How Did Hyundai Get So Cool?
Korean carmaker known for budget brands becomes EV innovator; sets sights on Tesla
6 min
Hyundai Motor was dreaming up an answer to Tesla when the company’s top executive sent its lead designer a photo of a bizarre-looking car that last rolled off assembly lines more than 70 years ago.
The Stout Scarab, manufactured in Michigan in the 1930s and 1940s, looked like an outlandish cross between a bus and a pontoon.
“Let’s face it, 10 years ago, our design strategy was all about the fast follower,” said SangYup Lee, the Hyundai designer. He said Euisun Chung, executive chair of Hyundai and its affiliate Kia, who sent the photo, wanted to stop imitating and get ahead of rivals.
“The message was: Inspiration can come from anywhere,” said Lee.
The Hyundai electric car that drew inspiration from the Scarab’s eye-catching streamline design, the Ioniq 6, has been a hit with critics. At the New York auto show in April, it was voted World Car of the Year.
Hyundai and Kia, the sibling Korean carmakers, have long had a reputation for making inexpensive, uninspiring cars. Over the past few years, though, they have become one of the leaders in the electric-vehicle race, with models that are turning heads at rival car companies—and among car buyers.
Asked last year about competition in the EV sector, Ford Motor Chief Executive Jim Farley said: “The ones I’m paying the most attention to are Hyundai/Kia, the Chinese and Tesla. That’s my list.”
Behind the push has been Chung, 52 years old, who has pressed for investment in EVs and moonshot technologies such as flying cars and robots. In 2020, he took control of the Hyundai Motor Group,one of Korea’s largest family-run conglomerates, from his father, Chung Mong-Koo.
Last year, Hyundai became the world’s third-largest automaking group, with 6.85 million vehicles sold, behind only Toyota Motor and Volkswagen. Now, the company, currently the third-largest seller of EVs in the U.S., is setting its sights on Tesla.
Tesla’s enormous success with its Model 3 showed the industry that the EV market was much bigger than many people thought, spurring Hyundai and Kia to move faster, said Michael O’Brien, a former vice president at Hyundai. “Hyundai leadership realises that the EV market is a jump ball,” he said.
Chung, whose grandfather founded the business 76 years ago, has told employees repeatedly that the company needs to be more forward-leaning. “We will not fear risks and only be reactive,” he told workers in January.
Hyundai and Kia have gone on a hiring spree, luring high-profile designers from other carmakers, including from German luxury brands. Their aim is to make their vehicles look and feel more luxurious.
Ford’s Farley lauded Hyundai’s Ioniq 5, which came out 2021, noting that some software features were better than Ford’s own. “That company has really found their stride with electric vehicles,” he said.
Tesla’s Elon Musk said last summer in a tweet about the EV market: “Hyundai is doing pretty good.”
Hyundai and Kia are a part of a conglomerate that also owns steel mills, shipyards and construction firms. It is largely controlled by Chung’s family through their shareholdings in the motor company and other affiliates.
The company got started in the auto business in 1967, when the country was still recovering from the Korean War, at first doing contract work for Ford. Its first in-house vehicles, the Pony and Excel, were inexpensive and so prone to quality problems that they became fodder for comedians on late-night TV.
Kia began in 1944 as a manufacturer of metal parts and bicycles, and a decade later, licensed versions of Honda motorcycles and Mazda trucks and cars. After it declared bankruptcy in 1997, Hyundai purchased a controlling stake. It now owns nearly 34%.
Hyundai entered the U.S. car market in 1986, followed by Kia in 1993. Both were budget brands. When Chung’s father took over in 1996, he made solving quality woes a priority, overhauling manufacturing operations.
Decisions were made mostly by executives in Seoul, far from the U.S. market that was driving the bulk of profits, former executives said. “Hyundai was always known in Korea as the most conservative and the most militarylike,” said Frank Ahrens, Hyundai’s former head of communications. He likened directives from the chairman to imperial decrees. “If you want a pyramid, that’s a way to do it—get a whole bunch of people pushing in the right direction,” he said.
Both Hyundai and Kia were slow to react to the SUV boom in the U.S., despite pleas from stateside executives, the former executives said. For years, they didn’t do much to expand their U.S. factories, leaving them struggling to build enough vehicles when demand surged for popular models such as the Hyundai Santa Fe and Tucson.
Another embarrassment was a surge in auto thefts following a social-media challenge that targeted certain Hyundai and Kia models as easy to steal. Several states and insurers have sued the companies over the thefts. On Thursday, Hyundai and Kia agreed to pay up to $200 million to owners of stolen cars to settle a class-action lawsuit.
When the Korean leadership takes notice, though, decisions are fast-tracked and change can come swiftly, former executives said. “They’ll throw a new engine in whenever the engine is ready,” said JP Garvey, a Hyundai and Kia dealer in New York. “They constantly make tiny incremental changes, and they don’t stop.”
At the New York auto show in April, Hyundai’s luxury brand, Genesis, showed off a sportier version of its new GV80 SUV. The vehicle was a concept car—not one Genesis intended to make.
It was such a hit that the bosses in Korea decided that night to put it into production, said José Muñoz, Hyundai’s president and chief operating officer, whom Chung hired from Nissan Motor in 2019. “There are no arguments,” Muñoz said. “Once the decision is made, execution is very fast.”
Chung has installed overseas executives in key management positions. He hired designer Peter Schreyer from Volkswagen, where he had helped redesign the iconic Beetle, then promoted him to president, the first non-Korean to reach that level in Hyundai’s history.
“The chairman wanted something new, and the focus was on good styling,” said Ray Ng, a former Kia designer who worked closely with Schreyer.
Chung’s biggest push has been with EVs, a sector Hyundai and Kia entered in 2010 when Hyundai released the Blueon in Korea. Kia followed with the Ray EV in 2011. A second model, an electric Kia Soul, went on sale in the U.S., Europe and South Korea in 2014, two years before General Motors released its rival Chevy Bolt.
The EV market presents unique challenges. Nearly all Hyundai and Kia EVs are built outside the U.S. Recent revisions to the $7,500 federal tax credit in the U.S. for EV purchases have made foreign-built EVs ineligible for the subsidy. Sales in the U.S. of Hyundai and Kia EVs have been declining since the tax revisions.
A new $5.5 billion factory complex is in the works for both Hyundai and Kia to build EVs in Georgia, but it won’t open until the end of next year, at the earliest.
Tesla’s success with the Model 3, which came to market in 2017, opened eyes at Hyundai, said O’Brien, the former vice president. “Everyone saw they went from a niche player to a core player in one model,” he said. “People in Korea, and Hyundai, saw Tesla as a tech company rather than a car company. Rather than focusing on four wheels, oil and brakes, they were focused on technology, and that was very appealing in Korea.”
While other automakers dithered about whether the batteries were too expensive and short on range, Chung was undeterred, O’Brien said.
After Chung became executive chairman in 2020, Hyundai and Kia announced plans to introduce 31 battery-powered models. The companies aim to become the third-largest seller of EVs globally by 2030. Tesla and China’s BYD are the current global leaders.
That the Hyundai Ioniq 6 took inspiration from the Stout Scarab is one example of how the company is leaning on design to set it apart from rivals. Lee, the designer, said the streamlined shape recalls the period in the 1930s and 1940s when car design borrowed from the aerospace industry.
The design has the added benefit of tacking on miles to the car’s range, giving it one of the lowest drag coefficients in the industry—a measure of how aerodynamic a shape is.
When interest in EVs surged during the pandemic, Hyundai and Kia were among the few car companies that had a selection of electric and hybrid models on dealership lots. On top of that, the companies had stockpiled semiconductors, allowing them to avoid the worst of the supply-chain related shutdowns in recent years, giving them more stock to sell, dealers said.
Hyundai and Kia have said that most of their EV customers are coming to the brand for the first time. They also tend to be wealthier than customers of the companies’ other models. Last year, the biggest cohort of Hyundai Ioniq 5 and Kia EV6 buyers earned more than $250,000 a year, compared with between $50,000 and $75,000 for all models, according to data from S&P Global Mobility.
Andrew Mancall, a doctor from Portland, Maine, is among the Hyundai converts. A former Audi owner, he wanted to buy an EV for his next car and put himself on a number of waiting lists, including for the Ford Mustang Mach-E.
When his number came up for the Mach-E, he passed on it and bought the Hyundai Ioniq 5. He said he was sold on the driving dynamics and what he described as better technology than on the Ford. After a nine-month wait, he took delivery of his Hyundai.
“Am I a Hyundai person? A couple years ago, I probably would have said no,” he said. “I guess the answer now is, yes.”
—Mike Colias contributed to this article.
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From early financial mistakes to hard-earned habits, five high-performing leaders share how they spend, invest and think about wealth.
9 min
Five minutes doesn’t sound like much. But it’s enough time to tell whether someone really understands money or just talks about it. Because once the gloss is stripped away, what’s left is instinct. The early mistakes. The bad calls. The quiet pivots that no one brags about but shape everything that follows. Making money is one thing. Living with it, and not mishandling it, is another. Here, five executives talk about what they got wrong, what they’ve learned, and how they now actually spend, invest and think about wealth.
Andrew Raso: Founder, Online Marketing Gurus
Self-made millionaire Andrew Raso grew up in an ethnic household with a father in construction. Investing was not a priority, he recalls.
The co-founder and CEO of Online Marketing Gurus, a digital marketing platform that generated more than $30 million in revenue in the 204/25 financial year, admits he’s had to learn about handling money as his wealth has grown.
“If I had my time again, I would change my spending habits and would probably be a lot more wealthy as a result,” the Sydneysider tells Kanebridge Quarterly.
Raso, in his mid-30s, says that his biggest lessons have come from his losses.
Buying the wrong property and copping the losses upon sale. Feeling FOMO when buying crypto and making a purchase that lost money.
“I’ve learned a lot from the errors that I’ve made,” he says.
Raso admits that he gets more of a thrill out of working than watching money hit his bank account.
“I’ve had the cars, I’ve had the property, I’ve had the watches. Once you’ve had them, they’re not that exciting, but the process of earning money is pretty cool.”
What he won’t forget is being $45 million in property debt a few years ago.
“I’d never want to be in that position again,” he says.
“My investing strategy is a lot safer these days. I’m very cautious. I’d prefer to invest in things that don’t take as long to be realised so my family can be financially secure.
“Once you have a house paid off and a few investments, it then becomes about enjoying your money, rather than hoarding it. Giving back gives me a much bigger kick than spending these days.”
Daniel Wessels: CEO, Jacaranda Finance
Fintech founder Daniel Wessels knows only too well that money remains a taboo topic in Australia with many people.
He points to consumer surveys that reveal people are more likely to talk about their sex life with friends than their finances.
It’s a major concern for the man who founded Jacaranda Finance in 2013, which has helped countless people lift their credit scores and get their finances back on track.
“If people aren’t learning money habits at school and they aren’t discussing it with their friends, learning new strategies and better habits is difficult,” says Wessels, who is based in Brisbane.
He wants to see more people take the time to proactively understand where and why they are spending money.
“Everyone needs to have a financial strategy and a plan to measure if it’s working,” he says.
The father of two young children admits his week can be pretty fast-paced. Pomodoro clocks, sleep optimisation techniques and saying ‘no’ keep him on task during the week.
“I used to think I was fairly decent at managing time, but the whole game changed when we had kids,” he says.
“Now, I’ve got to get out of the house at a certain time and leave the office at a certain time for daycare pickup. I’ve got to be really specific about my tasks to maximise my week.”
Before he had a family, he loved heading out to one of the trendy new restaurants popping up in Brisbane.
But that happens less these days. He’s saving to build his forever home but admits that price rises have resulted in rising costs.
“It’s such a big project with so many variables that change quickly,” he says.
These days, Wessels likes to optimise his professional and personal life. “With only a finite amount of money, time and energy, you’ve got to be really good at deciding what you want to be good at,” he says.
He calls this ruthless prioritisation. He has a very specific focus on activities that prioritise health and wealth, adding experiences into the mix more recently. This has meant the addition of micro-holidays to his annual calendar.
Wessels works with a couple of financial advisers. That said, he also does his own due diligence before agreeing to investments.
“One likes private equity investments that pay cash every month and another prefers to focus on the NASDAQ Stock Exchange for buying shares because he’s bullish about that.” he says. “They’re each experts and really good at what they do.”
Jim Penman: CEO, Jim’s Group
He may have invested a lifetime building a franchise juggernaut that is reportedly a $1 billion a year empire, but Jim Penman insists he’s a frugal guy who prefers to spend time planting a tree in his garden than contemplating his wealth.
What started out as Jim’s Mowing back in 1989 became Jim’s Group. Today, there are 5,700 franchisees across Australia and New Zealand in the business that has become ubiquitous for being the local handyman company that households could rely on.
He may have built a successful business empire, but the Melburnian insists he’s stingy when it comes to money.
“I wear my clothes even today until they wear out. I’ve always had a very lean and mean attitude. I live a simple life. My personal needs are very modest and my finances are simple,” he says. Jim reveals he’s usually in his garden these days and rarely eats out or takes holidays.
He is also running for state politics in the November Victorian election.
“I’m not particularly money focused. I could tweak the franchise contract to put more fees in and double my profitability, but that’s not my goal or my aim. To be honest, I often make decisions that go against my financial self-interest,” he says.
Jim purchased his first brand new car three years ago, opting for an electric Volvo.
“Being rich is not my aim and it never has been. People think I’m a lot richer than I am. They think I’m a billionaire, which is kind of ridiculous,” he says.
In fact, he insists he carries debt, which is common for anyone in business. “If I wanted, I could pay it off in 18 months.”
While his competitors were spending on fancy office space, Penman was running his franchise from his basement, keeping business costs low. “When I started out, I didn’t have any concept of how big this business could be. But there has never been a plan to grow franchisee numbers.
“Our attrition rate is far more important, and how to reduce complaint rates and drive more enquiries through new software.”
He believes people these days worry too much about impressing others, which leads to spending on superficial things.
“I would rather than offer people advice on how to be happy, rather than how to become rich. It’s important to have a good income so you can support yourself. But life is more about purpose.”
Jim doesn’t bother with stocks or bonds. He only invests in his own business. “My rate of return on my business is substantial. I could buy back a regional franchise when they come on the market and get a 20-25 per cent annual rate of return, plus capital gains. There’s nothing like that available in the investment space.”
Nicola Beswick: Founder, White Rabbit Advisory
Rabbit Advisory founder.
A clothing allowance provided by her parents and then a part-time job during high school was the first taste of financial freedom for Nicola Beswick.
She quickly became a spender rather than saver, but she’s changed her tune over the years.
The founder of financial advice firm White Rabbit Advisory left behind a successful career in intellectual property law a year ago to become a financial adviser because she realised the potential that financial education could have on someone’s life.
Her journey began after coming across the book Rich Dad Poor Dad some years ago, which opened her eyes to the power that money could have on her life. This marked a time when she became serious about her finances.
“Financial education and investing over time can have a huge impact on a person, and that book got me thinking about money and financial education in the first place,” she says.
Nicola says years ago, her father was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. When dealing with the devastating news and an uncertain future, her father discovered he was eligible to receive an income protection payout.
“This was the stone that rippled his pond and mine. A new complex world of finance opened up and I discovered my calling – helping people plan for a financially secure future.”
She hasn’t looked back. “Commercial law was very transactional. I don’t regret quitting at all. I’m much happier now helping people get their finances in order. Financial planning helps people change their lives. That was a really big driver for me.”
The Melburnian admits she’s learned plenty of lessons along the way as she embarks on the process of building wealth. She uses superannuation as an investment vehicle, favouring its tax advantages.
“I also built a nest egg outside of super, because you never know when the rules will change,” she says.
She prefers to set a financial goal and save up for something specific over time than rush out and make a purchase.
“It’s a really powerful thing to wait before making a purchase,” she says.
Her current financial goals involve renovating her heritage-listed home. “We will keep the façade and gut it to rebuild. That’s a major expense for us on the horizon.”
While holidays are rare, she will spend on overseas trips on occasion. “I’m terrible at taking time off. I’m always working.”
Sam Riley: CEO, Drova
Sam Riley was in his 20s when he set out to amass enough money to be able to retire by the age of 40 if he wanted to.
“The goal was always to be doing something by 40 that kept me engaged enough that I didn’t actually want to retire because I was happy,” he says.
An entrepreneur at heart, Sam started a juice and espresso bar when he was 21, which didn’t work out. His next venture was a technology business, Ansarada, an ASX-listed company he ultimately sold nearly two years ago for $250 million.
The sale set him up for life, but he’s not one to rest on his laurels, launching into the complex world of artificial ntelligence with his next technology play, a company called Drova.
The technology startup simplifies risk, compliance and resilience for small businesses. Sam believes it’s got potential to become a tech juggernaut in time.
Having early financial success has meant he has the luxury of slow mornings and working in short bursts throughout the day, problem solving, experimenting with what works and figuring out how to harness AI.
“I favour a more sustainable approach to working these days. More frequent breaks. Making sure not to deteriorate my capacity,” he says.
It was a hard slog. He admits he touched the fringes of serious burnout when he was younger, which he works hard to avoid these days.
“Every business venture has exposed a gap in my skills that I’ve worked to close. Whether that’s marketing or managing people, closing those gaps along the way is how you get more effective at generating wealth,” he says.
The secret to his success has been finding ways to bolster value in the corporate world, finding ways to bring more to the table. Sam admits he spends too much money on travel, food and niche vinyl audio equipment, like turntables. He prefers to invest in experiences rather than things.
But it can get expensive. Like a recent trip to Antarctica to stay in a lodge for a week. “The thing is I didn’t like having these experiences on my own, so I have to bring family or other people and then pay for them.”
Sam describes his investment portfolio as balanced. While he continues to invest in entrepreneurial ventures, he admits he has a safe foundational platform to his investment approach.
“Over the years, I’ve added a lot more dividend stocks and protective assets like gold and silver, and some index funds.
“When I was younger, I didn’t appreciate the value of being safe and boring in the investment world.”
He says a lot of his investments used to be leading edge and visionary. “Some of them work, and some of them don’t. I didn’t really have much balance in my portfolio. I still invest in entrepreneurial things, but am much more conscious of taking a more even-handed approach,” he says.
his article appeared in the Winter 26 issue of Kanebridge Quarterly, which you can buy here.
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