Volvo Cars' Global Head of Design Resigns

According to foreign media reports, Volvo Cars stated in an internal memo to employees that the company’s global head of design, Jeremy Offer, will soon step down after more than two years in the position. Nick Gronenthal, head of car design at the company, will temporarily take over the role starting from August 15. It is reported that Jeremy Offer resigned in order to prioritize spending more time with his family in the UK.

S90; Image Source: Volvo Cars

Jeremy Offer stated in the memo: "This is not an easy decision, but it is the right decision for me. I am very proud of our team and the achievements we have accomplished together, and I am confident that the Volvo Cars design team will be in capable hands."

This is the second major management change at Volvo Cars since the new CEO, Hakan Samuelsson, took office on April 1. Another change is the appointment of Fredrik Hansson as the company's Chief Financial Officer.

Former Volvo Cars CEO Jim Rowan appointed Jeremy Offer as Head of Design, despite the fact that Jeremy Offer had not previously held a senior position at any global automaker. At the time, Jim Rowan stated that Jeremy Offer brought a fresh perspective, multitasking ability, and "numerous Red Dot Awards in industrial design" to Volvo Cars.

Before joining Volvo Cars, Jeremy Offer served as Chief Design Officer and Senior Vice President at the electric vehicle startup Arrival. Arrival's UK division entered bankruptcy administration proceedings in February 2024 (similar to filing for bankruptcy protection under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code), after its stock had already been delisted from Nasdaq. Later that same year, another electric vehicle startup, Canoo, acquired Arrival's manufacturing assets.

Like Jeremy Offer, when Wenjin Luo became the CEO of Volvo Cars in March 2023, he was also a newcomer to the automotive industry. It is reported that he previously held senior positions at the British appliance design and manufacturing company Dyson and the Canadian telecommunications company BlackBerry.

An industry insider closely connected with Volvo Cars and several other automakers told Automotive News Europe: "It seems that the attempt to have newcomers as CEO and head of design has not been very successful."

Jeremy Offer's departure coincided with Geely Group, the parent company of Volvo Cars, appointing Thomas Ingenlath as Senior Design Advisor.

A spokesperson for Geely Group stated that Thomas Ingenlath took office in June this year, reporting to Eric Li, Chairman of Zhejiang Geely Holding Group. He will focus on design projects for the group's brands, including Volvo Cars, Polestar, Geely Auto, Zeekr, and Lynk & Co.

An industry insider said, "Thomas Ingenlath has deep ties with Volvo Cars." He also emphasized that the German executive's decades of design experience—including more than 12 years at the Volkswagen Group—will benefit Volvo Cars.

Hakan Samuelsson is also full of confidence in Thomas Ingenlath's capabilities. On July 17, Hakan Samuelsson pointed out to Automotive News Europe: "He has excellent insight into the forms that good future designs should take, and is extremely experienced in understanding the link between good design and engineering feasibility." Hakan Samuelsson added that Thomas Ingenlath will be highly valued by the Volvo car design team. "I believe he will continue to provide help and guidance to the team."

The industry insider revealed that Thomas Ingenlath, who is based in Gothenburg, Sweden, frequently visits the Volvo Cars design center; meanwhile, the insider believes that Nick Gronenthal will not become the official design director of Volvo Cars because, similar to Jeremy Offer, he lacks long-term leadership experience in design teams at leading automotive companies.

According to reports, Nick Gronenthal is 44 years old and an American. He joined Volvo Cars in 2022 as the head of the company's former California design studio. Nick Gronenthal's LinkedIn profile shows that he began his career at BMW Designworks in 2005 and worked at BMW for nearly ten years. He then joined electric vehicle manufacturer Faraday Future in 2015.

Nick Gronenthal left Faraday Future and co-founded SC+P in the Los Angeles area, serving as the Creative Director. Four years later, he was responsible for the design project of Canoo.

A Volvo Cars spokesperson declined to disclose specific details about the measures the company will take to fill the position, and did not say whether the selection process would include both internal and external candidates.