The leaders in this ultra-luxury world have a doubly hard job in that they must work with limited finances to create world-beating cars that have to wow some of the toughest customers.
Get it right and the rewards are huge, as shown at Ferrari, Rolls-Royce and increasingly at Bentley and Lamborghini.
Get it wrong and you’ve a tough mountain to climb, but those starting at ravine level such as Lawrence Stroll at Aston Martin and Michael Leiters at McLaren are proving they have the resilience needed.