Jaguar’s recent rebrand has drawn heavy criticism. Fans pushed back against the automaker’s controversial ad campaign and had plenty to say about the Type 00 concept—mostly negative. Now, the company is reportedly firing long-time design boss Gerry McGovern in response.
According to reports from Autocar and Autocar India, McGovern was "escorted out of the office" earlier this week. We reached out to Jaguar for a statement, but the company refuses to comment on the situation at the moment.
This news comes less than a week after the retirement of former JLR CEO Adrian Mardell. New CEO, PB Balaji, acted as the former finance boss at Tata Motors before taking over following Mardell’s retirement. Balaji brings 32 years of experience to the position, with more than a decade working at JLR’s parent company, Tata Motors.
While details on McGovern’s firing are still slim, it appears that Balaji could be looking to shake things up at JLR. That move shouldn’t be surprising given the negative feedback surrounding the Jaguar rebrand.
McGovern leaves JLR following a 21-year career working with the Jaguar and Land Rover brands. McGovern is responsible for some of the most popular vehicles within the JLR portfolio, like the Range Rover Evoque, the Range Rover Velar, the Land Rover Defender, and the modern Range Rover line. McGovern also led the design team for the controversial Type 00 concept.
McGovern started his career at the Austin Rover Group and was responsible for concept cars like the MG EX-E, as well as popular production cars like the MG F sports car and the Land Rover Freelander. McGovern then worked at Ford to help revive the Lincoln-Mercury brands.
We’ll update this story with more information as we get it.
Sources: Autocar, Autocar India
