(October 17, 2025) Come January 1, 2026, Tarun Garg will take the wheel as the Managing Director and CEO of Hyundai Motor India Limited (HMIL), making history as the first Indian ever to lead the South Korean auto giant’s Indian operations in nearly three decades of its presence in the country. Garg’s appointment highlights Hyundai’s deepening roots in India, a market that has evolved from being a key subsidiary to a global innovation and export hub.
Garg will succeed Unsoo Kim, who returns to South Korea to assume a strategic position within Hyundai Motor Company. The leadership transition, observers say, hints towards Hyundai’s growing confidence in local leadership and India’s pivotal role in its global vision.
Tarun Garg has been serving as HMIL’s Chief Operating Officer since 2023. As José Muñoz, President & CEO of Hyundai Motor Company, stated in his announcement, “Under his guidance as COO, HMIL achieved record sales for three consecutive years, record-breaking profits, and completed India’s largest IPO in 2024. He is a people-first leader who understands that success happens when you treat customers like honoured guests, empower your teams, and invest for the long term.”
Tarun Garg with his predecesssor Unsoo Kim
Hyundai and its India connection at a glance
Founded in 1967 in Seoul, Hyundai Motor Company is a South Korean multinational automotive giant that ranks as the world’s third-largest carmaker selling vehicles across more than 193 countries. It runs six R&D centers worldwide including one in India. The company’s Indian subsidiary, HMIL, was established in 1996. At the time, Hyundai was relatively unknown in India, but the launch of the Hyundai Santro in 1998 changed that. The Santro became an instant success, making Hyundai Motor India Limited, India’s second- largest carmaker and one of the top automobile exporters in the country within a few years. Today, HMIL operates through a network of over 1,300 sales outlets and 1,500 service points across India, with a manufacturing facility near Chennai that produces a wide range of vehicles for both domestic and export markets.
From Maruti to Hyundai: A journey of persistence and precision
Tarun Garg’s journey has been one of steady ascension, interspersed with expertise and empathy. A mechanical engineer from Delhi College of Engineering with an MBA from IIM Lucknow, Garg began his automotive career at Maruti Suzuki, where he spent more than 25 years rising through the ranks to become Executive Director for Marketing.
In 2019, his career took a leap as he joined Hyundai Motor India as Head of Sales, Service, and Marketing. His entry came at a time when the auto industry was facing headwinds from policy transitions to global supply disruptions. Yet, Garg turned challenges into opportunities. His leadership helped strengthen Hyundai’s customer interface, streamline dealer operations, and modernize its sales strategy.
By 2023, he had earned his promotion to Chief Operating Officer, overseeing Hyundai’s vast operational landscape from sales and marketing to after-sales service, supply chain, and exports. Under his stewardship, Hyundai recorded its highest-ever domestic sales for three consecutive years, along with its strongest-ever Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization. (EBITDA) margin in FY24.
The IPO that changed India’s auto landscape
Perhaps Garg’s most defining moment came with the Hyundai Motor India IPO in 2024 which was the largest in Indian equity market history. The move not only unlocked immense value for the company but also solidified Hyundai’s commitment to India’s long-term economic journey. It positioned HMIL as a globally aligned yet locally rooted entity.
The listing came amid a wave of transformation within the company with new models, expanded production capacity, and aggressive digitalization. For Garg, the IPO was not just a financial milestone but a cultural one. “Now we are listed, fully Indian,” he reflected in a recent interview. “All pieces are coming together to really fuel the second phase of Hyundai Motor India’s growth.”
Digital transformation and customer-centricity
In a market where consumer experience increasingly defines success, Garg has been a pioneer in integrating technology with customer touchpoints. He spearheaded the development of MyHyundai, a digital ecosystem for consumers, and HSMART, an intelligent dealer network platform. These resulted in Hyundai achieving over 90 percent Net Promoter Score (NPS) across sales and service which is a significant benchmark in the Indian auto industry.
“Customer-centric growth has always been our mantra,” Garg observes. His belief that “success lies in treating customers as honoured guests” resonates throughout Hyundai’s operations from its showrooms to service bays.
Navigating GST 2.0: A leader’s perspective on policy and growth
In a recent interview, Garg shared thoughtful insights on the GST 2.0 reforms of India, describing them as a “landmark moment” for the industry and economy. “In the last 20 years, I’ve never seen this kind of price cut,” he said, referring to reductions of 8–9.5 percent for smaller cars and 3.5–6 percent for larger vehicles. “This will bring more first-time buyers into the fold. For the same price, customers can now buy a better, safer car, one with more features, connectivity, and technology.”
Garg’s optimism is based on data. India’s car penetration currently stands at just 34 vehicles per 1,000 people. He sees this as “a massive opportunity,” especially with the country’s median age at 29. “More affordability means more aspiration,” he added. “And that’s where Hyundai’s sweet spot lies in delivering both.”
Such optimism is characteristic of Garg who is data-driven yet instinctively attuned to consumer behaviour. His long experience at Maruti and Hyundai gives him a rare 360-degree understanding of the Indian auto market, one that spans entry-level hatchbacks to premium SUVs, and now, electric mobility.
Balancing domestic and export markets
Under Garg, Hyundai has pursued what he calls a “double-engine growth model.” While domestic sales have surged, exports have also been accelerating. Between April and August, Hyundai’s exports grew by 12.5 percent, with their contribution to overall revenue rising from 22 percent to nearly 27 percent.
“Exports were doing well anyway,” Garg explained. “But now we’ve really pushed the accelerator. The Pune plant coming onstream at the right time adds further capacity of almost 1.7 lakh units taking us close to the one million mark by FY25–26.”
This capacity expansion aligns with Hyundai’s new product cycle, ensuring that the company remains nimble across the multiple powertrains of petrol, diesel, hybrid, and electric.
Electrifying the future
When it comes to electric vehicles (EVs), Garg is both pragmatic and optimistic. While he acknowledges the growing curiosity about affordable EVs, he insists on timing it right. “You will see a flurry of products from us,” he hinted in a recent interview. “But please wait. We will announce it at the right time. This is the right time to buy a car. Prices are down, the festival season is on, and we have great offers. Everything’s aligned for growth.”
Behind the scenes, Hyundai is building an entire EV ecosystem from localized battery pack manufacturing to charging infrastructure and hybrid technology integration. The roadmap, as Garg outlines, amalgamates innovation with realism.
Leadership philosophy – people, purpose, performance
Tarun Garg is viewed as a leader who combines strategic sharpness with emotional intelligence. His management style emphasizes teamwork, empowerment, and accountability. As President & CEO of Hyundai Motor Company Muñoz puts it, “He’s a people-first leader.” Indeed, Garg often highlights that by mentioning “teams grow when trust grows”, a principle reflected in Hyundai’s collaborative culture and long dealer partnerships.
Garg’s vision for Hyundai’s next chapter revolves around four key pillars of customer-centricity, innovation, sustainability, and local value creation. With India emerging as both a massive domestic market and a global export base, his leadership will focus on strengthening supply chains, expanding production, and investing in digital transformation.
The journey ahead
Tarun Garg’s elevation as MD and CEO of Hyundai Motor India marks a new era where local leadership meets global ambition. His rise encapsulates the evolution of India’s automotive industry itself from being an assembly market to a center of innovation, exports, and global influence. In Garg’s own words, “All pieces are coming together across segments, powertrains, capacities, and models. This is the time to accelerate into Hyundai’s second phase of growth in India.”
As Hyundai prepares to enter 2026 with an Indian at its helm for the first time, India is not just driving the South Korean auto giant’s growth but is helping steer its future.
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