10 Sydney bakeries serving top-shelf baked goods (from sweet to savoury)
Eating out Essential cafes and bakeries
Good Food reviews the city's best bakeries, from coastal classic Iggy's to Filipino favourite Starlight.
As featured in Good Food's Essential Sydney Cafes and Bakeries of 2025, presented by T2. See all stories.
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A good loaf of golden sourdough can make a cold morning worth rising for – and Sydney is in no short supply. Artisan bakeries flourished in the years post-COVID when sourdough became standard, croissants enjoyed unprecedented popularity and our vocabulary for viennoiserie grew.
While the quality of baked goods has never been better, what makes a great bakery hasn't really changed: it's a friendly smile on a dark morning, a crunchy loaf of bread that tastes as good as it looks, and a sausage roll (with sauce) to go, thanks.
Sydney's bakery scene is immensely strong, and there was great competition for this list in Good Food's Essential Sydney Cafes and Bakeries of 2025. Presented by T2, the guide celebrates the people and places that shape our excellent cafe and bakery scenes and includes more than 100 venues reviewed anonymously across 11 categories, including icons, those best for tea, coffee and matcha, and where to get the city's best sweets, sandwiches and baked goods. (These reviews also live on the Good Food app, and are discoverable on the map.)
A.P Bakery
Talk about over achieving. A.P's new Circular Quay location rocks the best hot sandwiches in town (try the rotisserie spatchcock with stuffing) while its all-day Darlinghurst site sends out oysters to knock back with chardonnay and naturally leavened brioche. The constant across all A.P outposts, however, is Dougal Muffet's formidable bread and pastries. Highlights include fougasse with dark, dramatic crust; sourdough made with heritage wheat and house-milled grain; thick, caramelised caneles; super buttery kouign-amanns; and sticky, individual peach galettes.
Must order: The spicier-than-expected Aleppo pepper, Asiago cheese and sesame scroll.
Multiple locations, apbakery.com.au
Fiore Bread
As you stroll down the pretty, tree-lined Blues Point Road, you'll realise everyone around you – brush turkeys and cavoodles included – are on their way to this eclectic-cute Italian bakery. Ex-Iggy's baker Alberto Dal Bosco and partner Samantha Dean use heritage grains to give their sourdough loaves depth of flavour and personality, and their bouncy focaccia makes a great base for build-your-own sandwiches.
Good to know: Discover more Fiore sandwiches at its new CBD outpost.
Flour
Wander in on a lazy morning to score a sun-bathed seat at the communal table – beside the fresh flowers and complimentary newspapers – and order a specialty coffee while perusing the pastry cabinet. It's a thing of butter-laden beauty, crowded with cookies, pistachio croissants and fluffy oiled focaccia slices. With everything baked in-house, you can't order wrong.
Must order: Patatas bravas focaccia.
277 Willarong Road, Caringbah South, weareflour.com.au
Flour & Stone
For an international tourist in Sydney, Flour and Stone's panna cotta lamington should be as essential as an Opera House visit or buying knock-off Ugg boots. The clientele at Nadine Ingram's tiny bakery is often more local though, here for the signature lemon drizzle cake, brown butter tarts, scones and so much more. Everything that comes out of the oven is cosier than wearing sheepskin boots on a Sunday morning.
Must order: The lamington or lemon drizzle if you're and F&S first-timer, but ask about the monthly cake specials too.
43 Riley Street, Woolloomooloo, flourandstone.com.au
Goodwood Bakeshop
Orderly queues form each weekend at this local favourite. There are dogs, there are babies, and there are perfectly crusty, caramelised loaves of sourdough. The menu changes weekly, retaining favourites (like warm ham, gruyere and mustard croissants), reinventing day-old pastries (hello, twice-baked jalapeno and smoked cheddar croissants), and relying on seasonality (quince danishes and spiced apple pies in autumn). When sustainability is key, selling out is common – bakers make just enough for each day.
Good to know: The plain croissant ranked first in Good Food's recent blind taste test.
297 Marrickville Road, Marrickville, goodwoodbakeshop
Seventeen years after it opened, Iggy's remains the benchmark against which all Sydney bread is measured. Even now, you have to arrive early for the glorious sourdough loaves, rolls and bagels, which often sell out by mid-morning. As a bonus, it means you get the almost-sticky, spongy bread encased in a perfectly chewy crust, fresh and warm out of the oven. If you do miss out (as may happen on Saturdays), Iggy's also sells coffee and croissants, so you can still pull up a stool and enjoy the cool vinyl soundtrack.
Must order: Their sourdough croissants have a gentle, buttery earthiness, and ranked seven on our taste-test challenge.
31 Macpherson Street, Bronte, iggysbread.au
Pioik
Pyrmont locals have it good. On a lazy morning they can roll out of bed and wander down to Pioik, where former fine-dining chef Shady Wasef has baked another delicious dilemma. Do they choose the almond croissant with brandy-boozed cream? The egg sandwich, stacked with fluffy omelette and jammy tomato chutney? Or the Simit – a sesame-crusted loop of bread dipped in pomegranate molasses? The winner is then bundled away, enjoyed back home with a takeaway cup of Primary Coffee.
Best for: Rustic loaves and baked delights inspired by the owners' Egyptian roots.
176-178 Harris Street, Pyrmont, pioikbakery.com.au
Tuga Pastries
Come for the cinnamon-dusted pastel de nata, but stay for the hunky cheeseburger pies, choc-filled doughnuts and crunchy croissant sandwiches. Tuga might be known as a top purveyor of Portuguese tarts, but everything here is a banger (especially those pies). Owner Diogo Ferreira is bursting with ideas, which makes it tough to choose from the exciting array of sweet and savoury goodies. Friendly staff are on hand to help make the hard decisions.
Good to know: For a more leisurely experience at Clovelly, visit nearby Tuga x Village.
231 Clovelly Road, Clovelly and 10/112 McEvoy Street, Alexandria
Self Raised Bread Shoppe
This small suburban bakery, with its stylised 1960s aesthetic, nails nostalgia. There's the strawberry cake, a gloriously simple sponge beneath thick vanilla icing and quartered strawberries. There are fast-emptying trays of sugar-dusted Boston doughnuts, generously filled with fresh cream. And the pizza focaccia, topped with basil and torn balls of mozzarella, comes in pre-shrinkflation proportions. Quality fare minus the fads.
Good to know: Sister shop Self Raised Snack Shoppe can be found in Bexley North.
45 Jubilee Avenue, Carlton, selfraised.com.au
Starlight Bakery
It's not what you'd expect from a 25-year-old bakery near Doonside train station, but there it is: a mahogany-hued modernist space, oversized floral arrangement at its centre, selling savoury-sweet Filipino breads and pastries. The renovation is new, but the Filipino menu was a gradual takeover as original owners (the Aringo family) adjusted to community needs. Now helmed by Jeremiah Luya, the bakery combines tried-and-tested pandesal and cheese-dusted ensaymadas with new-wave additions including purple ube macapuno (coconut) cake.
Good to know: You can dine-in, pairing your pastry with a specialty coffee or iced matcha latte.
17 Hill End Road, Doonside, starlightbakery.com.au
Good Food's Essential Sydney Cafes and Bakeries of 2025, presented by T2, celebrates the people and places that shape our excellent cafe and bakery scenes and includes more than 100 venues reviewed anonymously across 11 categories, including icons, those best for food, tea, coffee and matcha, and where to get the city's best sweets, sandwiches and baked goods. Download the Good Food app from the Apple App Store or the Google Play Store to discover what's near you.
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West Australian
3 days ago
- West Australian
THE ECONOMIST: How to invest your huge inheritance. Don't make mistakes of Gilded Age with generational wealth
What do you stand to inherit? It still feels like a question from a different age, despite its growing importance today. In 2025 people across the rich world will inherit some $US6t, or around 10 per cent of GDP — a figure that has climbed sharply in recent decades. French bequests have doubled as a share of national output since the 1960s; those in Germany have tripled since the 1970s; Italian inheritances are now worth around 20 per cent of GDP There are two entirely reasonable responses to this. One is to worry about the new inheritocracy harming society: how it could corrode incentives to work, say, or widen inequality and distort the marriage market. The other, if a windfall is coming your way, is to rub your hands in glee and ponder what you ought to do with it. The typical inheritance is closer to the value of a typical home than to a Vanderbilt-style fortune. Even so, a rising number of people are in line for a bonanza. UBS, a bank, reckons that 53 people became billionaires in 2023 by inheriting money; many more will have received amounts in the hundreds of millions. Asset prices have climbed so high in recent decades, and inheritance taxes have fallen so low, that the number of very wealthy scions is growing all the time. Descend from the stratosphere, and a sizeable cohort is set to receive far lower sums that will nevertheless be life-changing. In Britain, for instance, a quarter of 35- to 45-year-olds are expected to inherit more than £280,000 ($586,000). For these lucky people, the experience of the Vanderbilts and their contemporaries offers a cautionary tale. At the turn of the 20th century, America's census recorded about 4,000 millionaires, note Victor Haghani and James White, two wealth managers, in their book, 'The Missing Billionaires'. Suppose a quarter of them had at least $US5m (the richest had hundreds) and had invested it in America's stockmarket. Had they then procreated at the average rate, paid their taxes and spent two per cent of their capital each year, their descendants today would include nearly 16,000 old-money billionaires. In reality, it is a struggle to find a single one who traces their fortune back to the first Gilded Age. That is not down to inflation or the 20th century's wars, but to poor investment and spending decisions. After all, spending 2 per cent of $US5m ($7.68m) in 1900 — that is, $US3.8m in today's money — would not exactly have consigned anyone to penury. The big question for a 21st-century heir is how to avoid the mistakes of those of the past. In other words, how can you enjoy a nice life while ensuring your inheritance lasts for ever? Silver spoons for all Some cheery news is that the question of how to invest, which sounds like the hardest part, need not be solved perfectly. In theory, this would mean finding the blend of risky assets with the best volatility-adjusted return, and comparing it with the 'safe' return on inflation-protected government bonds. You would then solve for an optimal split between the two, which would vary with market conditions. Thankfully, far simpler procedures can produce spectacular results. Our putative 20th-centurymaires just plonked everything in America's stockmarket, and did very well. Today, we know they could have done even better without much more effort. A simple rule-of-thumb known as the 'Merton share' can approximate the optimal split between stocks and inflation-protected government bonds, by comparing their expected returns and volatility. Messrs Haghani and White have calculated the annualised returns on such a strategy since 1900 (using a proxy for inflation-linked bonds for before 1997, when they were first issued). Had the Gilded Age crowd and their descendants invested in this manner, they would have scored an annualised real return of 10 per cent, compared with 6.6 per cent from the all-stock strategy. Remarkably, it would also have been 40 per cent less volatile. That would have produced vastly more old-money billionaires today. The worse news is that deciding how much to spend is trickier than it sounds. Popular rules for drawing down retirement savings, such as spending a largish fixed percentage of the initial value each year, are definitely out. In truth, these are not wise even for pensioners. Suppose you had kept a classic 60/40 split between American stocks and government bonds, starting in 2000, and drawn down 5 per cent of the value of your initial savings a year. You would have run out of money in 2019, despite earning an annualised return of 5.25 per cent, since you would have depleted too much capital in the market's 'down' years. Even if you spent only 4 per cent of the initial value each year — well below the portfolio's return — you would run a high risk of going bust. Simulate many different market outcomes, based on the 60/40 portfolio's expected return and volatility, and the 4 per cent spending rule leads to ruin within three decades about a third of the time. To avoid this trap, the optimal amount to spend each year must be a percentage of the portfolio's value at that point (the 'spending ratio'), not of its initial value. In other words, if you want to take the risk required to generate outsize returns, you must vary your (maximum) spending from year to year. That way, after a bad spell for the markets, you will not deplete too much of the remaining pot, allowing it to recover. Each year you could, for example, spend a proportion of the portfolio's value equal to its annualised expected return. This is similar to the spending rule adopted by university endowments, which aim to solve the same problem. The median outcome is that the fund's value, and hence annual spending, stays roughly constant with time (provided you have not been overly optimistic about your returns). Nice — but hardly enough to start a dynasty. Ideally, you want to increase your portfolio's value, which means spending less to let the returns rack up. The trade-offs here are difficult to parse. You will get pleasure (or, in economists' jargon, 'utility') from spending more today, albeit with diminishing marginal returns as you get more and more profligate. Doing so will also trim your descendants' purchasing power, especially if the portfolio has a large expected return, which you in part forgo by spending now. Yet such returns are inherently uncertain. In any case, it is only human to prefer an immediate pay-off to a delayed one ('time preference'). The solution is to plug these dynamics into a mathematical model, simulate possible paths for financial markets and calculate the utility derived from each for a given level of spending. You can then calculate the expected utility for each rule and pick the one that maximises this. Unsurprisingly, the procedure is hard, and generates results that are sensitive to the inputs. Maybe spend some of your money on an excellent financial adviser. Yet there are straightforward lessons that everyone can absorb. Although greater expected returns allow you to spend more, they do not do so by as much as you might think. With higher returns, the gap between these and the optimal spending ratio widens (since there is more value in sacrificing spending to let the portfolio grow). Higher volatility means lower spending, since it drags on your annualised return. The more reluctant you are to vary year-to-year outlays, the less you can tolerate investing in stocks, since their value fluctuates. The smaller your minimum spending requirement, the more risk you can take, meaning your expected returns, and hence your overall spending, can rise. A more important lesson is that making your inheritance last for ever means spending far less than its expected return. Exactly how much less depends on market conditions and your risk and time preference. But under reasonable assumptions, a near-optimal portfolio might have an expected annualised return of 4.1 per cent and an optimal pre-tax spending ratio of 2.4 per cent per year. Even that is before allowing for how much your family tree might grow, cutting whatever you pass on into smaller chunks. 'People often want to know how much they need to have to give each member of their family's next few generations a modest income,' says Mr Haghani. 'The answer is: a lot more than most anyone thinks.'


The Advertiser
5 days ago
- The Advertiser
Global Renault boss quits for role at Gucci
Renault Group CEO Luca De Meo, who has been credited with putting the French automaker back on its feet, has quit after five years in the top job, with a successor yet to be announced. The automaker confirmed the news in an official statement after news reports from French news outlet Le Figaro leaked the Italian's departure from the company. "Luca de Meo has announced his decision to step down and pursue new challenges outside the automotive sector," the company said in a statement. Hundreds of new car deals are available through CarExpert right now. Get the experts on your side and score a great deal. Browse now. "The Board of Directors … expressed their gratitude to Luca de Meo for the turnaround and transformation of Renault Group and accepted that his departure would be effective from July 15, 2025. Luca de Meo will continue to perform his duties until that date." According to Le Figaro, Mr De Meo – who has worked in the automotive industry for decades in roles at both Fiat and the Volkswagen Group – will become the CEO of luxury brand Kering, owner of Gucci. The move follows recent leadership changes at other automakers including Renault-owned Nissan, Volvo and Stellantis, which owns several brands including Renault rivals Citroen – which is no longer sold in Australia – and Peugeot. The 58-year-old Italian became Renault Group CEO in 2020, overseeing the Dacia and Alpine sub-brands as well as the broader alliance with Japanese automakers Nissan and Mitsubishi. Dacia vehicles – which are cheaper than equivalent Renaults – are set to be offered in Australia by local Renault importer Ateco Automotive, although they will be badged as Renaults. Meanwhile, Alpine will make a comeback to Australia after a brief absence with the Alpine A390 electric SUV in 2026. Mr De Meo brought stability to Renault leadership after replacing Thierry Bollore, who was in the role only 12 months before being dismissed for reasons that weren't made public. Mr Bollore had been outspoken about his predecessor Carlos Ghosn, who was infamously smuggled out of Japan after he was arrested and accused of misleading investors and misusing company assets for personal gain, before he escaped to Lebanon which has no extradition treaty with Japan. During his tenure, Mr De Meo strengthened Renault's portfolio and focussed on hybrid models, leaving the brand in a healthier position than when he took over the top job, and being praised by some as Renault's 'saviour'. The admiration followed his moves to somewhat insulate the automaker from the threat of Chinese electric vehicles and significant US import tariffs. While the Renault brand does not sell cars in the US, North America is a key market for its Mitsubishi and Nissan partners, with Nissan operating three factories in the US. His move may also impact the Alpine brand that has Formula 1 and World Endurance Championship campaigns, which he was heavily engaged with. Renault is represented by the Sydney-based Ateco group in Australia, where the Renault Trafic and Master commercial vans are its best-sellers. The aged Koleos mid-size SUV is its most popular passenger vehicle year-to-date. Mr De Meo's replacement is yet to be announced, following a resignation that seemingly caught the company off guard. MORE: Everything Renault Content originally sourced from: Renault Group CEO Luca De Meo, who has been credited with putting the French automaker back on its feet, has quit after five years in the top job, with a successor yet to be announced. The automaker confirmed the news in an official statement after news reports from French news outlet Le Figaro leaked the Italian's departure from the company. "Luca de Meo has announced his decision to step down and pursue new challenges outside the automotive sector," the company said in a statement. Hundreds of new car deals are available through CarExpert right now. Get the experts on your side and score a great deal. Browse now. "The Board of Directors … expressed their gratitude to Luca de Meo for the turnaround and transformation of Renault Group and accepted that his departure would be effective from July 15, 2025. Luca de Meo will continue to perform his duties until that date." According to Le Figaro, Mr De Meo – who has worked in the automotive industry for decades in roles at both Fiat and the Volkswagen Group – will become the CEO of luxury brand Kering, owner of Gucci. The move follows recent leadership changes at other automakers including Renault-owned Nissan, Volvo and Stellantis, which owns several brands including Renault rivals Citroen – which is no longer sold in Australia – and Peugeot. The 58-year-old Italian became Renault Group CEO in 2020, overseeing the Dacia and Alpine sub-brands as well as the broader alliance with Japanese automakers Nissan and Mitsubishi. Dacia vehicles – which are cheaper than equivalent Renaults – are set to be offered in Australia by local Renault importer Ateco Automotive, although they will be badged as Renaults. Meanwhile, Alpine will make a comeback to Australia after a brief absence with the Alpine A390 electric SUV in 2026. Mr De Meo brought stability to Renault leadership after replacing Thierry Bollore, who was in the role only 12 months before being dismissed for reasons that weren't made public. Mr Bollore had been outspoken about his predecessor Carlos Ghosn, who was infamously smuggled out of Japan after he was arrested and accused of misleading investors and misusing company assets for personal gain, before he escaped to Lebanon which has no extradition treaty with Japan. During his tenure, Mr De Meo strengthened Renault's portfolio and focussed on hybrid models, leaving the brand in a healthier position than when he took over the top job, and being praised by some as Renault's 'saviour'. The admiration followed his moves to somewhat insulate the automaker from the threat of Chinese electric vehicles and significant US import tariffs. While the Renault brand does not sell cars in the US, North America is a key market for its Mitsubishi and Nissan partners, with Nissan operating three factories in the US. His move may also impact the Alpine brand that has Formula 1 and World Endurance Championship campaigns, which he was heavily engaged with. Renault is represented by the Sydney-based Ateco group in Australia, where the Renault Trafic and Master commercial vans are its best-sellers. The aged Koleos mid-size SUV is its most popular passenger vehicle year-to-date. Mr De Meo's replacement is yet to be announced, following a resignation that seemingly caught the company off guard. MORE: Everything Renault Content originally sourced from: Renault Group CEO Luca De Meo, who has been credited with putting the French automaker back on its feet, has quit after five years in the top job, with a successor yet to be announced. The automaker confirmed the news in an official statement after news reports from French news outlet Le Figaro leaked the Italian's departure from the company. "Luca de Meo has announced his decision to step down and pursue new challenges outside the automotive sector," the company said in a statement. Hundreds of new car deals are available through CarExpert right now. Get the experts on your side and score a great deal. Browse now. "The Board of Directors … expressed their gratitude to Luca de Meo for the turnaround and transformation of Renault Group and accepted that his departure would be effective from July 15, 2025. Luca de Meo will continue to perform his duties until that date." According to Le Figaro, Mr De Meo – who has worked in the automotive industry for decades in roles at both Fiat and the Volkswagen Group – will become the CEO of luxury brand Kering, owner of Gucci. The move follows recent leadership changes at other automakers including Renault-owned Nissan, Volvo and Stellantis, which owns several brands including Renault rivals Citroen – which is no longer sold in Australia – and Peugeot. The 58-year-old Italian became Renault Group CEO in 2020, overseeing the Dacia and Alpine sub-brands as well as the broader alliance with Japanese automakers Nissan and Mitsubishi. Dacia vehicles – which are cheaper than equivalent Renaults – are set to be offered in Australia by local Renault importer Ateco Automotive, although they will be badged as Renaults. Meanwhile, Alpine will make a comeback to Australia after a brief absence with the Alpine A390 electric SUV in 2026. Mr De Meo brought stability to Renault leadership after replacing Thierry Bollore, who was in the role only 12 months before being dismissed for reasons that weren't made public. Mr Bollore had been outspoken about his predecessor Carlos Ghosn, who was infamously smuggled out of Japan after he was arrested and accused of misleading investors and misusing company assets for personal gain, before he escaped to Lebanon which has no extradition treaty with Japan. During his tenure, Mr De Meo strengthened Renault's portfolio and focussed on hybrid models, leaving the brand in a healthier position than when he took over the top job, and being praised by some as Renault's 'saviour'. The admiration followed his moves to somewhat insulate the automaker from the threat of Chinese electric vehicles and significant US import tariffs. While the Renault brand does not sell cars in the US, North America is a key market for its Mitsubishi and Nissan partners, with Nissan operating three factories in the US. His move may also impact the Alpine brand that has Formula 1 and World Endurance Championship campaigns, which he was heavily engaged with. Renault is represented by the Sydney-based Ateco group in Australia, where the Renault Trafic and Master commercial vans are its best-sellers. The aged Koleos mid-size SUV is its most popular passenger vehicle year-to-date. Mr De Meo's replacement is yet to be announced, following a resignation that seemingly caught the company off guard. MORE: Everything Renault Content originally sourced from: Renault Group CEO Luca De Meo, who has been credited with putting the French automaker back on its feet, has quit after five years in the top job, with a successor yet to be announced. The automaker confirmed the news in an official statement after news reports from French news outlet Le Figaro leaked the Italian's departure from the company. "Luca de Meo has announced his decision to step down and pursue new challenges outside the automotive sector," the company said in a statement. Hundreds of new car deals are available through CarExpert right now. Get the experts on your side and score a great deal. Browse now. "The Board of Directors … expressed their gratitude to Luca de Meo for the turnaround and transformation of Renault Group and accepted that his departure would be effective from July 15, 2025. Luca de Meo will continue to perform his duties until that date." According to Le Figaro, Mr De Meo – who has worked in the automotive industry for decades in roles at both Fiat and the Volkswagen Group – will become the CEO of luxury brand Kering, owner of Gucci. The move follows recent leadership changes at other automakers including Renault-owned Nissan, Volvo and Stellantis, which owns several brands including Renault rivals Citroen – which is no longer sold in Australia – and Peugeot. The 58-year-old Italian became Renault Group CEO in 2020, overseeing the Dacia and Alpine sub-brands as well as the broader alliance with Japanese automakers Nissan and Mitsubishi. Dacia vehicles – which are cheaper than equivalent Renaults – are set to be offered in Australia by local Renault importer Ateco Automotive, although they will be badged as Renaults. Meanwhile, Alpine will make a comeback to Australia after a brief absence with the Alpine A390 electric SUV in 2026. Mr De Meo brought stability to Renault leadership after replacing Thierry Bollore, who was in the role only 12 months before being dismissed for reasons that weren't made public. Mr Bollore had been outspoken about his predecessor Carlos Ghosn, who was infamously smuggled out of Japan after he was arrested and accused of misleading investors and misusing company assets for personal gain, before he escaped to Lebanon which has no extradition treaty with Japan. During his tenure, Mr De Meo strengthened Renault's portfolio and focussed on hybrid models, leaving the brand in a healthier position than when he took over the top job, and being praised by some as Renault's 'saviour'. The admiration followed his moves to somewhat insulate the automaker from the threat of Chinese electric vehicles and significant US import tariffs. While the Renault brand does not sell cars in the US, North America is a key market for its Mitsubishi and Nissan partners, with Nissan operating three factories in the US. His move may also impact the Alpine brand that has Formula 1 and World Endurance Championship campaigns, which he was heavily engaged with. Renault is represented by the Sydney-based Ateco group in Australia, where the Renault Trafic and Master commercial vans are its best-sellers. The aged Koleos mid-size SUV is its most popular passenger vehicle year-to-date. Mr De Meo's replacement is yet to be announced, following a resignation that seemingly caught the company off guard. MORE: Everything Renault Content originally sourced from:


Perth Now
5 days ago
- Perth Now
Global Renault boss quits for role at Gucci
Renault Group CEO Luca De Meo, who has been credited with putting the French automaker back on its feet, has quit after five years in the top job, with a successor yet to be announced. The automaker confirmed the news in an official statement after news reports from French news outlet Le Figaro leaked the Italian's departure from the company. 'Luca de Meo has announced his decision to step down and pursue new challenges outside the automotive sector,' the company said in a statement. Hundreds of new car deals are available through CarExpert right now. Get the experts on your side and score a great deal. Browse now. Supplied Credit: CarExpert 'The Board of Directors … expressed their gratitude to Luca de Meo for the turnaround and transformation of Renault Group and accepted that his departure would be effective from July 15, 2025. Luca de Meo will continue to perform his duties until that date.' According to Le Figaro, Mr De Meo – who has worked in the automotive industry for decades in roles at both Fiat and the Volkswagen Group – will become the CEO of luxury brand Kering, owner of Gucci. The move follows recent leadership changes at other automakers including Renault-owned Nissan, Volvo and Stellantis, which owns several brands including Renault rivals Citroen – which is no longer sold in Australia – and Peugeot. The 58-year-old Italian became Renault Group CEO in 2020, overseeing the Dacia and Alpine sub-brands as well as the broader alliance with Japanese automakers Nissan and Mitsubishi. Supplied Credit: CarExpert Dacia vehicles – which are cheaper than equivalent Renaults – are set to be offered in Australia by local Renault importer Ateco Automotive, although they will be badged as Renaults. Meanwhile, Alpine will make a comeback to Australia after a brief absence with the Alpine A390 electric SUV in 2026. Mr De Meo brought stability to Renault leadership after replacing Thierry Bollore, who was in the role only 12 months before being dismissed for reasons that weren't made public. Mr Bollore had been outspoken about his predecessor Carlos Ghosn, who was infamously smuggled out of Japan after he was arrested and accused of misleading investors and misusing company assets for personal gain, before he escaped to Lebanon which has no extradition treaty with Japan. Supplied Credit: CarExpert During his tenure, Mr De Meo strengthened Renault's portfolio and focussed on hybrid models, leaving the brand in a healthier position than when he took over the top job, and being praised by some as Renault's 'saviour'. The admiration followed his moves to somewhat insulate the automaker from the threat of Chinese electric vehicles and significant US import tariffs. While the Renault brand does not sell cars in the US, North America is a key market for its Mitsubishi and Nissan partners, with Nissan operating three factories in the US. His move may also impact the Alpine brand that has Formula 1 and World Endurance Championship campaigns, which he was heavily engaged with. Supplied Credit: CarExpert Renault is represented by the Sydney-based Ateco group in Australia, where the Renault Trafic and Master commercial vans are its best-sellers. The aged Koleos mid-size SUV is its most popular passenger vehicle year-to-date. Mr De Meo's replacement is yet to be announced, following a resignation that seemingly caught the company off guard. 'The Board of Directors has expressed its confidence in the quality and experience of the management team to continue and accelerate Renault Group's transformation strategy into this new phase,' it said in a statement. MORE: Everything Renault