When luxury automaker Rolls-Royce (BMW.DE) describes its newest creation as car designed for the “post-opulent” world, you know it’s been one strange year.
“In the middle of this pandemic, and as the market continues to evolve, it has been the product that really started to show us a new phase of Rolls-Royce, focusing onto the post-opulence era,” Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Americas CEO Martin Fritsches tells Yahoo Finance. “And obviously, we've been able to embed all of the technology features, but in a more subtle, and let's say, ‘less opulent’ way.”
For Rolls, a delay in production for the new Ghost, ‘entry-level’ Rolls-Royce, wasn’t an option. After a stellar 2019, the momentum had to be maintained, and the high-end luxury market wasn’t going to wait. Car sales, even at the top end, have been steadily climbing higher amid sharp economic contraction and soaring unemployment rates.
“Our customer base not only is changing, it's becoming more and more young,” Fritsches says. “They are absolutely very demanding.”
He says the new Ghost is a direct response to Rolls-Royce’s evolving high-end customer. These younger clients are increasingly going the bespoke route with customized requests “dramatically” increasing, he explained.
With the Ghost being Rolls’ most popular product, its success is paramount for the English automaker’s North American aspirations.
“With our current product lineup and further encouraging the customization and the ... personalized approach, our trend is to continue expanding our business here, particularly in the U.S., but also markets like Canada,” Fritsches says.
It was no secret that the outgoing Ghost was long in the tooth (last updated in 2014) and needed to get back on par with the latest and greatest in terms of tech, comfort, and aesthetics.
See Also: 2021 Rolls-Royce Ghost: First drive
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Pras Subramanian is a reporter for Yahoo Finance. You can follow him on Twitter and on Instagram.
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