New Stellantis CEO Starts Company Tour in Europe

Stellantis’ newly appointed CEO, Antonio Filosa, isn’t waiting until his official start date of June 23 to get to work. According to Reuters, Filosa has kicked off his first company tour by heading straight to Europe—choosing the continent as the starting point for visiting the automaker’s key offices and production plants.

Although Stellantis is headquartered in the Netherlands and operates globally, the decision to focus on Europe first is a strategic one. While North America remains Stellantis’ largest and most profitable market, Europe is the company’s second-biggest region—and it’s been facing some serious challenges. Over the past two years, Stellantis’ market share in Europe has declined, and the region is also dealing with growing uncertainty around electric vehicle (EV) regulations, as the EU considers slowing its transition to electrification.

Filosa, an Italian native now living in the U.S., has spent most of his career outside of Europe. He joined Fiat in 1999 and has held numerous roles in Latin America. Most recently, he served as Chief Operating Officer for Stellantis in North America, a role he took on in October. With that kind of background, it makes sense that he’s using this early tour to get a better handle on the European side of the business.

On Wednesday—the same day Stellantis officially announced his appointment—Filosa was already in France, visiting Paris and the Peugeot plant in Sochaux. By Thursday morning, he had made his way to Turin, Italy, to check in at the historic Mirafiori Assembly Plant, a facility that’s central to Fiat’s roots and Italian automotive history. A Stellantis source told Reuters that Filosa would also meet with local management there before heading to Spain on Friday and Germany on Monday.

Notably, no meetings with labor unions have been scheduled at this time, and Filosa is not expected to make any formal public appearances until he officially takes over as CEO later in June.

For a company that includes iconic brands like Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep®, Ram, FIAT, Alfa Romeo, Peugeot, Citroën, and Opel, this move to engage more with European operations could signal a broader effort to rebalance global priorities under Filosa’s leadership. With a fresh perspective and years of international experience, all eyes will be on how Filosa steers Stellantis in this new chapter.

Source: Reuters