Charles Morgan leaves Morgan

Charles Morgan is no longer a part of the Morgan Motor Company’s management team or board of directors, a press release from the Morgan Technologies arm of the British sports car maker has confirmed.

As things now stand, this essentially means that after 103 years, the family that started the firm is no longer involved in running the company.

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Charles Morgan is the grandson of Morgan Motor Company founder, HFS Morgan, and joined what has always been a family business in 1985. He worked alongside his father, Peter Morgan, until the latter retired in 1999; Charles took over as chairman in 2003.

Since then, the Morgan Motor Company has seen record growth, re-introduced the classic 3 Wheeler model to huge critical acclaim, and shifted towards more modern chassis construction techniques.

However, in March 2013, Charles Morgan was replaced as managing director by Steve Morris, who explained that his predecessor would stay on as an ambassador for the brand – something he seems to have taken up with relish.

In harmony with the changing nature of the firm, Charles Morgan is well known for being active on social media, most notably Twitter, where he can be found under the username @charlesmorganuk.

So it is interesting to note that he is currently retweeting large numbers of what can only be described as messages of condolence in the aftermath of the announcement.

A typical example of this would be @SimonSRichards, who asks, “How can Morgan be Morgan without a Morgan? Good luck Charles! What a sad day.”

Or @timbent, who says, “Extraordinary to think that Morgan would even let you [Charles Morgan] step down. Good luck in your future plans.”

The official release from Morgan TEchnologies cites the “growth in volumes, model range and overseas markets” as the reason for the change, adding that, “the management team has been strengthened across a number of different areas, reflecting the scale and complexity of an increasingly global business.”

Morgan himself would appear to take a different view, with one of his most recent tweets quoting Kenyan politician Mwai Kibaki, who famously said: “Leadership is a privilege to better the lives of others. It is not an opportunity to satisfy personal greed.”

UPDATE: Automotive News Europe has managed to speak to Charles Morgan, who has said “I am appealing the decision” – though neither he nor the company are prepared to discuss the details of his removal from the management team in public.

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By motoringresearch.com