Jaguar Land Rover has parted ways with Gerry McGovern, the veteran design boss responsible for the company’s hugely polarizing Pink rebrand – a marketing campaign criticized for featuring high-fashion models, avant-garde slogans and not a single Jaguar car.
Industry publication Autocar reported that McGovern, 69, was asked to leave the company and “escorted from the office” on Monday, marking an abrupt end to his 21-year tenure as one of the automaker’s most influential figures. JLR declined to comment on the departure.
McGovern’s departure comes just weeks after PB Balaji, previously finance chief of parent company Tata Motors, took over as JLR’s new chief executive. The leadership change comes after a turbulent year marked by falling demand for premium cars in China, concerns about semiconductor supplies and a major cyberattack that crippled production for five weeks.
Jaguar’s December 2024 relaunch – which was unveiled at Miami Art Week – was widely ridiculed for eschewing the brand’s famous “Growler” emblem in favor of a high-fashion aesthetic. The glossy campaign featured models with angular haircuts walking through a pink sci-fi landscape, accompanied by slogans such as “Erase the Ordinary”, “Don’t Copy” and “Live Alive”.
No cars were featured in the campaign video, a decision the company defended at the time as “brave and imaginative.”
The controversy intensified when Jaguar unveiled a neon “Barbie pink” concept model, prompting comparisons to Lady Penelope’s car from Thunderbirds. Critics on social media called the campaign “woke” and out of touch.
Former US President Donald Trump accused JLR of being in “absolute turmoil” and called the rebranding “stupid”. Tesla boss Elon Musk mocked the campaign and asked: “Are you selling cars?”
Despite the uproar, McGovern remains widely respected for redesigning some of JLR’s most iconic models. He led the reinvention of the Defender, turned Range Rover into a luxury sub-brand and oversaw Jaguar’s transition to an all-electric lineup, including the “neo-brutalist” Type 00 concept.
McGovern grew up in Coventry and studied at the Royal College of Art before embarking on a career that included roles at Chrysler, Peugeot, Austin Rover and Ford’s Lincoln division. He joined Land Rover in 2004 as Director of Advanced Design and later became JLR’s Chief Creative Officer and a member of the company’s Board of Directors.
McGovern’s departure comes at a time when JLR is struggling with production volatility and macroeconomic pressures. Dutch semiconductor company Nexperia has warned it can no longer guarantee deliveries due to political tensions with China, while the gradual resumption of production in October followed a cyber incident that forced Tata Motors to pay a $228.5 million charge.
For some critics, the Pink rebrand symbolized a period of misjudged corporate experimentation – a trend that analysts say is now reversing, helped by shareholders’ push for more commercially based marketing. Retailers like American Eagle have seen strong stock performance recently after returning to more mainstream celebrity campaigns.
With Jaguar’s first new electric model due to arrive next summer, McGovern’s departure raises new questions about how much of his creative vision will survive under JLR’s new leadership.
