- Polestar is having a change of leadership, with current CEO, Thomas Ingenlath, who has been CEO of the brand since its creation back in 2017, stepping down.
- Replacing him will be Michael Lohscheller, who has held CEO positions at both heavy-duty electric truck manufacturer Nikola, VinFast, and Opel.
- The switch comes as Polestar’s strategy looks towards rapidly expanding its geographical presence, and positioning itself as a premium EV brand.
Lohscheller brings experience from Nikola, Vinfast, Opel, and more
Incoming CEO Lohscheller already oversaw international growth in his tenure at VinFast, which coincided with the brand’s launch in select European regions. Under his earlier time at his Opel, he was also a champion for EVs, ensuring that the Chevrolet Bolt, rebadged as the Opel Ampera and Ampera-e, could remain in Opel’s line-up, all the way until 2021.
Ingenlath, who’s position will be taken over by Lohscheller on the 1st of October, oversaw the transformation from a performance sub-brand, reserved for the fastest Volvos, into a standalone, premium electric car brand. Since the transformation just over seven years ago, three cars have already hit the market – from its best-selling Tesla Model 3 Rival, the Polestar 2, to its all-new Polestar 3 and rear window-less Polestar 4 models.
On top of that, the launch of the four-door Polestar 5 and convertible Polestar 6 are forthcoming, which Lohscheller will oversee within his new role, alongside helping the brand to deliver global growth.
Incoming CEO, Michael Lohscheller, said on the move:
“I am honored to join Polestar at such an exciting time in the Company’s history. Polestar has already established itself as one of the most desirable and innovative brands in the electric vehicle space, and I look forward to working with the talented team to build on this strong foundation and accelerate our development.”
Reflecting on his seven-plus years as CEO of Polestar, Thomas Ingenlath added:
“I am very proud of what we’ve achieved together in the last seven years. We had the vision of an electric premium brand which puts performance and design at its core. And we made it, the dream became reality: Polestar is the only true global premium electric brand, we just launched the Polestar 3 and 4, we are producing on two continents – thank you to everybody who contributed so far on this journey, it was a lifetime experience to build up this brand with you all. I wish Michael and the team the best for the next chapter of Polestar.”
