Castriota left Pininfarina just before the Paris Motor Show in September, and had originally planned to open his own design studio. Bertone, however, lured him away from that path, reports CarDesignNews.
"I was convinced I would set up my own consultancy and be free and elastic. But they made me an offer I couldn't refuse," said Castriota. "At the end of the day it's great to follow in the footsteps of some of the greats in automotive design."
Bertone and Castriota hope to grow the company in the consultancy segment, offering a boutique service to the top of the market.
Bertone revealed its striking retro-futurist B.A.T. 11 concept during the Geneva Motor Show, though not on the actual show grounds due to financial constraints. In fact, the business had been on the brink of bankruptcy, but has since turned things around. Now, with the hire of Castriota and a mission to expand into consultancy for other carmakers, the design shop's future is looking bright.