New President for Kia Motors Europe

Kia has announced the appointment of Mr Byung-Tae (Brandon) Yea to the position of President of Kia Motors Europe with immediate effect.

Mr Yea brings a wealth of diverse executive experience to Kia’s European operations having worked in the automotive industry for almost 30 years.

Mr Yea spent his early years at Hyundai Motors Corporation and later Hyundai Motors America. He then joined Kia Motors Corporation in 1999 and has subsequently held a number of senior executive positions, with a special focus on the development of Marketing Strategy and Brand Management.

In October 2010, Mr Yea was appointed President of Kia in the Middle East and Africa region, based in Dubai, and has overseen significant growth in these markets over the past year.

The 53-year old Mr. Yea is married and has two children.

Mr Yea succeeds Mr Sun-Young Kim as President of Kia Motors Europe. Mr Kim, who made a major contribution over the last five years to Kia’s rapid business growth in Europe, is returning to Korea to take up a new position at the corporation’s headquarters.

Editors’ Notes

Kia Motors Europe
Kia Motors Europe is the European sales, marketing, and service arm of Kia Motors Corporation. With its headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany, it covers 25 markets in Europe.

About Kia Motors Corporation
Kia Motors Corporation (www.kia.com) – a maker of quality vehicles for the young-at-heart – was founded in 1944 and is Korea’s oldest manufacturer of motor vehicles. As part of the Hyundai-Kia Automotive Group, Kia aims to become one of the world’s premier automotive brands.
Over 2.1 million vehicles a year are produced at 13 manufacturing and assembly operations in eight countries. These vehicles are sold and serviced through a network of distributors and dealers covering 172 countries.
Kia today has more than 44,000 employees and annual revenues of almost US$20 billion. It is the major sponsor of the Australian Tennis Open and an official automotive partner of FIFA – the governing body of the FIFA World Cup.
Kia Motors Corporation’s brand slogan – ‘The Power to Surprise’ – represents the company’s global commitment to surpassing customer expectations through continuous automotive innovation.

Press Contact

Ilona Tzudnowski
PR Manager Europe
Tel.: +49 69 850 928 357
E-mail: i.tzudnowski@kia-europe.com

Kia Motors Europe GmbH
Theodor-Heuss-Allee 11
60486 Frankfurt, Germany