Richard Ferlazzo has been appointed GM Australia design director, effective from Monday this week. In this role, Ferlazzo is responsible for advanced, production and global contract programs.
Ferlazzo qualified as an industrial designer with RMIT in Melbourne in 1982 and has been designing cars for Holden and GM for 25 years, starting as a creative designer with Holden in 1988. Ferlazzo has held positions leading interior, exterior and advanced design, as well as concept car creation and international design programs.
In 1995, he also spent time in Detroit working on Chevrolet and Cadillac programs.
During his career at GM Holden, Ferlazzo has contributed to virtually every Commodore program since VN. His career highlights include leading the interior design team for the VR Commodore, leading the exterior design team for the VT Commodore program and holding the chief designer position for the VE and VF Commodore programs. Additional highlights include the ‘new millennium’ V2 Monaro and GTO programs.
In 1994, Ferlazzo was given the responsibility to redesign the iconic Holden Lion corporate logo which remains unchanged to this day and adorns hundreds of thousands of Holden vehicles.
Ferlazzo was also responsible for creating the stunning and award-winning Holden EFIJY concept car in 2005. Later displayed at the 2007 North American International Auto Show, EFIJY was awarded the coveted United States ‘Concept Car of the Year’.
Ferlazzo grew up in Windsor, NSW, before moving to Melbourne, VIC, at age 10. Born into a dedicated Holden family, his father owned an EH Holden for many years and Richard lists his favourite Holden of all time as the iconic EH Premier.
“Having a flair for design and a passion for cars it was almost inevitable that I became an automotive designer,” says Ferlazzo. “I see my new role as integral to helping shape the Holden brand of the future and driving global collaboration for future product development.
“Holden is in my blood and I’m looking forward to the challenge of ensuring Holden vehicles continue to evolve to meet the needs of our customers now and in the future,”
Ferlazzo replaces Andrew Smith who left Holden this month to assume a senior design role in Detroit.
Join the conversation