The automotive design world is undergoing huge universal change with new ways to reshape the exterior and interior of cars. CMF teams sit at the heart of these changes.

To dig into this increasingly significant field of design, we recently gathered experts from Ultrafabrics, Lotus and Lucid to discuss themes such as customer education, the relationship with engineering departments, how location can impact colour palette, and of course, sustainability. But as we learned, there is no single approach to CMF, with strategies varying by OEM customer, region and end user. One thing is clear: the shift to EV does present an opportunity to shake things up and, crucially, push the boundaries.

Speaking during the livestream held on 27 April 2023, the panellists began by addressing the ‘C’ in that acronym. It is difficult to generalise how colour trends are changing within the automotive space as it is influenced by so many different factors – price range, brand story, expectations around durability or premium feel – and it is even harder to settle on a particular theme given the disparity between trends in fashion or…