Polestar global sales head appointed

Mike Whittington will lead Volvo Car Group’s electric performance brand Polestar’s global sales operations.

He joins as the company begins to shape its retail operations, and follows the recent announcement of the new retail lab which is developing concepts for the forthcoming Polestar Space retail environments.

“We are entering an important phase in the launch of the new Polestar brand,” chief executive officer Thomas Ingenlath says.

“We defined our retail strategy and are now developing the global retail network we need. Polestar wants to interact with its customers online and face-to-face, and we have begun engaging with the dealer operators who will represent Polestar around the world. Mike’s experience and expertise will help us realise our objectives and keep us on the path to success.”

Whittington has more than 20 years’ experience in the motor industry, mainly in global infrastructure, e-commerce strategy and new electric vehicle introductions from a wealth of automotive brands, including Jaguar Land Rover, PSA, Mercedes-Benz and Toyota.

“The motor industry is entering the most significant and challenging period of change in its history,” Whittington says. “The opportunity to join Polestar as a new electric performance brand is very exciting. Combining electrification with highly desirable performance cars, in a new company that has clear and ambitious goals, especially on the sales side, is the sort of challenge I welcome with open arms.”

The company’s first car, the plug-in hybrid Polestar 1, appeared in public at Britain’s Goodwood Festival of Speed in July and made its North American appearance at Monterey Car Week in California in August.

The all-electric Polestar 2, with an expected 560km range, is due to debut at the 2019 Geneva Motor Show in March.