Ralph Gilles is the Chief Design Officer at Stellantis
I’m no master chef, by any means. But I like to think I grill a mean steak.
My ingredients are simple: the right cut and the right spices – in the right amounts.
Car design is a little like that. At Stellantis, I feel like I’ve inherited a cherished family recipe.
We take customer preferences and mash them together with creative ideas from our design team.
According to customer feedback, it seems to be working.
Third-party data shows exterior design as the attribute customers like most about the vehicles they bought from the Stellantis stable of brands. Damn. That’s satisfying and humbling at the same time.
What distinguishes Stellantis design?
Overall, we strive for road presence – an attribute best conveyed with stance.
Think Jeep® Gladiator. That is stance. The Gladiator is all about strength and character.
I’m also a wheel freak. Ours tend to be bigger, which contributes to a forceful presence.
I like to think of wheels as a finishing statement. They also accommodate variety, which is another hallmark of our design.
Our broad color palettes satisfy a wide range of tastes. They make our production vehicles feel like customized vehicles.
But because Stellantis brands stand for something unique and compelling in the marketplace, each must have a face that “speaks” to its customers. Just look full-on at the Alfa Romeo Giulia. Or Dodge Challenger. Or the Ram 1500.
They have actual expressions that make promises. And our engineering teams deliver on those promises with superior performance.
How do we move forward and keep improving? With a design team that is motivated, as well as talented.
And we are a team, by the way. Egos get checked at the door, along with any sense of hierarchy.
For a creative person, that’s a great environment.
Our people infuse their work with passion informed by personal experiences. We have off-road enthusiasts and muscle-car enthusiasts.
We even have family-car enthusiasts. We’re all enthusiasts.
Our customers, it seems, share that intense level of passion. And for that, I am grateful.
