Bentley predicts strong sales growth

LUXURY car maker Bentley expects another year of strong growth as it rebounds from the recession.

The Crewe-based firm, which is owned by Volkswagen, is benefiting from demand in the Middle East and in new markets such as Russia and China.

Orders for the Mulsanne and its Continental GT models have helped build on last year’s sales growth of 11%.

New chief executive Wolfgang Durheimer, who took over from Dr Franz-Josef Paefgen last year, told the BBC at the Geneva Motor Show that his biggest challenge was to bring back the “full confidence” of workers in Crewe who took a pay cut during the recession.

“I’m going to tell them that we’ll need to work hard to make a good living for everybody so that we do not have to suffer another 20% pay cut in the future,” he said.

“We will look at our processes, look for more efficiencies, to use our resources more efficiently and together we can become be more successful.”

In 2009 the company saw losses more than double to £282.3m as sales slumped during the global recession. Staff numbers fell from 3,681 to 3,424.