Chief Designer of Mercedes-Benz Gordon Wagener Leaves the Company
Gordon Wagener, the chief designer of Mercedes-Benz since 2016, will retire on January 31, 2026. Mercedes announced that Wagener made the decision to leave himself, and his successor will be Bastian Baudy, who currently serves as the chief designer of Mercedes-AMG.
What is Known
While Wagener has been the chief designer of Mercedes-Benz for almost ten years, his career at the company spans nearly three decades, beginning in 1997. In 2008, he was appointed head of global design. At that time, he was 39 years old, making him the youngest chief designer in the industry. Wagener used this role to help transform the look of the entire Mercedes-Benz lineup from conservative to expressive — a philosophy he called "Sensual Purity".
Wagener not only played a crucial role in revamping Mercedes, but also oversaw the development of luxury Maybach models and the modernization of the iconic G-Class. His leadership influenced the W176 generation A-Class, W222 S-Class, and Mercedes-AMG GT. His portfolio also includes countless concept cars — from Vision One-Eleven to Vision Iconic, which debuted this year.
Of course, not all of Wagener's creations were successful — most of the "EQ" electric models, such as EQE and EQS, were criticized for their teardrop shapes, where aerodynamics took precedence over style. Nevertheless, it is fair to say that the 56-year-old designer had far more successes than misses during his time as the chief designer of Mercedes-Benz.
Source: Mercedes-Benz
