The automotive world is in an uproar, and not because yet another SUV that looks like a microwave on wheels has hit the market. No, this is big news, the kind that makes you choke on your morning coffee. Luca de Meo, the man who dragged Renault out of the swamp, has handed in his diamond-shaped badge and is heading—brace yourself—for the world of high fashion. Yes, you read that right: the Italian maestro who made Renault sexy again is now set to rescue Gucci and Yves Saint Laurent at the French luxury group Kering. This isn’t a career pivot; it’s a leap from a speeding Formula 1 car onto a catwalk dripping with glitz and glamour.
Let’s rewind for a moment. Luca de Meo isn’t just any CEO. This guy is a legend in the car industry, a sort of Italian wizard with a CV longer than a traffic jam on the E40. He kicked off his career at Renault in 1992, back when most of us were still rewinding cassette tapes with a pencil. From there, he bounced to Toyota, then Fiat, where he breathed new life into the iconic Fiat 500—a car so charming you almost want to give it a hug. Next, he wielded power at Volkswagen and later at Seat, where he pulled the Spanish brand from obscurity and made it cooler than a hipster bar in Antwerp. In 2020, he returned to Renault, where the company was so financially shaky it seemed ready to collapse at any moment.
And what did De Meo do? He rolled up his sleeves, slapped a plan called “Renaulution” on the table (yes, that’s really what he called it), and got to work. Renault was losing 22 million euros a day—per day!—but under his leadership, the company got back on its feet. He brought production back to France, gave electric cars a major push with models like the Mégane E-Tech and the ridiculously cool Renault 5 E-Tech, and revived the sporty Alpine brand. Alpine went from a niche player with one cute little sports car to a full-fledged luxury brand with electric ambitions. Even Dacia, Renault’s budget brand, became even more successful under De Meo, with the Duster flying off showroom floors across Europe.
But it wasn’t just about cars. De Meo was a visionary. He mended the rocky relationship with Nissan, decisively pulled Renault out of Russia after the Ukraine invasion, and, as chairman of the European carmakers’ association ACEA, lobbied for more time to transition to electric vehicles. He wasn’t afraid to tell the EU that their plans to ban combustion engines by 2035 were a tad ambitious. “A revolution for the rich,” he once called the electric transition, and you couldn’t really argue with him. Under his watch, Renault became a brand that didn’t just survive but thrived in an era when the auto industry changes faster than the weather in Belgium.
Then, on a quiet Sunday evening in June 2025, Renault drops the bombshell: Luca de Meo is stepping down. Not to join another carmaker, not to launch his own brand, but to become CEO of Kering, a company dealing in luxury handbags, designer dresses, and sunglasses that cost more than a second-hand Renault Clio. The news leaked through the French newspaper Le Figaro, and Renault had no choice but to confirm it. De Meo will clear out his desk on July 14 and start his new adventure in the fashion world the next day. It’s as if Max Verstappen suddenly announced he’s off to tap-dance on Broadway.
Why is he doing this? According to De Meo himself, the job at Renault is done. “We achieved in less than five years what many thought impossible,” he said in a statement as emotional as an Italian opera. “The results are the best in our history. It’s time to pass the baton.” And let’s be fair: he’s leaving Renault in far better shape than he found it. The company has a solid strategic plan, a lineup of new models in the pipeline, and a management team ready to carry on the “Renaulution.” But still, the car world feels a bit like a kid who just learned Dad’s moving out.
What does this mean for Renault? The hunt for a new CEO is already underway, and the Board of Directors trusts the current team to keep things running. But let’s be real: finding someone with De Meo’s flair, charisma, and vision is like searching for an affordable electric car with a 500-kilometer range—it exists, but it’s damn hard to find. And then there’s the question of what De Meo will do at Kering. Gucci, the group’s crown jewel, has been struggling with lackluster results for years. Can a man used to building cars conquer the fashion world? Or is this a leap too far, even for someone of De Meo’s caliber?
One thing’s for sure: the automotive world will never be the same without Luca de Meo. He was a man who didn’t just build cars; he built dreams. From the retro-chic Renault 5 to the sporty Alpine A290, his legacy will roll on our roads for years to come. And who knows, maybe we’ll see him again one day—behind the wheel of an electric Gucci convertible, who’s to say?
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