Jaguar Design boss fired

Jaguar’s recent rebranding has attracted heavy criticism. Fans opposed the automaker’s controversial ad campaign and had a lot to say about the Type 00 concept, mostly negative. Now the company is reportedly firing longtime design boss Gerry McGovern in response.

According to reports from Coach And Coach IndiaMcGovern was “escorted out of the office” earlier this week. We’ve reached out to Jaguar for a statement, but the company is currently declining to comment on the situation.

This news comes less than a week after the retirement of former JLR CEO Adrian Mardell. The new CEO, PB Balaji, acted as former finance boss at Tata Motors before taking over after Mardell’s retirement. Balaji brings with him 32 years of experience, including more than a decade at JLR’s parent company, Tata Motors.

While details surrounding McGovern’s dismissal are still limited, it appears Balaji wants to shake things up at JLR. That move shouldn’t be surprising, given the negative feedback surrounding Jaguar’s rebrand.

McGovern leaves JLR after a 21-year career with the Jaguar and Land Rover brands. McGovern is responsible for some of the most popular vehicles within the JLR portfolio, such as 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 such as the MG EX-E, as well as popular production cars such as the MG F sports car and the Land Rover Freelander. McGovern then worked at Ford to revive the Lincoln-Mercury brands.

We will update this story with more information as we get it.