Bentley saw its global sales increase by a whopping 30 percent worldwide last year. while Rolls-Royce, helped by the launch of the Ghost, sold 3,500 cars in North America, smashing its 2010 record of 2,711 deliveries.
The first thing that comes to mind is that, in the midst of a recession, the rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer.
Bentley’s North American president Christopher Georges, however, sees things from a different perspective, in that booming sales of uber-luxurious cars are reflecting a confidence in the economy.
“If you collect art, no one sees it outside your home”, Georges told The New York Times. “But when people are losing jobs, you don’t want to show off a new Bentley. So when luxury cars move up, it’s a real expression of confidence.”
Despite the impressive rise of sales in China, the U.S. remains the world’s number one car market for luxury brands. And the once ailing Rolls-Royce and Bentley brands have surged right to the top thanks to their split, which resulted in the two companies being acquired by BMW and VW respectively and thus having funds to develop new models.
The only company that is not enjoying the party is Daimler. Instead of buying an established brand, the German group decided to resurrect the obscure, and for many decades dead, Maybach.
In theory, the brand was supposed to compete with Britain’s finest. In practice, it failed miserably and its demise has already been announced.
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