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Luca de Meo

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Luca de Meo
Luca de Meo in 2021
Born (1967-06-13) 13 June 1967 (age 58)
Milan, Lombardy, Italy
EducationBocconi University
OccupationChief executive
EmployerKering (2025-)
Honours
  • Commander of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic (2015)
  • Grand Cross of the Order of Isabella the Catholic (2021)
  • Knight of the French Legion of Honour (2022)
  • Cavaliere of the Order of Merit for Labour (2022)
Notes

Luca de Meo (born 13 June 1967) is an Italian chief executive, CEO of luxury group Kering since 2025. He was previously CEO of the group Renault (2020-2025), CEO of SEAT (2015-2020), and CEO of Fiat Automobiles (2004-2009). He revived the iconic Fiat 500, created SEAT's premium brand Cupra, and turned Renault into a global electric vehicles manufacturer.

Education

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Luca de Meo was born in Milan. His family lived abroad in Brazil, Nigeria, Tanzania, and Ivory Coast. He studied at Bocconi University in Milan, graduating in 1991 with a degree in business administration.[5]

Career

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De Meo began his career at Renault's regional sales in Italy in 1992. He transferred to Renault's Paris headquarters in 1994 to work with the marketing team. In 1998, he joined Toyota Europe where he became chief of product strategy in 2000.[6]

In 2002, de Meo joined the Fiat Group as chief marketing of Lancia. In 2004, he was appointed CEO of Fiat Automobiles (passenger cars).[7] After successfully driving the conception and launch of the iconic new Fiat 500 in 2007,[8] he was appointed chief marketing officer of the Fiat Group in September 2007 and CEO of Alfa Romeo in December 2007[7] to revive the centennial brand,[9] and CEO of Abarth.[7] He resigned from his positions at the Fiat Group in January 2009.[7][10]

In August 2009, he was appointed marketing and sales director of passenger cars for the group Volkswagen.[11] He also held the positions of board of management member for sales and marketing at Audi AG, member of the supervisory boards of Ducati and Lamborghini, and chairman of the board of the group Volkswagen in Italy and Spain.[12][13] In the midst of the 2015 Dieselgate, Volkswagen appointed de Meo CEO of SEAT to revive sales as other brands of the group were embroiled in the crisis.[14] De Meo launched SEAT's first B-segment model (Ateca),[15] SEAT's premium brand Cupra,[16] and SEAT's first electric cars.[17] In 2019, he inked a partnership with JAC Motors to develop SEAT in China.[18] De Meo flipped SEAT around and made it one of Volkswagen's most dynamic brands.[19] In January 2020, Luca de Meo resigned from his position of CEO of SEAT, rumored to be shortlisted for the vacant position of CEO of Renault.[20]

In January 2020, he was appointed CEO of Renault (effective July 2020), tasked to put group back on track after the turbulent post-Ghosn era.[21][22] His cost-reducing plan to turn "a car company working with tech into a tech company working with cars" focused on brand enhancement, full adoption of EV technologies, and pivot towards new mobility habits.[23][24] He picked the iconic Renault 5 to symbolize Renault's rebirth in the EV era,[25] drove the consolidation of Renault's EV platform Ampere (CEO since June 2023),[26] merged Renault Sport and Formula One Team into Renault's high-end brand Alpine,[27] launched the EV microcar-sharing brand Mobilize (discontinued in 2025),[28] and sealed a partnership with Chinese carmaker Geely to develop next-gen low-emission combustion technologies (Horse Powertrain).[29] In 2023, he was appointed president of the European Automobile Manufacturers Association (ACEA), [13][30] focusing his agenda on Europe's EV production capacity.[31][32]

When he first joined Renault Group, the company was losing €8 billion.[33][34] In 2022, it was announced that Renault Group started to witness a financial improvement and de Meo managed to turn around the company in 18 months.[35] Accordingly, better financial results for 2021 were released, they included a 6% increase in revenues and a net profit approaching one billion (€967 million).[36] By January 2023, in less than two years, de Meo completed the first phase of his transformation program.[37] In 2023, de Meo's strategy was bringing about results as Renault's operating margin increased to 5.6% for the past year, compared to only 2.8% in 2021.[38] Two and a half years later, de Meo managed to make the group witness a financial recovery.[33] In the sports segment, Alpine grew by 33% in 2022.[39][40] In June 2025, De Meo left his position as CEO of Renault Group.[41][42]

De Meo's exit from Renault coincided with his appointment as CEO of Kering (Gucci, Yves Saint Laurent, Balenciaga, Bottega Veneta) effective September 2025, a crossover from the automotive to the luxury sector.[43][44] He was hired to fix Kering's balance sheets with his signature transformation leadership.[45] Immediate measures included an audit of the group's retail network in view of downsizing, reduce Kering's financial dependency on Gucci, and reduce the debt.[46] He sold Kering's beauty division (including fragrance brand Creed) to L'Oréal for 4 billion euros,[47] postponed the full acquisition of Valentino,[48] and appointed Francesca Belletini CEO of Gucci.[49]

Other roles

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  • Teaching fellow at SDA Bocconi School of Management.[50][51]

Awards

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Publications

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  • De Meo, Luca (2010). Da 0 a 500. Storie vissute, idee e consigli da uno dei manager più dinamici della nuova generazione [From 0 to 500: Lived Stories, Ideas and Advice from One of the Most Dynamic Managers of the New Generation] (in Italian). Marsilio.
  • De Meo, Luca (2024). Dictionnaire amoureux de l'automobile [Dictonary of automotive love] (in French). Place des éditeurs.
  • De Meo, Luca (2025). Dizionario sentimetale dell'automobile [Sentimental dictionary of automobile] (in Italian). Rizzoli.

Filmography

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  • (fr) Anatomie d'un come-back (2024), prod. Breath Film, 4-episode miniserie on the 2020-2024 transformation of Renault[62]

Personal life

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De Meo is married to Silvia Goracci and has two sons.[63][64]

Further reading

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References

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  1. ^ "Luca David Antonio de Meo (1967 – Francia)". Il Sole 24 Ore. Retrieved October 26, 2023.
  2. ^ "Luca De Meo nominato Cavaliere del Lavoro da Sergio Mattarella". Gazzetta. Retrieved October 26, 2023.
  3. ^ "Renault. Luca de Meo décoré de la Légion d'honneur au Technocentre". L'Argus. Retrieved October 26, 2023.
  4. ^ "INFO EUROPE 1 - Le directeur général de Renault va recevoir la Légion d'honneur". Europe 1. Retrieved October 26, 2023.
  5. ^ "Les petits secrets de Luca de Meo, successeur de Carlos Ghosn". Capital. Retrieved 30 July 2023.
  6. ^ Renard, Marion Le (2009-05-14). "Luca de Meo: un nouvel atout pour le marketing VW?". Autoplus (in French). Retrieved 2026-02-07.
  7. ^ a b c d "Fiat marketing chief and Alfa Romeo CEO quits". www.italymagazine.com. 13 January 2009. Retrieved 2026-02-14.
  8. ^ Tagliabue, John (2007-08-11). "Italian Pride Is Revived in a Tiny Fiat". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2026-02-14.
  9. ^ Gour, Vikram (2008-07-10). "In Conversation: CEO, Alfa Romeo". The Economic Times. ISSN 0013-0389. Retrieved 2026-02-14.
  10. ^ "Fiat confirms Alfa Romeo head resignation". Reuters. 12 January 2009. Retrieved 2026-01-07.
  11. ^ Popa, Bogdan (2009-05-14). "Fiat's Luca de Meo Moves to Volkswagen". autoevolution. Retrieved 2026-02-07.
  12. ^ "Les Barons de la Bourse". Zonebourse. Retrieved 16 July 2023.
  13. ^ a b "Luca de Meo, PDG de Renault Group, sera président de l'ACEA l'année prochaine". MotorsActu. Retrieved 23 July 2023.
  14. ^ Ellyatt, Holly (2016-04-20). "Why Spain's SEAT is booming in Germany". CNBC. Retrieved 2026-02-07.
  15. ^ Malta, Times of (2016-06-19). "A true SUV and lifestyle companion". Times of Malta. Retrieved 2026-02-14.
  16. ^ Fowler, Steve. "The future of Cupra". Auto Express. Retrieved 2026-02-14.
  17. ^ "SEAT reveals its first-ever e-Scooter". Autocar Professional. 19 November 2019. Retrieved 2026-02-14.
  18. ^ Fusheng, Li (28 May 2019). "Spain's SEAT set to make China comeback by 2021". www.chinadaily.com.cn. Retrieved 2026-02-14.
  19. ^ Thibaud, Cécile (2019-03-28). "Seat enregistre les meilleurs résultats de son histoire". Les Echos (in French). Archived from the original on 2024-12-14. Retrieved 2026-02-14.
  20. ^ "VW's Seat brand chief steps down as Renault continues CEO hunt". U.S. 7 January 2020. Archived from the original on 2021-05-15. Retrieved 2026-02-14.
  21. ^ Ewing, Jack; Alderman, Liz (January 28, 2020). "Renault Chooses Volkswagen Executive as New C.E.O." The New York Times.
  22. ^ Campbell, Peter (21 February 2020). "Luca de Meo: 'Cultural sponge' takes 'job from hell' at Renault". www.ft.com. Retrieved 2026-02-07.
  23. ^ King, Ian (14 January 2021). "How Renault boss aims to recapture its va-va-voom". Sky News. Retrieved 2026-02-07.
  24. ^ Taylor, Michael. "Former World EV Leader Renault Plans 10 New EVs, Lower Costs By 2025". Forbes. Archived from the original on 2025-07-23. Retrieved 2026-02-07.
  25. ^ Lilli, Eleanora (2 March 2024). "Luca de Meo writes a letter on the Renault 5". Motor1.com. Retrieved 2026-02-14.
  26. ^ Kar-Gupta, Sudip. "Renault names Luca de Meo as new head of Ampere electric vehicle unit". Reuters. Archived from the original on 2023-07-21. Retrieved 2026-02-14.
  27. ^ Barlow, Jason (2021-03-24). "Renault boss: Alpine will stay in Formula One 'for eternity'". Top Gear. Archived from the original on 2025-03-20. Retrieved 2026-02-14.
  28. ^ "Renault exits car-sharing, scales back EV charging as it puts profits first in tough market". Reuters. 12 December 2025. Retrieved 2026-01-14.
  29. ^ Potts, Greg (2024-05-31). "Renault has teamed up with Geely to work on… internal combustion engines". Top Gear. Archived from the original on 2024-09-24. Retrieved 2026-02-14.
  30. ^ "Luca de Meo (Renault) nommé à la présidence de l'ACEA en 2023". L'Argus. Retrieved 10 June 2023.
  31. ^ "Luca de Meo, CEO of Renault Group, to serve as ACEA President next year". ACEA. Retrieved 23 July 2023.
  32. ^ "Industrie automobile. Luca de Meo appelle à une politique européenne ambitieuse". L'Argus. Retrieved 26 October 2023.
  33. ^ a b "Renault réussit son redressement en vendant moins de voitures". Le Monde. Retrieved 23 October 2023.
  34. ^ "Luca de Meo". Les Echos. Retrieved 23 October 2023.
  35. ^ "Renault réussit son redressement en vendant moins de voitures". Le Monde. Retrieved 12 August 2023.
  36. ^ "Amélioration spectaculaire des comptes de Renault, bénéficiaire après deux ans de pertes". Le Monde. Retrieved 12 August 2023.
  37. ^ "Renault, qui fait déjà beaucoup mieux que le Cac 40 depuis trois ans, en a sous le capot pour gagner encore 50%, selon les prévisions de la banque Oddo BHF". Les Echos. Retrieved 23 October 2023.
  38. ^ "Renault : fin de semaine de retour sur les 40 euros". Boursier. Retrieved 23 October 2023.
  39. ^ "Alpine. Luca de Meo veut engager la marque au Dakar et en WRC !". L'Argus. Retrieved 23 October 2023.
  40. ^ "Renault : Alpine vers le tout électrique pour atteindre la rentabilité d'ici 2026". Challenges. Retrieved 23 October 2023.
  41. ^ "Announcement regarding the governance of Renault Group". Newsroom Renault Group. 2025-06-15. Retrieved 2025-06-16.
  42. ^ "Le directeur général de Renault, Luca de Meo, va quitter l'entreprise". 20 Minutes (in French). June 15, 2025.
  43. ^ Hummel, Tassilo (2025-06-16). "Renault boss De Meo quits; report says he will head Gucci-owner Kering". Reuters. Retrieved 2025-06-16.
  44. ^ "Luca de Meo, démissionnaire surprise de Renault, appelé à la rescousse au sein du groupe Kering pour seconder François-Henri Pinault". Le Monde (in French). June 16, 2025.
  45. ^ Bayart, Bertille (2025-06-15). "Luca de Meo quitte Renault et rejoint Kering". Le Figaro (in French). Retrieved 2026-02-14.
  46. ^ Klasa, Adrienne (19 November 2025). "Kering must kick Gucci habit, chief Luca de Meo tells staff". www.ft.com. Retrieved 2026-02-05.
  47. ^ "Gucci-owner Kering sells beauty unit to L'Oreal for $4.7 billion". Reuters. 20 October 2025. Retrieved 2025-01-07.
  48. ^ "Kering: Valentino Will Not Change Hands Before 2028". The Business of Fashion. 2025-09-10. Retrieved 2026-02-14.
  49. ^ "Kering's new boss de Meo appoints Bellettini to lead Gucci". Reuters. 17 September 2025. Retrieved 2026-01-07.
  50. ^ "Luca de Meo". SDA Bocconi School of Management.
  51. ^ "Luca de Meo is the 2017 Bocconi Alumnus of the Year". Via Sarfatti 25. Retrieved 16 July 2023.
  52. ^ "Audi: Luca de Meo receives honorary title "Commendatore al Merito della Repubblica Italiana"". Automotive World. Retrieved 16 July 2023.
  53. ^ "Luca de Meo, nuovo CEO di Renault". Bocconi Alumni. Retrieved 16 July 2023.
  54. ^ "Luca de Meo is the 2017 Bocconi Alumnus of the Year". www.viasarfatti25.unibocconi.eu. Retrieved 20 November 2017.
  55. ^ Nussbaum, Ania; Rauwald, Christoph (21 November 2019). "Marchionne's One-Time Protege De Meo Leads Renault CEO Race". Bloomberg.
  56. ^ a b "Luca de Meo: 'Cultural sponge' takes 'job from hell' at Renault". Financial Times. 21 February 2020.
  57. ^ "On vous présente Luca de Meo, le futur directeur général de Renault". Capital. Retrieved 17 July 2023.
  58. ^ "Real Decreto 165/2021, de 16 de marzo, por el que se concede la Gran Cruz de la Orden de Isabel la Católica al señor Luca de Meo, presidente y consejero delegado de Renault". boe.es. Retrieved 2021-03-17.
  59. ^ "Cavalieri del Lavoro 2022, da Balbinot a De Meo: le 25 nomine di Mattarella". Milano Finanza. Retrieved 16 July 2023.
  60. ^ "Décret du 29 décembre 2022 portant promotion et nomination dans l'ordre national de la Légion d'honneur". Légifrance. Retrieved 8 August 2023.
  61. ^ "Luca de Meo receives the Laurentum Award 'Italian Excellence in the Industry Sector Worldwide". Jiji Press. 16 December 2025. Retrieved 2026-02-07.
  62. ^ Anatomie d'un come-back, Esteban Ocon, Flavio Briatore, Pierre Gasly, Breath Film, 2024-12-13, retrieved 2026-02-14{{citation}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  63. ^ Carretto, Bianca (2020-01-13). "Chi è Luca de Meo, l'italiano che si prepara a guidare la Renault". Corriere della Sera (in Italian). Retrieved 2021-01-14.
  64. ^ "Foment pide a las autoridades el fin de los actos violentos y las coacciones". La Vanguardia (in Spanish). 2019-11-19. Retrieved 2021-01-14.
[edit]
  • Media related to Luca de Meo at Wikimedia Commons
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