Surprise move: Peter Evans was overseeing all aspects of Hyundai’s Genesis brand launch in Australia, which is still on course to take place at the factory-owned flagship dealership in Sydney in June.

THE key executive driving the establishment of Hyundai’s Genesis luxury brand in Australia, Peter Evans, has left the company just a couple of months out from launch.

A one-time head of marketing at Hyundai Motor Co Australia (HMCA), Mr Evans returned to the South Korean car-maker in 2016 as general manager of the newly created Genesis Motors Australia.

He brought with him 36 years of senior automotive industry experience, including a stint as head of marketing and aftersales at Lexus Australia, and was overseeing all aspects of the Genesis business, including sales, aftersales, marketing and dealer development.

As GoAuto reported, the Genesis strategy subsequently changed last year from a national network of franchised dealers to launching with a single factory-owned flagship store in Sydney’s Pitt Street Mall that will open up with the G80 large sedan, followed by the G70 mid-size sedan, and with an outlet in Melbourne and Brisbane to follow next year.

The Sydney launch was set down for late last year, but was pushed back to the end of the first quarter this year before being delayed further to a new starting date in June.

The company cited issues with construction of the Sydney dealership as the cause of the delay.

HMCA’s director of marketing, Bill Thomas, has confirmed to GoAuto that the June launch date remains, despite Mr Evans’ departure.

He said HMCA chief executive JW Lee remains as head of the Genesis brand in Australia, while many of Mr Evans’ responsibilities will be handled on an interim basis by Genesis’ senior manager of national marketing, Linda Fabis.

Mr Thomas also confirmed that HMCA is looking both inside and outside the company for Mr Evans’ replacement, as is its usual policy.

In a statement, Ms Fabis said: “Peter Evans is no longer working for Genesis Motors Australia and is now pursuing other career opportunities.

“We thank Peter for his contribution to Genesis and wish him all the best in his future endeavours. An announcement regarding the revised Genesis business structure will be made in due course.”

Mr Evans is the second senior executive to leave HMCA this year, following chief operating officer Scott Grant who departed in January to become COO of Cricket Australia.

Mr Evans had been reporting directly to Mr Grant, with whom he had also worked alongside at Toyota over some two decades.

Mr Evans served in various senior roles at Toyota including corporate manager of product planning, marketing communications, strategy and brand enhancement, conversions and accessories, and motorsport.

He relocated to Singapore in 2013 to become project general manager for Toyota Motor Asia Pacific, specialising in brand and product marketing and assisting distributors throughout the region launch new models and “elevate the brand”.

He left Toyota in 2015 and remained in Singapore to set up his own firm, Moving Target Consulting, but subsequently returned to Australia, joining HMCA in October 2016.

Earlier in his career, he spent two years working for HMCA as head of marketing, from 2000 to 2002.

Mr Evans began his career with Ford in 1980, starting as a product planning engineer on local models (Falcon, Fairlane and LTD) before moving to a new role three years later as supervisor of imported passenger-car product planning.

He joined Toyota toward the end of 1985, starting with the Japanese auto giant’ s local commercial vehicle distributor Thiess Toyota as manager in charge of product planning, engineering, accessory development and regulations/compliance.

He then took on a similar role – although broader, with passenger cars included – when Thiess Toyota amalgamated with AMI Toyota to become Toyota Motor Corporation Australia in 1988.

By Terry Martin