Confirmed: former Seat design boss heads to Renault

Seat design director Alejandro Mesonero-Romanos will follow his former colleague Luca De Meo to join Renault, the French brand has now confirmed. 

Following earlier reports, Renault has now issued a statement confirming his appointment, although no specific job title is listed. He will report to Groupe Renault's design director Laurens van den Acker, who commented on the appointment:

"I am delighted to welcome Alejandro Mesonero-Romanos to the Group’s Design Department. His excellent work is widely recognised in the automotive industry and his experience, built up with several manufacturers, will strengthen our team. I am convinced that Alejandro, who already knows Groupe Renault, will be of great help in meeting the future challenges facing our brands."

Seat confirmed Mesonero-Romanos' departure earlier today in a statement, saying he had "left the company at his own request" and thanking him for nine years of service. R&D boss Dr Werner Tietz will now lead the design until a new appointment is made. 

Former Seat president De Meo left the Spanish company back in January but has started his tenure as Renault Group CEO only this month. He was in charge of the Volkswagen Group brand’s operations for five years. 

Mesonero-Romanos first joined Seat's design department in 1995, where he worked on the Bolero concept car of 1998. He joined the Volkswagen Group's European design centre in 1996 to work on Audi, Seat and Volkswagen models before moving to Renault in 2001.

At Renault, he worked on designs such as the Laguna Coupé. His final move before rejoining Seat in 2011 was to South Korea as the design director of Renault Samsung Motors. 

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