LONDON: Bentley’s global sales fell by 11 per cent last year due to “challenging market conditions”, reported German Press Agency, (dpa), quoting an announcement bythe UK-based luxury car maker.
The Crewe-based company said it delivered 13,560 cars in 2023, compared with 15,174 during the previous 12 months.
The decline was driven by 18 per cent decreases in sales to both the UK and China.
Despite the year-on-year fall, 2023 was still the manufacturer’s third best year for sales.
Bentley, owned by the Volkswagen Group, also said customers were “increasingly attracted to higher revenue models” such as the Azure, S and Speed, which made up a combined 70 per cent of total sales, compared with 30 per cent in 2022.
The company has previously stated it is focusing on the profit it makes from each sale rather than chasing volume.
Bentley chief executive Adrian Hallmark said: “The luxury market was not immune from the challenging market conditions seen around the world in the second half of 2023, and despite this we were able to deliver our third highest retail position in history and enter 2024 with a strong order bank.”
“Building on this, our quality of sales was much greater, with significant increases in our higher value derivatives, and a significant growth in demand for bespoke personalisation.”
“We remain cautiously optimistic for the year ahead, with a continued robust global demand by market and model, high levels of interest in our hybrid models and with more to follow this year.”-Bernama
