Nissan’s draconian plan to reduce costs is about to claim even more victims. Two design studios will close, with the axe set to fall on NDA (Nissan Design America) in San Diego, California, and NDLA (Nissan Design Latin America) in São Paulo, Brazil. As if that weren’t bad enough, the company also intends to downsize creative work in the UK and Japan.
Going forward, the Atsugi facility in Japan will serve as the lead design studio for global markets. Studio Six in Los Angeles will evolve into the primary U.S.-centric hub for Nissan and Infiniti models. The London studio will continue to support the Africa, Middle East, India, Europe, and Oceania (AMIEO) region while collaborating with alliance partner Renault.
Elsewhere, the Shanghai studio will remain the design hub for Chinese-market vehicles. The Creative Box in Tokyo will stay responsible for “experiential projects in brand and lifestyle design.” Although the number of layoffs isn’t specified, CEO Ivan Espinosa says the cuts are part of a massive headcount reduction that will trim the workforce by 20,000 people.
Nissan says streamlining its design studio footprint into “five agile hubs” will be completed by the end of March 2026. In addition to saving an unspecified amount of money, the Japanese automaker claims the move will pave the way for “faster decision-making, deeper creative collaboration, and more agile responses to market shifts.”
