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Stellantis has named North American boss Antonio Filosa as chief executive, selecting an internal candidate to rebuild US business and navigate an industry covered by Donald Trump’s tariffs.
The board selected a 51-year-old Italian who led the Jeep brand. This replaced Carlos Tavares, who suddenly resigned in December due to a sharp decline in sales in the US and Europe.
“Antonio’s deep understanding of our company, including those he considers as our core strength, and our industry, is fully prepared for the role of CEO at the next important stage of Stellarantis’ development,” Chairman John Elkan said Wednesday.
The Board will recognize the powers of Filosa CEOs from June 23rd and arrange the extraordinary shareholder meetings necessary to formally set up in that role.
The owners of the Peugeot, Fiat and Opel brands elicited year-round forecasts last month due to the uncertainty unleashed by the US president’s trade war.
According to people close to the process, the board looked at internal and external candidates, including Chief Purchase Officer Maxim Picutt, and Mike Manly, who previously ran the Jeep business and is now the self-related chief executive of auto retailers.
Investors were hoping that Elkan would once again find a surprise candidate after running Fiat, which was almost bankrupt, picked Sergio Martionne from the ambiguity in 2004.
The board initially leaned towards outside candidates, but one of the people said tariff disruptions and geopolitical tensions have reinforced the need to find leaders who know the company thoroughly.
Two key conditions set by the board were in-depth knowledge of the American market and the diplomatic skills needed to oversee the 14 brands and navigate operations in France, Italy, Germany and the United States.
