Written by Cláudio Afonso | LinkedIn | X
Spiros Fotinos, a former Lexus executive with more than two decades at Toyota, joined Chinese carmaker Zeekr in September 2022 as vice president and was promoted to CEO in January 2023.
According to his LinkedIn profile, the executive has left Zeekr earlier this month after spending two years in the role. However, internal sources at the company told EV on Wednesday that the CEO of the European region was forced to leave in the second quarter of 2024.
Weak sales, delays in market expansion, and a shift in the business model from direct-to-consumer (D2C) to a retail approach were among the factors leading to Fotinos’ dismissal. In the second half of last year, Zeekr’s European commercial team — under Spiros Fotinos organisation — faced a headcount reduction.
Although the company has not yet communicated the replacement, EV learned that the previous chief commercial officer, Lothar Schupet, was appointed as the new EU Chief.
Prior to Zeekr, Fotinos served at Lexus Europe as head of marketing communications between 2014 and 2016 before switching to the company’s headquarters in Tokyo from early 2017 to late 2019.
Zeekr, which is a premium electric vehicle (EV) brand subsidiary of the giant Geely Holding Group, aims to increase its sales in 2025 by 44% to 320,000 vehicles.
Zeekr initially entered the European market via the Dutch and Swedish markets, starting pre-sales for the Zeekr 001 sedan and Zeekr X compact SUV in June 2023.
Customer deliveries began in December 2023, with Fotinos personally handing over the 001 sedan in the Netherlands. Deliveries in Sweden and Germany followed shortly thereafter while the expansion to Norway took place late last year.
In December, Zeekr announced that its newly launched 7X SUV would begin European deliveries in the summer of 2025, starting in the Netherlands, Sweden, and Norway. Prices for the mid-size SUV will start at €52,990 ($54,900) in the Netherlands, 579,000 SEK in Sweden, and 539,900 NOK in Norway for the single-motor version.
At the CES Expo 2025, Zeekr CEO An Conghui said the company aims to boost European sales by introducing plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) to the brand’s lineup.
China-made PHEVs are not affected by the recently announced European Commission’s tariffs, allowing Zeekr to lower the price and increase the competitiveness of its models.
Globally, Zeekr delivered 222,123 vehicles in 2024, falling short of its annual target by 8,000 units, which was set at the beginning of the year.
“Looking ahead to 2025, Zeekr aims to achieve deliveries of 320,000 vehicles,”—the company said in its December delivery report— eyeing a 44% sales growth.
Written by Cláudio Afonso | LinkedIn | X
