Volvo names Škoda chief Klaus Zellmer as next CEO

Successor inherits plan to double Volvo’s market share with 13 new models

Volvo Cars on Sunday named Klaus Zellmer, chief executive of Volkswagen Group’s Škoda brand, as its next chief executive, tasking him with leading a company whose outgoing CEO unveiled a turnaround plan three days earlier to double its market share.

Zellmer, a more-than-two-decade veteran of Porsche and the wider Volkswagen Group, will succeed the 75-year-old Samuelsson no later than October 2027, Volvo said in a statement. The changeover hands Volvo’s top seat to an executive credited with making Škoda Europe’s third-largest car business while keeping its costs low.

“His experience from both the high-end premium segment and high-volume brands is an excellent fit for Volvo Cars,” Chairman Eric Li said. Li founded China’s Geely automotive empire, which bought Volvo from Ford after the 2009 global financial crisis.

The appointment comes against a backdrop of mounting pressure on legacy European automakers. On Thursday, Samuelsson and his team had unveiled a plan to double Volvo’s market share by introducing 13 new models — seven in Western markets and six in China — while cutting costs through deeper parts-sharing with Geely. The strategy responds to long-established European brands losing ground to Chinese rivals in China, emerging markets and, increasingly, their home region, and to higher U.S. tariffs introduced last year by President Trump and the costs of electric and self-driving vehicles.

“The challenges for the car industry are immense, but our strategy gives a clear answer to how we adapt to these,” Samuelsson said.

Zellmer’s record at Škoda contrasts with Volvo’s higher-cost Swedish operations. The Czech brand, bought by VW in stages after the fall of the Berlin Wall, posted an 8.5% operating margin in the first half of 2026 — a level more typical of luxury marques such as Mercedes-Benz and BMW. Volkswagen’s namesake brand reported a 2.4% margin over the same period. Under Zellmer, Škoda has become a bright spot in the otherwise gloomy financial picture at VW.

Zellmer spent more than two decades at Porsche, now part of the VW Group, including a stint leading the sports-car brand’s North American business through a period of strong growth in the 2010s.

The transition ends Samuelsson’s second stint as Volvo CEO. He first led the company through its 2021 minority initial public offering, then retired to make way for Jim Rowan, a Scottish technology executive. When Volvo’s spending on a new technology platform spiraled, Rowan quit and Samuelsson was brought out of retirement to lead the turnaround.

At Volvo, Zellmer will face a steeper cost structure than the one underpinning Škoda’s profitability. Volvo is based in Sweden, where costs run far higher than in the Czech Republic, though the company is building a new factory in neighboring Slovakia.