Highlights
- Design chief Gerry McGovern was suddenly dismissed following Jaguar's controversial 'woke' rebrand.
- The pink electric car concept drew harsh criticism from both Donald Trump and Nigel Farage.
- His immediate exit follows new CEO PB Balaji taking charge of Jaguar Land Rover.
THE top designer at Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), Gerry McGovern, has been dismissed from the luxury carmaker, just days after a new chief executive took the helm.
McGovern, who had served as JLR’s chief creative officer, was told on Monday (1) that he was being dismissed "with immediate effect."
According to reports, he was then "escorted out of the office," though the exact reasons for his sudden exit remain unclear. JLR, which is owned by India's Tata Group, has declined to comment.
The turmoil comes after PB Balaji, the former finance boss of Tata Motors, succeeded Adrian Mardell as JLR's chief executive in November 2025.
McGovern’s departure brings an abrupt end to his 21-year career at the carmaker. During his time, he masterminded popular designs including a revamp of the Land Rover Defender model and the company’s flagship Range Rover line-up.
However, McGovern was also the main creative force behind last year’s radical rebrand of the Jaguar marque. This revamp aimed to shift the brand away from its traditional "Jag Man" image towards ultra-wealthy customers with a new, all-electric line-up.
The concept for the company’s first electric model—dubbed the "Type 00"—was unveiled at an art show in December 2024. It was described as sleek and futuristic, but its initial concept design was shown in shades of bright pink and blue.
The design invited unflattering comparisons to the FAB 1 car driven by Lady Penelope in Thunderbirds and Barbie’s screaming pink convertible.
The rebrand, however, faced a significant backlash. An accompanying advert, which featured a cast of androgynous-looking models but no cars, was widely criticised for being too "woke."
Figures including Nigel Farage and Donald Trump attacked the campaign, with Trump calling it a "stupid, and seriously WOKE advertisement."
At the time, Rawdon Glover, the managing director of the Jaguar brand, dismissed the negative reaction as "vile hatred and intolerance," arguing that the company needed to "act differently" to succeed at a different price point.
Glover had repeatedly supported the rebrand, saying, "I think great design does polarise... So having the confidence to say this is what we think the 21st century Jaguar should look like and then sticking to that is very important."
The previous JLR boss, Adrian Mardell, who oversaw the rebrand strategy, announced his retirement in August before leaving in November, though JLR insisted his retirement was unrelated to the Jaguar revamp.
Sales of new Jaguar cars have been halted since November 2024 in preparation for the electric launch, which has already been pushed back from late 2025 into 2026.
The new electric line-up is now expected to begin with a four-door grand tourer, not the highly divisive Type 00 concept.
David Bailey, a professor of business economics, noted that the removal "has sent shock waves through the automotive world" and heralds the "symbolic end of an era" at JLR.
