cars news 10: Former Lamborghini Design Exec to Lead Genesis Brand

Manfred Fitzgerald, former director of brand and design at Lamborghini, will head Hyundai’s Genesis brand starting in January 2016.

As Senior Vice President, Fitzgerald will shape strategies for Genesis in the areas of branding, marketing, and other business operations. He will join the team at Hyundai’s global headquarters in Seoul, Korea.

Prior to leading Genesis, Fitzgerald spent 12 years at Lamborghini. Under his direction as brand and design chief, Lamborghini was able to increase its sales tenfold. According to Automotive News, Fitzgerald left Lamborghini in 2011 to join German TV maker Loewe and then started his own brand consultancy firm in 2013.

The new appointment comes a little more than a month after Hyundai announced it would remake Genesis into a full-fledged global luxury brand. The company is moving quickly and plans to introduce six new vehicles in the U.S. by 2021. First up is the 2017 G90 sedan, which launches in 2016 and serves as a replacement to the Hyundai Equus sedan. Genesis will also bring out the G80 as a successor to the Hyundai Genesis sedan as well as a G70, an entry-level sports sedan. The remaining vehicles have yet to be announced, but all will include the same alphanumeric naming convention based on the letter “G” and a two-digit numeral.

Source: Hyundai, Automotive News (Subscription Required)