The exterior of Nio cars will be worked on by the designer who was responsible for the Jaguar F-Pace

In addition, a specialist from Seat will join the design team of the Chinese electric car company.

Nio was founded in 2014 by entrepreneur William Lee. During the first years of its existence, the company managed to find investments, build and run its own factory in the city of Hefei. It launched the production of ES8 crossovers (the flagship of the line), as well as more compact ES6 and EC6 models. They belong to the premium segment. Next year, the line promises to replenish the novelty – a large sedan ET7.

Pictured: Nio ES8

Sales of Nio in China are currently growing: for example, according to the results of the “covid” 2020, dealers sold 43,728 cars in the home market, which is almost 109% more than a year earlier. In the first seven months of 2021 (more recent data is not yet available), customers bought 47,836 copies, which is 2.7 times more than in January-July last year.

Recall that in May, Nio announced its entry into the European market, the first country in the queue was expected to be green-friendly Norway. Sales were supposed to start in July this year, but the release was delayed: brand dealers began accepting orders for imported ES8 crossovers a few days ago.

The company does not intend to stop there. Alistair Whelan, who previously worked for Jaguar Land Rover and is responsible for the design of the F-Type and F-Pace, as well as the interior of the I-Pace EV, sat in the chair of the head of the Nio design studio, according to the British edition of Autocar. He has been with JLR for 21 years and it is not yet known who will take his place as Chief Interior Officer at the British company.

Also now leading the design team of the Chinese electric car startup is Joaquin Garcia of Seat (this Spanish brand is owned by the German concern Volkswagen). For the past five years, he has been the lead exterior designer for all production cars and concepts for the Seat and Cupra brands.

The list of design studio managers also includes Colin Phipps, who previously worked for the American concern General Motors, as well as Andreas Nilsson, who came from the Chinese holding Geely.

At the end of the summer, it became known that Nio, among other things, was heading for the mass market. It was reported that Nio has a working group that is forming a strategy for a new subsidiary brand. It is assumed that it will allow the company to significantly increase sales and load one more plant (in Shanghai). At the same time, according to the head of the company William Lee, the new brand will not be budgetary: it is planned to produce high-tech electric vehicles under the brand, but more affordable than Tesla or, in fact, Nio. The timing of the appearance of the new brand has not yet been disclosed.