Jaguar CEO steps down after 'woke' rebrand sparked massive social media firestorm
The Jaguar CEO is stepping down months after leading a controversial "woke" rebrand campaign for the auto company.
Jaguar Land Rover CEO Adrian Mardell is set to retire after three decades at the luxury car company and serving as CEO for three years, a spokesperson for the automaker announced on Thursday, Reuters reported.
The British car brand turned heads last year with its release of a new ad, which featured a reimagined logo under the slogan "Copy Nothing."
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The ad featured androgynous models in brightly colored, over-the-top outfits, including one man wearing a dress, along with other slogans such as "create exuberant," "live vivid," "delete ordinary" and "break moulds."
The ad did not feature a car throughout its entire 30-second run.
The video blew up on social media, drawing tens of thousands of comments and nearly 47 million views in 24 hours.
Shortly after the ad premiered, X users piled onto the company for releasing what they called a "Bud Light 2.0" campaign by appearing to focus on wokeness and modernism over selling cars.
"This just made me want to sell my Jaguar and I don’t even own a Jaguar," conservative corporate activist Robby Starbuck joked.
Columnist Jon Gabriel wrote, "This is so the wrong timing for this. I can understand the C-suite being conned into this in 2022, but you have completely misread the moment. Bud Light 2.0."
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Jaguar defended the ad in a statement to FOX Business at the time.
"Our brand relaunch for Jaguar is a bold and imaginative reinvention and, as expected, it has attracted attention and debate. As proud custodians at such a remarkable point in Jaguar's history, we have preserved iconic symbols while taking a dramatic leap forward. The brand reveal is only the first step in this exciting new era, and we look forward to sharing more on Jaguar's transformation in the coming days and weeks," it said.
Soon after, Jaguar took heat with the release of its new EV design that was called a "pink Batmobile."
Jaguar did not immediately respond to FOX Business' request for comment.