All new Rolls-Royce models to be exclusively electric

“We go with demand, so can see that below 6000 in some years. We never push volume, it’s by demand only. But we’re not immune from recessions. It’s not the money [for buyers], it is the mood. If your own company is not in good shape, would you be in the mood to buy?

“We have a robust business now in seeing accumulated wealth in Covid being spent, as ‘now is the time’. People are living now, and not for the next 15-20 years. The mindset of living has changed, we have very much noticed this. Not just with money but with lifestyle: people seize the day.”

“Exclusive and luxury are not about volumes, you never hear about how many luxury handbags are sold. I’m shy about volumes, it’s about pricing and margins. I’m not being told about volumes, or have volume targets. BMW trust that we’re developing by natural growth, and are driven by profitability.

“If it’s 7000 cars, it doesn’t make a difference. It’s about how you approach clients and deal with them. We won’t though be a volume brand going into five digits [10,000 sales and above].

“Our clients love the fact it’s €500,000 [a car] now, as it’s an exclusive club. This number defines how exclusive we are, not whether it’s 6000 or 6500 cars sold.”

To help further develop the growing customisation part of the business, Rolls-Royce is set to expand its Goodwood base with extra facilities including a new paint shop due to be completed by late 2025/early 2026. “We want the latest technology and this will give us freedom and new ideas,” he said.

Muller-Otvos confirmed that the company planned to make more very limited-run models, and to “watch this space” for an imminent reveal. He said this was something they planned to do every other year, “as a maximum of making three or four, not 15-20 as this is not then coach building”.

He added: “This is something we do by invite only with our long existing clients. You need to know them well as you work together on a long, long project.”

Muller-Otvos has now been in the job for 13 years, and in that time he has seen the company’s average age of a customer drop from 56 to 42. There is also a much greater proportion of female buyers, which has increased from less than 1% to around 17% now.

Far more Rolls-Royce owners buy their cars to drive rather than be driven in now, which has flipped from 20% buying to drive it to around 80% now.

This has led to the company’s cars themselves radically changing to respond to this new wave of buyers, and a change in profile of high-net worth individuals globally. “If we hadn’t had catered for them with coupes, a more cocooned saloon, convertibles, Black Badge, and the brand rejuvenation, we’d have missed out,” he said. “We’ve kept the brand but adjusted it for a new breed of high-net worth individuals.”

Muller-Otvos said the brand was now “completely different” to what it was 20-30 years ago when it was paired with Bentley. “They’ve found their way, we’ve found ours,” he said. “We operate in a completely different segment. We’re not in a car segment, we’re a house of luxury and have adjusted to being a true luxury brand with products and also our behaviour with clients.