Kia Lands Luxury Car Design Guru

Kia Motor Corp. has appointed Karim Habib, who left Nissan Motor Co.’s Infiniti luxury brand late last month, as a senior vice president and design chief, effective Oct. 1.

Based at Kia's design headquarters in Namyang, Korea, Habib (pictured) will report to Luc Donckerwolke, executive vice president and chief design officer for parent Hyundai Motor Group. Habib will oversee the exterior and interior design teams for future Kia models.

Habib joined Infiniti in July 2017 as the brand’s design chief. He previously served two stints at BMW, including the last five years heading the carmaker’s design efforts. In between his BMW terms, Habib was senior manager of advanced design for Mercedes-Benz.

Born in Lebanon, Habib studied mechanical engineering at McGill University in Canada, and transportation design at the Art Center College of Design in California.