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Tabloid past behind, Fiat heir pushes Italian design

Lapo Elkann at an exhibition he curated on Gianni Agnelli, his grandfather and the man who turned Fiat into an industrial powerhouse.
September 29, 2013 05:00 AM
Lapo Elkann

Who he is: Fiat heir and grandson of Italian industrial titan Gianni Agnelli; 1 of the 3 largest shareholders of Exor, the holding company that owns Fiat; younger brother of Fiat Chairman John Elkann

What he does: Marketer, designer, renaissance man instrumental in the 2007 relaunch of the Fiat 500; his Italia Independent design company in June went public, selling shares on the Milan stock exchange; designs fashion eyeglasses and custom Ferraris

Some of his cars: Ferrari 458 Italia, Ferrari California, Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT8, 2 Fiat 500s

Some cool designs: Smeg Fiat 500 refrigerator, Baby Blue Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano with blue denim interior

An idea that's brewing: A Ferrari with a marble dashboard

Some cities in which he has lived: London; Paris; Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; New York; Turin, Italy; Los Angeles

Outside the auto industry: He once worked as an aide to Nobel laureate and former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger

He has been portrayed as the wild child of Italy's billionaire Agnelli family: a globe-trotting jet-setter who cavorts with fashion models, drives ultrafast cars and collects tattoos.

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