Pininfarina CEO dies in traffic accident
Future plans for famous Italian styling studio in doubt after founder's grandson meets his demiseIndustry journal Automotive News Europe has reported the death of Andrea Pininfarina, CEO of the eponymous Italian design house. Pininfarina, 51, was involved in a crash while riding a Vespa scooter yesterday. The driver of the car that collided with the scooter is believed to be at fault.
Pininfarina's death leaves the company's future in some doubt, as the CEO and Chairman, who had led the family-run company since 2001, had been the driving force behind a company restructure initiated in 2006.
Other family members will work to fill the void left by Pininfarina's death, with his father Sergio already installed as honorary chairman, brother Paolo working in the capacity of vice chairman and his sister Lorenza a member of the board.
The company has a long history of styling classic cars and manufacturing vehicles in low volumes, but increasingly, car companies have been bringing design in-house, rather than outsourcing to the specialist studios. We had previously reported Bertone's financial difficulties (more here) and Pininfarina's situation doesn't appear as dire on the face of it, but the CEO's death has thrown the company into some confusion, nonetheless.
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