Rolls Royce, the ultimate luxury car is currently going a phase of revitalisation and rejuvenation in terms of it’s brand image in the market under the leadership of it’s new CEO Torsten Müller-Ötvös.
The 114 years old brand which is kwon to have a limited accessibility thanks to its sky high prices has successfully ceased to exist in the market all these years with ease and is now planning to go even bigger with its future plans.
Torsten was quoted saying, “You need to be reinventing yourself regularly. If you’re not prepared to do that, you’re gone, finished. You need to be prepared to learn daily and to think differently and to say. Maybe this was right yesterday, but maybe it isn’t right tomorrow.’”
A firm believer in Practice what you preach he has led the company on an exciting and often risky rejuvenation which has been paying dividends ever since his appointment in to the position in April 2010.
The company has grown massively over the few years and has successfully managed to quadrupled in volume said the CEO.
The biggest focus of this rejuvenation has been recognising, and capitalising on, a significant demographic change within its core consumer.
The change in strategy of the brand comes after a clear analysis of the current demographic situation which shows that the age of high net individuals getting younger and their spending habits being more generous.
“When I joined Rolls-Royce the average age of a client was 56, now that has dropped down to 43. It’s a remarkable development. With this new average it means that for everyone who is 60 years old, there is at least one person who is 30.” he said.
“Our clients today are more casual and easygoing, and they see luxury in a very different way – it’s not as formal as it used to be,” he says.
Torsten adds that Rolls-Royce has become “a little bit more adventurous” in its approach, taking calculated, yet sometimes risky, moves. The introduction of the Black Badge – a “darker, more menacing side of the brand” – is its boldest move to date.
Black Badge targets a younger, select clientele who can’t be easily categorised. These consumers want bespoke luxury and high performance without any constraints.
It is available with the Wraith, Ghost and Dawn models and is described as “the ‘alter egos’ of the standard models: darker, edgier, with more power and torque and enhanced driving dynamics to open up the Rolls-Royce brand to new audiences”, the Rolls-Royce website claims.
The brand has also launched a new car designed for daily use last year as a part of its rejuvenation strategy – Cullinan, an SUV which is “super flexible and caters all the needs”. The car was been graciously accepted by the buyers and it would not be so wrong to say that the gamble paid off.
“Risk is part of the job when you’re a CEO,” he continues. “You need to take risks from time to time and you need to move brands from time to time, even in a radical way, to stay alive and not die in age or history. This is how you stay in tune with your target market and your clients.”
This philosophy of not being satisfied with the status quo extends to Torsten’s personal journey too. “Even as a person, I’m convinced that you need to reinvent yourself regularly,” he notes.
“I’m a keen reader of books and I would also call myself a passionate fly fisher. To do something completely different from what I regularly do, to switch off, to go into nature and just be there opens my mind. That’s important to me.”
