The global automotive market is currently in the midst of a historic and tumultuous upheaval. A powerful wave of Chinese electric-vehicle manufacturers has aggressively captured market share from established Western legacy brands, shifting the balance of power in the industry so drastically that traditional giants like Volkswagen have been forced to implement massive restructuring programs and lay off tens of thousands of workers.
Western regulators have scrambled to mount a defense. The European Union has responded by implementing higher import duties, temporarily relaxing its stringent climate commitments, and even weighing measures that could see Chinese automotive firms entirely excluded from the trading bloc—a hardline approach already adopted by the United States.
This volatile geopolitical and economic landscape leaves smaller legacy European brands in a uniquely precarious position. Consider Volvo, the iconic Gothenburg-based carmaker whose strategic footing is further complicated by a foundational corporate reality: it has been majority-owned by the Chinese automotive conglomerate Geely since 2010. Geely, which also oversees emerging electric vehicle brands such as Zeekr and Lynk & Co, has provided vital financial and technological backing, but the dual identity as a European brand within a Chinese corporate parent brings both immense advantages and complex strategic challenges.
Facing the Future: Heritage Meets Modernization
As the Gothenburg-based carmaker prepares to celebrate its milestone 100th anniversary next year, it is not retreating from the storm. Instead, Volvo is planning an unprecedented rollout of 13 new models to mark the centenary.
"When you sit in a car like this, you realise the strength in having a design heritage," says Thomas Ingenlath, the company’s chief design officer, as he expertly navigates a bright-orange 1975 Volvo 242DL through the bustling traffic of central Gothenburg. "Developing a brand in an evolutionary way is totally different from starting with a blank page."
The 62-year-old German designer has experienced both approaches. Having previously served as the vice-president of design at Volvo, where he helped define the brand’s modern aesthetic, he also spent time as the CEO of Polestar, the electric performance car brand born out of the Geely stable. Returning to Volvo this year, Ingenlath faces a multi-layered mandate. His primary task is to evoke the brand’s century-old history without falling into the trap of cheap retro nostalgia. At the same time, he must ensure the distinct survival of a European brand operating within a massive Chinese group while fiercely competing with rivals both inside and outside the corporate family.
Furthermore, he must guide Volvo through its ongoing transition to electric mobility at a time when wider European EV adoption efforts appear to be stalling. Volvo once made bold public pledges to become an exclusively all-electric brand by the year 2030. Today, the company has pragmatically adjusted its horizon, stating that it now aims to be "over 90 per cent" electric as market conditions and infrastructure realities evolve.
Ingenlath’s return to Volvo coincides with the return of its former CEO, Håkan Samuelsson, drawing lighthearted comparisons within the automotive press to a legendary rock band reunion. When asked if their joint return feels like the car world’s equivalent of the Oasis reunion, Ingenlath responds with a warm laugh, noting that there are "not so many arguments" this time around.
They are reuniting at a fascinatng and delicate juncture for the global industry. Chinese automotive companies currently operate under highly beneficial structural conditions, supported by robust government backing, favorable domestic environmental frameworks, and distinct labor rules. Drawing a historical parallel, Ingenlath notes that the exact same kinds of accusations and anxieties were leveled by European competitors when Japanese automakers first arrived en masse on European shores back in the 1970s. Nevertheless, he maintains that the modern playing field requires careful calibration: "The competition has to be fair."
Defining Premium Values in the Electric Era
Earlier in the day, Monocle met with the man responsible for some of the most elegantly proportioned automotive designs of recent decades—typified by his celebrated 2013 Volvo Coupe Concept—at a quiet coffee shop in the heart of Gothenburg. The itinerary included a scenic drive out of the industrial city, culminating at a top-secret warehouse used to securely store approximately 300 classic vehicles representing every era of Volvo’s rich history.
The conversation inevitably turns to the shifting mindset of the modern consumer. Do car buyers today still care about traditional automotive brands?
"My children are still very aware of brands—in luxury goods, in fashion and also in cars," Ingenlath says thoughtfully. "It is not some shallow advertising thing. It is about the values that you deliver."
To illustrate his point, Ingenlath looks outside the automotive sector to prestige houses like Rolex and Louis Vuitton, companies that consistently excel at adding intrinsic value through exceptional design and uncompromising quality.
"We have to go premium," he asserts, reflecting on Volvo’s strategic evolution. "We made that jump in perception with the XC90 12 years ago. In Sweden, there is still an attitude that a Volvo is a car of the people, but in America, the XC90 made it a prestige brand. That’s what we have to do to survive. Now, we have to go more and more to electric cars."
This transition introduces unique aesthetic hurdles for automotive designers. The shift to EV technology fundamentally alters the mechanical requirements of a vehicle, eliminating the heavy cooling systems that once dictated front-end architecture.
"They don’t require as much cooling, so everyone has decided that they don’t need a grille," Ingenlath explains. "That means you lose the ‘face’ of the car."
While Ingenlath remains tight-lipped about the specifics of Volvo’s near-future product line, he hints that a brand-new "face" will be unveiled next year to coincide with the company’s centenary celebrations.
The Gothenburg-Shanghai Axis
Leaving the coffee shop behind, the journey heads outward toward the Kattegat Coast, passing close to the residential area where Ingenlath and his family have made their home for the past 14 years.
"Gothenburg is great because you can be out in nature in just a few minutes, but it’s still a big industrial city," he notes.
His routine reflects the globalized nature of modern carmaking. Over the past year, his schedule has included frequent, grueling commutes to Geely’s major design center in Shanghai, a facility he continues to visit roughly every three weeks.
While Geely’s long-term position as the majority shareholder occasionally leads critics to view Volvo through the lens of a Chinese Trojan horse, the ground reality in Sweden tells a different story. Gothenburg continues to produce more vehicles than any other Volvo manufacturing plant globally. Furthermore, while Volvo undoubtedly benefits from shared parent-company technology, the technological exchange is genuinely bilateral.
"Geely has a big safety centre in China, which is inspired by the safety centre that we have here," Ingenlath points out, emphasizing that Volvo’s core competency in safety engineering remains a foundational export back to its parent group.
In Ingenlath’s German homeland, the ongoing crisis at Volkswagen is deeply intertwined with political friction and intense public debate. In Sweden, however, the dynamic is markedly different.
"The tradition here is not to interfere," he says as the car loops back toward the city limits. "An industry needs to be strong enough to survive on its own."
Soon, the route passes within close proximity of the sprawling Volvo plant, a massive industrial facility boasting the capacity to produce 300,000 cars a year out of the company’s total annual production output of roughly 700,000 vehicles.
Navigating the streets of Gothenburg, it becomes immediately apparent that Volvo remains a dominant local fixture; most of the vehicles sharing the road carry the iconic iron mark badge, creating an ambient expectation that traffic might naturally part for the design chief’s historic ride. Instead, patience prevails at every junction.
Arriving at the clandestine warehouse, the doors open to reveal an extraordinary collection of roughly 300 cars spanning the past century: rare production models, visionary show cars, and celebrated motorsport competition heroes. It is a fittingly historic venue to cap off a conversation centered on corporate survival, design philosophy, and future horizons.
"We have to fight for our existence," Ingenlath reflects, standing among a century of Swedish automotive engineering. "We need to deliver history and culture. This is a 100-year-old company with incredible values. I would love that to continue in the next century."
Volvo Fact Box
- 763,389: The total number of cars sold globally in 2024, a landmark year that generated all-time high revenues of SEK 400.2bn (€35bn).
- XC60: The brand’s enduringly bestselling model globally, with an impressive 230,655 units shifted in 2025.
- 46 per cent: The substantial proportion of all Volvo cars sold worldwide in 2025 that were fully electric.
- 149,549: The total number of Volvos sold in China in 2025, cementing the country as the brand’s single largest individual market.
- Two-thirds: The proportion of all new cars sold in Volvo’s home market of Sweden during the first and second quarters of the year that featured rechargeable powertrains.
