Aston Martin is a modern, exclusive sports car brand with a unique heritage, which is instantly recognized around the world.
Aston Martin has since grown to become an internationally admired luxury brand.
At the wheel
Dr Andy Palmer, CMG, is the President and Chief Executive Officer of Aston Martin Lagonda Ltd. He joined the business on October 1, 2014. Dr Palmer is a British-born chartered engineer, chartered manager and Executive Committee. He held a number of senior roles at Nissan over 23 years, including in corporate planning, product planning, marketing, sales & IT leadership and was Chairman of their luxury marque Infiniti from 2011 onwards.
Dr. Palmer started his professional career in 1979 aged 16, as an apprentice at Automotive Products Limited (UK), following which he spent six years with Austin Rover and then moved to Nissan.
Following his apprenticeship, Dr Palmer graduated from Warwick University with a Master’s Degree (M.Sc) in Product Engineering in 1990 and acquired a Doctorate (PhD) in Management from Cranfield University in 2004. He is also a Chartered Engineer and a Fellow of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers. In 2010, Coventry University awarded Dr Palmer an Honorary Doctorate of Technology and in 2014 he was appointed as a Professor, advising the university in the automotive field. He also holds the position of an Industrial Professor at Warwick University (2015), a Companion of the Chartered Management Institute CCMI (2015) and the first winner of the Cranfield University “The Distinguished Manufacturing Alumnus/ an of the Year Award” (2016). He advises the federal government in a number of areas such exports and serves as an ambassador for the highly successful Great Britain campaign.
In 2016 he was asked to be an advisor to the Prime Minister in the area of Skills and Apprenticeships. In the 2014 New Year’s Honours list, Dr Palmer has named a Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George (CMG) in recognition of services to the British automotive industry.
Dr. Andy Palmer, CMG, President & CEO
The workshop of Pioneers
The Aston Martin history began with the efforts of Lionel Martin and Robert Bamford, who founded the ‘Bamford and Martin Limited Company’ in 1913. The first Aston Martins were created with a distinctive and individual character, handcrafted to the highest of standards and capable of exceeding all performance expectations.
Both men had a passion and a talent for machines, propulsion, engines and racing. They had a shared love for the car because it provided them with the most exhilarating and memorable experiences. ‘Moments of beauty’- as they called it. Moments that they craved to create, repeat, celebrate and share. That passion drove them to hand build cars that were faster, more powerful, thrilling, comfortable – more beautiful – than the previous. 1914 saw the birth of the name ‘ASTON MARTIN’. A moment of pure driving emotion, when Lionel Martin took on the Aston Clinton Hill Climb race in Buckinghamshire, England in their latest creation and won. Within a year the first Aston Martin had been built and registered with the name and by 1920 the business had relocated to Kensington.
An unrivalled history and heritage
By 1922, the company was doing well and
participated in the French Grand Prix, its
first historic overseas competition breaking
all records in endurance and speed. It was
also during this time, the company faced
numerous financial problems and even went
bankrupt. But these hurdles could never
stop the company from growing even bigger.
1947 saw the dawn of the ‘DAVID BROWN
ERA’. In 1950, the Aston Martin announced
its DB series and by 1958 released the
famous DB Mark II, DB2/4 Mark II, and
DB2/4 cars. Aston Martin ended the 1950s
with further racing success, as the DBR1 team secured the 1959 world sports car
championship by winning races such as the
Nürburgring 1000 km race and the famous
Le Mans 24hr. Frequently acclaimed as the
most beautiful car in the world, the Aston
Martin DB5 entered production in 1963. The
following year saw the beginning of a longterm
relationship that has left an indelible
mark on popular culture, as the DB5 was
chosen to be James Bond’s car of choice in
the classic film ‘Goldfinger’. Following up
on the success of the DB5, the DB6 and
DB6 Volante was launched in 1965 and 1966
respectively. Energetic product development
continued in the rest of the decade with the
Aston Martin DBS, DB6 Mk2, and DBS V8
all being introduced. Throughout its life,
Aston Martin often faced numerous financial
difficulties leading to change of leadership
now and then.
By 1972, David Brown sold
Aston Martin to ‘Company Developments
Ltd’. Three years later, it was sold again
to another company, due to a $1.05 million
debt. In 1977, the new owners pushed
the company into finally letting go of the
‘grand tourer’ style and modernized its line.
Therefore, the company soon introduced
the convertible Volante in 1978 and the
V8 Vantage in 1977.
In 1975, just three
years after its last take-over, the company
entered receivership and was rescued by
a consortium led by Peter Sprague, George
Minden and later Alan Curtis. The first car
to be unveiled under this new ownership was
the revolutionary ‘LAGONDA’. The same year
the Aston Martin V8 entered production.
By the end of the 80s, Pace Petroleum and Victor
Gauntlett acquired Aston Martin and Ford
managed to purchase 75% of the company’s
shares. The 007 relationship also continued
with the V8 Volante appearing in ‘The
Living Daylights’. In 1998 the company was
presented with the Queen’s Award for export,
recognizing the contribution of the firm to
the UK economy. The 90s saw Virage enter
into production and three years later the Ford
Motor Company took complete hold of the
company, purchasing 100% shares. This era for
the Aston Martin was the most successful of
all. In fact, Aston Martin introduced numerous
famous models during Ford’s time. Some of
the best vehicles include the DB7 Volante,
the V8 Vantage Le Mans, DB7 Vantage, V12
Vantage, limited edition DB7 Zagato, DB9,
V12 Vanquish S and DB9 Volante. Aston
Martin’s new global headquarters in Gaydon,
Warwickshire opened in 2003. By 2005,
Aston Martin even returned to competitive
motorsport racing and the following year saw
Aston Martin reach the milestone of 30,000
production cars. The introduction of the
current flagship, the Aston Martin DBS took
place in 2006, as it was seen for the first time
in Daniel Craig’s James bond debut ‘Casino
Royale’. Aston Martin then smashed its
way into the Guinness World Record books
for ‘The Most Cannon Rolls In A Car’.
Consecutive GT1 class wins at Le Mans in
2007 & 2008 followed, as well as a fourthplace
finish in 2009 with a new LMP1 car,
the fastest petrol car in the field.
The modern era
The year 2008 saw the continued love
affair with James Bond as DBS made
a second James Bond appearance by
featuring in ‘Quantum of Solace’. 2009
marked one of the most active years for
product development in the company’s
recent history. Both the V12 Vantage and
the DBS Volante were launched. Vantage
claimed a class victory at the Nürburgring
24-hour race on its race debut. 2009 also
saw Aston Martin unveil the ultimate Aston
Martin, the One-77, the most powerful
naturally aspirated car in the world. In
2012, DB5 made its sixth appearance in
Skyfall, which took the tally to a total of
11 Bond film appearances. Aston Martin
in 2013 celebrated its 100 years of power,
beauty, soul. Needless to say, 100 years of
creating some of the most beautiful cars
in the world is indeed worth celebrating.
This is true as much today in the company’s
second century as was in our first. 2013 also
welcomed the world’s first Hybrid-Hydrogen
race car to be raced at an international
event in the form of a Rapide S, piloted,
amongst others, by CEO Dr. Bez. From
stunning victory in 2017 for the V8 Vantage
GTE in the 24 Hours of LeMans GTE Pro
Class to the technically advanced Valkyrie
hypercar, Aston Martin has continued
to craft innovative cars with the beauty of
competitive racing at their heart.
As for now, Aston Martin is owned by 6
different organizations that have brought
shares in the company. Regardless, the days
of financial difficulty for the company are
over and now the revenue of Aston Martin
has reached £876 million. Additionally, the
company has created two subsidiaries, namely
Aston Martin Racing and Lagonda.
Aston Martin has been in existence for over
102 years and is now undoubtedly one of the
world’s most popular car manufacturers. The
Nürburgring remains the definitive engineering
sign-off test for all Aston Martin road cars.
It continues to race in the GTE classes of the
World Endurance Championship. Additionally,
after being shifted to different countries, Aston
Martin is now finally back to building vehicles
in Britain. Not to mention, Aston Martin has
its own owner’s club and there is even a £1
million-pound vehicle created by the company.
Creating modern legacy
Aston Martin maintains a global network of
148 dealers in 41 countries. As part of the
company’s ongoing expansion plans, Aston
Martin has entered into Poland, Brazil, and
Ukraine, with plans to open in Thailand and
Mexico, while seeking continued growth in
markets such as China and the Middle East.
It is revealed that the final design for Aston
Martin’s first ever SUV has now been fixed,
a model that promises to open up major new
markets for the business. Also waiting in
the wings will be Aston Martin’s all-electric
model, based on the Rapide, which will be
the first luxury electric car on the market in
2018. Established to preserve and maintain
Aston Martin’s remarkable automotive
heritage, Aston Martin has a world-leading
‘Works’ facility in Newport Pagnell. Through
the preservation of traditional production
techniques, its highly-skilled workforce
and unrivaled technical knowledge of AML
products, ‘Works’ can repair, restore and
service all Aston Martins ranging from
post-war to the present day to the highest
standards.
Although the beginning of the timeline for the
history of Aston Martin saw turbulence, they
managed to establish themselves. Even after
facing financial crisis year after year, Aston
Martin now stands as one of the best luxury
and high-performance car manufacturers in
the world. From their humble origins to today,
on road and track, the irresistible draw of
an Aston Martin endures. People all over the
world seek their beautifully designed cars,
cars that have always been synonymous with
high performance, bespoke craftsmanship,
technological innovation and timeless style.
Those positives include 600 very excited
Aston Martin customers, who will have picked
up their new DB11 by the end of this year.
Perhaps one of the most significant events for
a company that prides in itself on the caliber
of its workforce, the company will soon be
taking possession of part of the new Welsh
site that will be building this car from late
2018. These are very exciting times for Aston
Martin, which is pushing innovation and style
to newer heights.
“One thing will always stay constant: the importance of the people who build the cars”
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