched from Unilever to Chanel in 2022 and lifted sales to $18.7 billion in 2024 from $15.6 billion in 2021. Other cross-sector success included Ferrari boss Benedetto Vigna, who joined the supercar manufacturer from chipmaker STMicro in 2021 and led a push towards highly profitable personalised offers to clients. Another was the late Sergio Marchionne, architect of the successful Fiat-Chrysler merger and a former boss of de Meo, who joined Fiat from verification company SGS. ($1 = 0.8626 euros)
