TITLE: Vice President Design
COMPANY: Opel/Vauxhall
BASED: Ruesselsheim, Germany
AGE: 59
NATIONALITY: British

CAREER HIGHLIGHTS

Mark Adams worked at Ford Motor in Europe and the U.S. before starting his career at Opel/Vauxhall in 2002 as head of exterior development for concept and production vehicles. His first project was the Insignia concept and following production model. In 2007 he was named vice president for design, and he has led development of vehicles including the Astra GTC, Adam, the second-generation Insignia, 2013 Monza Concept and the 2016 GT Concept. In 2012-13, he was executive director of design for the Buick and Cadillac brands. Adams holds a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering and a master’s degree in automotive design from the Royal College of Art in London. 

REASON FOR WINNING 

With the Mokka small SUV, Mark Adams and his team began a radical design overhaul at Opel/Vauxhall, Stellantis’ sibling German and British brands. The Mokka, which replaced the GM-engineered Mokka X, is the first Opel to feature the new "Vizor" front-end design, which borrows elements from the iconic 1970s-era Manta coupe, including a horizontal grille. It integrates the grille, LED headlights and Opel’s redesigned lightning-bolt emblem in a single element.

In unveiling the Mokka, the company described it as a real head-turner that will change the perception of the brand. "We are reinventing Opel from scratch with the Mokka and are showing the design language for the next 10 years," the company said. The sharp lines of the Mokka, its general purity in surfaces and cleanliness in details that walk away from the slightly baroque elements of previous Opel models have already been applied to the new-generation Astra compact hatchback, which will be launched at the beginning of next year.