Jaguar CEO Steps Down Months After Woke Rebrand Commercial Went Viral
Jaguar CEO Adrian Mardell is stepping down after more than 30 years with the company, just months after the British luxury automaker faced widespread backlash over a controversial rebrand campaign that critics slammed as tone-deaf and “ultra woke.”
Mardell, who served in finance roles for most of his career at Jaguar Land Rover before becoming CEO three years ago, offered no public explanation for his exit. The announcement of his departure follows mounting pressure on the brand after its heavily mocked “Copy Nothing” ad campaign ignited a firestorm online last November.
The ad, part of Jaguar’s new rebranding push toward electric-only vehicles, featured no cars at all. Instead, it portrayed a chaotic series of abstract visuals, with individuals in flamboyant outfits swinging sledgehammers, painting camera lenses, and dramatically posing to a synth-heavy soundtrack. Flashy slogans like “delete ordinary,” “create exuberant,” and “copy nothing” appeared throughout the commercial — but any sign of Jaguar’s actual products was conspicuously absent.
Copy nothing. #Jaguar pic.twitter.com/BfVhc3l09B
— Jaguar (@Jaguar) November 19, 2024
The reaction was swift and brutal.
Critics across the political spectrum lambasted the brand for abandoning its identity and embracing what many saw as an incoherent, virtue-signaling mess. Tesla CEO Elon Musk famously weighed in with a simple but devastating question: “Do you sell cars?”
Jaguar’s social media team responded defensively, insisting the ad was part of a broader storytelling campaign with vague replies like, “The story is unfolding. Stay tuned,” and “Consider this the first brushstroke.”
Inside the company, leadership pushed back against the accusation that the campaign had gone “woke.” Managing director Rawdon Glover claimed the ad’s message was misunderstood and that the backlash reflected “a blaze of intolerance.” He insisted the point was to break free from “traditional automotive stereotypes” and market Jaguar as a luxury lifestyle brand rather than a car company.
But that gamble clearly didn’t pay off.
For decades, Jaguar built its name on sleek design, performance engineering, and British prestige. The “Copy Nothing” campaign, with its disregard for actual product appeal, signaled a radical departure from that legacy — one that alienated longtime enthusiasts while failing to capture new buyers.
The timing of Mardell’s exit has only fueled speculation that the fallout from the rebrand played a role. Though officially labeled a retirement, his departure amid declining brand confidence and consumer confusion has many in the industry calling it a course correction.
Jaguar is undergoing a broader transformation as part of its shift toward an all-electric future, but the leadership shakeup suggests that even legacy automakers are discovering there’s a limit to how far image can outrun substance.
In the end, the company’s attempt to “delete ordinary” may have done just that — by deleting what made Jaguar iconic in the first place. Now, with Mardell out, the next leader will face the challenge of steering Jaguar back toward a brand identity that actually sells cars, not just slogans.