Record Profits for Bentley

For the calendar year, Bentley increased its net revenue by €36m or 2.7% compared with 2006, to set a new record of €1.37bn. Operating profit increased by €18m or 13.1% to a new operating profit record of €155m.

These results reflect Bentley’s record sales performance last year when the company surpassed the 10,000 unit mark for the first time. Global sales increased by 7% in 2007 to reach 10,014 units. Increases were seen in almost all major markets: +7% in the UK, +4% in North America, +7% in Europe, +18% in the Asia Pacific region, and +93% in China alone.

These excellent results were driven by growth across both the Arnage and Continental ranges. Thanks to the introduction of the Azure convertible, sales grew by 45% in the Arnage line, whilst the Continental family sales increased by around 5%, with the GTC convertible proving the most popular model.

Looking ahead to 2008, Dr Paefgen said: “We expect to maintain this momentum despite the financial instability that has been affecting the world economy. We hope to take advantage of a complete line-up, with the full Continental range, and the full Arnage range, including the recently launched Brooklands, which has already been very well received. Our plan has always been to achieve a sales volume around the current levels as it gives us excellent profitability whilst maintaining brand exclusivity”.

Credits: Jarvis