ASTON Martin boss Andy Palmer has spoken of enduring ‘some of the most difficult weeks of his career’ in an interview with an American automotive website.
Palmer was speaking after a particularly problematic spell for the luxury British sports car manufacturer.
Its share price plunged after it announced 2019 production levels would be lower than originally planned – and confidence was damaged further when its stock entered ‘junk’ territory in ratings compiled by investment experts Moody’s.
At the end of July, the company revealed it had swung to a £78.8 million pre-tax loss in the first half of its financial year, saying the ‘more challenging global economy’ was affecting the firm.
Speaking to The Detroit Bureau, Palmer spoke of the difficulties of the past few weeks and added: ‘Nobody likes to hear their child being called ugly.
‘There are people out there who don’t believe our story, don’t want to believe our story, want to bet against us, and worse, use the media to drive us down. The only way you can work against that is to demonstrate they’re wrong.’
Turning to the forthcoming arrival of the brand’s DBX SUV, he said: ‘ It will probably become the most important car in our history, because it will become the car that transforms us as we try to address all parts of the high-luxury market.
‘It will target the US and China, two critical markets, and it will change the dynamics of the company.’
Turning to the cut in production for 2019 from 7,250 to 6,400 cars. Palmer pointed out that Aston Martin had enjoyed a 26 per cent increase in sales year-on-year.
He added: ‘We’re confident about what we’re doing. But we rely on selling cars today to fund the development of cars for the future and that’s what (critics) point to and question whether we can do that. I think we can.’
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