Ferrari replaces marketing chief after Luce EV backlash
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- Ferrari named former BMW Italy boss Massimiliano Di Silvestre as its new chief marketing and commercial officer effective July 1, replacing Enrico Galliera after more than 16 years at the company.
- Galliera had run Ferrari's marketing and commercial strategy for several years, and Ferrari framed his exit as a personal decision to "embark on a new chapter," though the departure lands weeks after the Luce debut.
- The Luce launch wiped roughly 8% off Ferrari's stock in a single day — the most scrutinized product reveal in the company's modern history — though CEO Benedetto Vigna insists the car is "clocking up orders" despite the backlash.
- Ferrari pre-revealed the Luce's specs (~1,000+ hp, around 530 km / 329 miles of range) and its Jony Ive-designed interior months before the Rome unveiling, leaving only the polarizing exterior design as fresh material at the actual reveal.
- Ferrari barred journalists from driving the Luce at the Rome launch, withholding the one element that could have backed up its claim that the car drives like a "real Ferrari."
- CEO Benedetto Vigna — hired from STMicroelectronics after 26 years to drive Ferrari's electrification push — remains firmly in place, and the article argues his survival is what matters for the EV strategy, not the marketing seat swap.
Why it matters: Ferrari's Luce launch wiped roughly 8% off its stock in a day after the brand pre-revealed specs and barred journalists from driving, leaving only the polarizing exterior as fresh material. With CEO Vigna staying put as the electrification architect, the marketing chief bore the cost of the execution missteps.
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