After being tied to the Jaguar Land Rover brand for more than three decades, its current CEO Adrian Mardell will be stepping down from his post. A spokesperson for India’s Tata Motors-owned subsidiary automaker revealed that his company exit was attributed to his decision to retire altogether. Mardell’s successor has yet to be announced.
“Adrian Mardell has expressed his desire to retire from JLR after three years as CEO and 35 years with the company. His successor will be announced in due course,” a Jaguar Land Rover spokesperson said in an official statement.
The 64-year-old executive steered the British luxury carmaker as the CEO for about three years, having taken on the interim boss’ role in late 2022 after Thierry Bollore resigned after just two years at the helm. Mardell formally embraced the chief executive officer post in July 2023. People close to the company, as cited by the Financial Times, spilled that the fresh switch-up was all part of Mardell’s original plan to retire after a three-year term.
The JLR boss’ plan to retire came just months after the company pushed for a rebrand of the British carmaker to own up a more progressive image. However, the result — under Mardell’s leadership — was widely panned and hit by a barrage of backlash, branding the advertising tone’s transition as “woke.” The Reform UK leader Nigel Farage and Tesla boss Elon Musk were some high-profile faces to have tore into the “absolutely bonkers” relaunch campaign.
Who is Adrian Mardell?
According to Reuters, Adrian Mardell joined the British carmaker in 1990. Prior to his role as the chief executive officer, which initially kicked off on an interim basis in November 2022, he served as the company’s chief financial officer from June 2019. During his connection with the carmaker, Jaguar Land Rover not only amassed its highest profit in a decade, but also got rid of its $6.6 billion in debt.
Mardell’s stint as the JLR CEO was also particularly marred by US President Donald Trump’s 25% tariff on all imported cars, compelling the company to temporarily halt its exports to America for a month. In May, these exports resumed. And just days ago, the 64-year-old was one among many significant personalities to have been included at the opening of Trump’s new golf course in Scotland during the US leader’s official visit to the UK.
“Outside of work, I enjoy running marathons. I’ve done six so far and hope to complete another one soon,” Mardell writes on his LinkedIn profile.
Adrian Mardell to exit after Jaguar’s ‘woke’ transformation
In November 2024, Jaguar launched a 30-second ad campaign that completely erased the presence of cars and the company’s iconic big cat symbol. On the contrary, the carmaker’s advert focussed on androgynous model and a bombastic colour feature set in an otherworldly landscape, pushing messages like “create exuberant” and “break moulds” onto the screen.
Dubbed a “hallucinogenic sci-fi movie,” the Jaguar rebrand’s confusing explosion of colours was completely amiss of what the company is all about. Inevitably, it prompted Elon Musk to criticise the new approach, as he asked on social media: “Do you sell cars?” Meanwhile, Nigel Farage warned, “Mark my words, Jaguar will go bust.” On top of that, headlines like “Go woke, go broke!” took over social media, when speaking of the all-models, no-cars ad.
Adrian Mardell, on the other hand, stood by the company transformation, saying it would “create the same sense of awe that surrounded iconic models like the E-Type.”
But months later, JLR switched tone, announcing its hunt for a new ad agency after the “woke disaster.” Despite the other positives earned during Mardell’s stint, Jaguar sales in Europe plummeted by 97.5% after the rebrand failed to win hearts. According to data from the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association, the automaker registered just 49 vehicles in Europe in April as opposed to 1,961 in the same month last year.
Nonetheless, the company defended its choice to pivot. “Comparing Jaguar sales to 2024 is pointless as we are no longer producing vehicles in 2025 with low levels of retail inventory available. Jaguar’s rebranding is not related to a sales decline,” a Jaguar spokesman told The New York Post.