Rolls-Royce delivered more vehicles in 2014 than ever before in its 111-year history.
Global sales, which have more than quadrupled since 2009, gained 12 percent last year to 4,063 cars. The marque's fifth consecutive annual sales record was driven by the Wraith coupe, which was first introduced in 2013, and an updated Series II of the Ghost sedan.
If the company wants that momentum to continue there is no alternative but to go ahead with an SUV vehicle.
Many of the main regions behind Rolls Royce growth, including China and the Middle East, have expressed their desire to have the option of a Rolls Royce SUV.
The company has known about this for a number of years but sometimes blamed lack of capacity for adding a new SUV production line. Its Goodwood facility has been working at full capacity to cater for the increasing demand of the existing models.
The SUV niche has expanded over the years and demand has increased worldwide in all segments.
Other luxury brands have already decided to enter the SUV market including Bentley and Maserati.
BMW, the mother-ship of Rolls Royce, knows very well the value of niche markets.
After exploiting the SUV market to the full with the X5 and X3, it created further niches with the X6 and X4. Other manufacturers had no alternative but to follow suit.
This creativity has put BMW on top of the German premium league with Audi and Mercedes Benz in hot pursuit. Of course, Rolls Royce is not a volume producer and it needs to keep the scarcity value of its cars.
However, equally important is listening to what consumers want. The base of affluent consumers worldwide is expanding and their demands are sometimes not fully met.
The company now has 127 dealerships across the globe. The best-selling dealer last year was in Abu Dhabi. That would be a good starting point to probe whether the market needs a Rolls Royce SUV or not. At least in the Middle East such an SUV would make sense.
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Adel Murad is a senior motoring and business journalist, based in London.
Email: [email protected]
