Brands
TVS revs up global design with Italian CoE launch
MUMBAI: Talk about shifting gears. TVS Motor Company has hit the accelerator on global innovation, unveiling its new Global Centre of Excellence (CoE) for Design and Engineering in Bologna, Italy. The move comes with the full acquisition of Engines Engineering S.p.A., the Italian powerhouse behind high-performance motorcycles and Motogp prototypes.
“This Centre marks a milestone in reimagining mobility,” said TVS Motor Company chairman Sudarshan Venu. “By blending Engines Engineering’s racing expertise with our global design and engineering capabilities, we aim to deliver premium, connected, and electric vehicles that set new benchmarks.”
The Italian CoE will act as a concept-to-product innovation hub, integrating world-class engineering teams to speed up product development, enhance design flexibility, and expand TVS Motor’s premium portfolio. It also strengthens Norton Motorcycles, supporting its ambition to craft modern luxury motorcycles that honour its iconic legacy while pushing the boundaries of performance.
Key focus areas include digital simulation, rapid prototyping, modular platform development, AI-driven design tools, advanced materials, and global collaboration with universities, startups, and suppliers. The initiative promises faster development cycles and a pipeline of next-generation scooters, high-displacement bikes, and electric mobility platforms.
With this move, TVS Motor is not just racing ahead in design and engineering but is steering the global motorcycle industry into a future where innovation meets performance and sustainability.
Brands
Lululemon picks former Nike executive to be its next chief
Heidi O’Neill, who helped grow Nike into a $45 billion giant, will take the top job in September
CANADA: Lululemon has found its next chief executive, and she comes with serious credentials. The athleisure giant named Heidi O’Neill as its new CEO on Wednesday, ending a search that has left the company running on interim leadership since earlier this year. O’Neill will take charge on September 8, 2026, based out of Vancouver, and will join the board on the same day.
O’Neill brings more than three decades of experience across performance apparel, footwear and sport. The bulk of that time was spent at Nike, where she was a central figure in one of corporate sport’s great growth stories, helping take the company from a $9 billion business to a $45 billion global powerhouse. She oversaw product pipelines, brand strategy and consumer connections, and played a significant role in shaping how Nike spoke to athletes around the world. Earlier in her career, she worked in marketing for the Dockers brand at Levi Strauss. She also brings boardroom experience from Spotify Technology, Hyatt Hotels and Lithia and Driveway.
The board was unequivocal in its enthusiasm. “We selected Heidi because of the breadth of her experience, her demonstrated success delivering breakthrough ideas and initiatives at scale, and her ability to be a knowledgeable change and growth agent,” said Marti Morfitt, executive chair of Lululemon’s board.
O’Neill, for her part, was bullish. “Lululemon is an iconic brand with something rare: genuine guest love, a product ethos rooted in innovation, and a global platform still in the early stages of its potential,” she said. “My job will be to accelerate product breakthroughs, deepen the brand’s cultural relevance, and unlock growth in markets around the world.”
Until she arrives, Meghan Frank and André Maestrini will continue as interim co-CEOs, before returning to their previous senior leadership roles once O’Neill steps in.
Lululemon is betting that a Nike veteran who helped build one of the world’s most powerful sports brands can do something similar for an athleisure label that has genuine love from its customers but is still chasing its full global potential. O’Neill has done it before at scale. The question now is whether she can do it again.
