Rolls-Royce boss says COVID deaths were good for business

Torsten Mueller-Oetvoes, chief govt officer of Rolls-Royce, stated the COVID-19 pandemic has been good for enterprise.
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The prospect of dying unexpectedly from COVID-19 can focus the thoughts splendidly — on shopping for an costly automotive.

That’s in line with Rolls-Royce chief govt Torsten Müller-Otvös, who stated the posh automaker bought extra vehicles final yr than it did throughout some other yr in its 117-year historical past.

Müller-Otvös informed the Monetary Occasions he believes Rolls-Royce rolled to its report as a result of the pandemic received folks to understand that “life may be brief.”

“Fairly lots of people witnessed folks of their group dying from COVID, that makes them suppose life may be brief, and also you’d higher stay now than postpone it to a later date,” he stated.

“That additionally has helped [Rolls-Royce sales] fairly massively.”

In accordance with the FT, the British luxurious automaker bought 5,586 models final yr — a 49% improve of total gross sales from 2020.

For automotive firms that cater to the mass client, that quantity could be paltry. However Rolls-Royce caters to a clientele that may shell out $455,000 for a Phantom.

Müller-Otvös stated different firm knowledge additionally helps his concept. The common age of shoppers dropped to 43 final yr. It was as excessive as 53 just some years in the past.

Rolls-Royce bought almost 50% extra vehicles in 2021 than it did within the earlier yr.

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The drop in common age signifies that “for each 60-year-old, you want a shopper who's 20,” the CEO stated.

Müller-Otvös stated gross sales had been brisk in China, the Western Hemisphere, Europe and the Center East. The corporate additionally carried out effectively in South Korea and Russia, he stated.

Rolls-Royce additionally wasn’t impacted by the scarcity in chips that hampered different car producers.

Different luxurious carmakers additionally flourished in the course of the pandemic. Bentley bought a report 14,659 vehicles and SUVs final yr — a 31% improve from the yr earlier than. Lamborghini bought 2,472 vehicles in the US final yr — an 11% soar from 2020.

“This yr is already larger than one of the best yr ever,” Lamborghini CEO Stephan Winkelmann stated in December.

Bentley and Lamborghini are each owned by Volkswagen.