Why Cadillac is moving to New York City
Cadillac is making some major changes: it will no longer call Detroit home, instead moving to New York City and becoming its own business unit. With the move to the Big Apple, Cadillac hopes to reclaim its place as a pre-eminent luxury brand.
The Cadillac logo on the 2015 ATS coupe during its debut at media previews during the North American International Auto Show in Detroit. The Cadillac luxury brand will move its headquarters to New York in 2015, Johann de Nysschen, the brand’s new president, said in a statement issued Tuesday, Sept. 23, 2014.
Paul Sancya/AP/File
With its new CEO Johan De Nysschen at the helm, Cadillac is making some major changes: it will no longer call Detroit home, instead moving to New York and becoming its own business unit.
The new offices in New York will be Cadillac’s global headquarters, to open in 2015.
“We are very proud of our Detroit roots and heritage, and the majority of the Cadillac workforce will remain in Michigan," said de Nysschen. "But there is no city in the world where the inhabitants are more immersed in a premium lifestyle than in New York. Establishing our new global headquarters in Soho places Cadillac at the epicenter of sophisticated living. It allows our team to share experiences with premium-brand consumers and develop attitudes in common with our audience."
The move comes as part of an effort to help further distinguish Cadillac from the rest of General Motors and build its luxury brand status into new territory—a move that will be carried forward in the near future by new products, including a successor to the ELR and an all-new flagship sedan.
“Cadillac’s mission is to reinstate the brand to a pre-eminent position among global luxury brands, a bold challenge requiring a distinct and focused new organization,” said GM president Dan Ammann. "More than a division or brand, Cadillac is becoming a center of excellence for our company.”
Among the new models GM is thought to be planning over the coming years are a redesigned SRX crossover, the new full-sized sedan, an all-new car for the 2017 model year that will offer Super Cruise semi-autonomous driving, a pair of new luxury crossovers, and two new coupe or convertible models to expand Cadillac’s definitions of luxury and sport.
When Cadillac’s new headquarters open in New York City in 2015, they will host the majority of the business side of the operations, while product development, manufacturing, and assembly will continue to happen in Michigan. The space will include brand and event venues as well as “modern loft offices” in Soho.