Renault Chief Executive Luca de Meo plans to step down in mid-July and pursue new challenges outside the automotive industry, with French newspaper Le Figaro reporting he is set to become the new boss of Gucci-owner Kering.

The Gucci owner is banking on an automotive turnaround specialist to fix its luxury brands. Francois-Henri Pinault, the billionaire heir who has headed up the French fashion house Kering Group for the past 20 years,

Luca de Meo, a seasoned executive with more than three decades of experience in the automotive industry, is set to take the helm at Kering, the French multinational group renowned for its portfolio of luxury brands.