India's super-rich are spending crores to make their luxury cars one of a kind

For India's super rich, the pinnacle of luxury and performance is no longer simply buying a Rolls-Royce or a Ferrari but turning them into a piece that tells their story. Jet-setting ultra-wealthy Indians are even travelling to Goodwood in the UK (home to the Rolls-Royce) or Maranello in Italy (Ferrari) to configure their cars to reflect their passions, memories, or personal milestones.

So, for a Rolls-Royce customer, dealership is only the first leg in the car-buying journey. Those who are unable to travel to the factory in the UK visit one of the five Rolls-Royce Private Offices around the world to design their dream car.

“Some clients enjoy the opportunity to come to the private office to sit with a designer and create something special. Some come to Goodwood to get a sense of what our craftspeople are capable of doing,” Julian Jenkins, Director of Sales & Brand, Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, tells BT.

Some prefer visiting the Rolls-Royce factory in Goodwood. “We engage with them through the summer months. Our clients are in a relaxed state of mind as they have more time, and are more creative as a result,” says Jenkins.

Every bespoke commission starts with a discussion with clients. And brands are happy to oblige. “We listen. We don’t say no,” says Jenkins. The carmaker says no only for legal or regulatory reasons.

About 20-30% Rolls-Royce customers in India opt for significant bespoke commissions, says Jenkins. Some spend as much as the price of the car, he adds. A bespoke commission takes at least a year. The marque’s more ambitious Coachbuild creations can take four-five years, says Jenkins.

“A grandfather wanted to commission birth dates of the children in the car. That’s highly personal. Each time his grandchildren got in the car, they would search for their birth dates around the car in the Startlight Headliner roof,” says Jenkins.

Sheetal Jain, founder and CEO of Luxe Analytics, which works with the British luxury carmaker in India, says some Rolls-Royce buyers have shelled out as much as Rs 5 crore only on customisation; additions included intricate hand-stitched upholstery and personalised interiors. It’s no surprise Indian clients hold on to their Rolls-Royce 40% longer compared to other markets.

The Phantom, the flagship sedan, is particularly popular. Its share in India is considerably higher than in the wider Asia-Pacific region, says Jenkins. “The Phantom is the pinnacle of Rolls-Royce. It is also a canvas by which our clients can express themselves through craftsmanship,” he says.

“Our Indian patrons at the time of the Maharajas (1908-1934) pioneered what Rolls-Royce is today in terms of bespoke and personalisation,” says Jenkins. Until 1949, every Rolls-Royce was just a chassis; coachbuilders would then create what customers wanted. For connoisseurs, Rolls-Royce offers Coachbuild, an invitation-only service that lets clients collaborate with designers, engineers and artisans to create one-of-a-kind cars. “Our clients can come to us with a blank paper. What you have is a highly bespoke rolling automotive art,” says Jenkins.

Drawing on India’s rich heritage of craft, culture and storytelling, Italian supercar maker Ferrari recently partnered with Ahmedabad-based National Institute of Design to create 10 special digital configurations for Indian customers. These include five for Ferrari 12Cilindri and five for Ferrari Purosangue. The Purosangue celebrates India’s capital city Delhi while the 12Cilindri reflects the heritage and spirituality of the city of Varanasi.

“Indian customers start personalisation with the colour and stitching. Then they want more,” Charles Antoine Geneste, Head of Southeast Asia at Ferrari, tells BT. “Around 99% of our cars are one-off,” he adds.

For many, the process is rooted in their personal association with the brand. “Every client we meet has a story with Ferrari. One of the ways they connect with Ferrari is personalisation,” says Aayush Tiwari, Country Manager, India, Ferrari. Some gift a Ferrari to their children at their wedding, using the gift to express the story of their relationship, says Tiwari. Some even travel to Ferrari headquarters in Maranello, Italy, to explore the personalisation options. However, access to these appointments is limited.

The waiting time of around 18 months gives customers time to revisit their bespoke requests. “Some come back after a while on some decisions they took to modify the way you have configured the car,” says Francesco Bianchi, President, Far and Middle East, of Ferrari.

Dinesh Thakkar, the founder and chairman of stock-broking company Angel One who recently added the Ferrari 12Cilindri Spider to his collection, could not travel to Maranello. However, the Ferrari dealership in Mumbai was able to send samples of leather and paint, among other things, to his home. “What makes this one especially personal is the configuration—Nero Purosangue, Rosso Giudecca Alcantara, bespoke livery, Dreamline design, airbrushed details and plenty of other touches chosen to make it truly my own,” says Thakkar. Nero Purosangue, Rosso Giudecca Alcantara describe a bespoke, high-luxury colour and interior specification found on Ferrari models.

Ferrari organised a special unveiling for Thakkar’s 12Cilindri Spider at the rooftop of the St Regis hotel in Mumbai. “The delivery experience is also customised. They hand over the car in a fancy way,” he says.

Since gold has long held an enduring allure for India’s wealthy, Volkswagen-owned British luxury marque Bentley often gets client requests for gold-plated Flying B, its century-old mascot. In heavily custom-made Bentley cars, customers often replace the Winged-B Bentley logo on the headrest with their initials, embroidered motifs or even a family crest, says Sagar Karkhanis, lead of sales and marketing, Bentley India.

Under the marque’s Mulliner programme, customers have the option of taking a trip to Bentley’s factory in Crewe, UK, or getting on a virtual session with designers to configure the car.

At Bentley, a customer on average spends over Rs 60 lakh on personalisation. For the Super Sports model, a customer spent almost the price of the car, Rs 8 crore (ex-showroom).

At German carmaker Mercedes-Benz, every customer wants a distinctive Maybach. To meet their wishes, Maybach sends a trolley bag with basic customisation options such as paint, veneer, and wood to their homes. “India is one of the highest markets for individualisation; 75% of G-Wagon and Maybach cars sold in India are customised and personalised,” says Santosh Iyer, Managing Director and CEO, Mercedes-Benz India. “Nobody wants their car to look the same as the neighbour’s,” says Iyer.

The amount spent on customisation can go up to twice the price of the car, says Iyer. “For the Maybach S Class, it can cost an additional Rs 3.5 crore. “On average, people spend Rs 50-60 lakh on customisation across G-Class, S Class and GLS Maybach,” says Iyer, adding that personalisation can start from paints and can go up to artisan stitched seatbelts, seats, and carpeting.

As delivery of a bespoke Maybach could take more time, some wealthy Indians don’t mind paying top dollar to airlift the rides. “Even if the waiting period is six months, they don’t mind. But when we inform that the car is ready, some spend Rs 40 lakh to airlift it, because they want it the next day,” says Iyer.

Mercedes-Benz’s G Class special edition offered engraving of initials or family name on the grab handles. “It cost an additional Rs 4.5 lakh as it was handmade in Europe,” says Iyer. Only 30 such units were allocated for India.

BMW top-end and M vehicles are priced around Rs 1.5–2.6 crore, while highly bespoke commissions can add the equivalent of 60–70% of the vehicle’s value. BMW, which has a dedicated customisation programme called ‘BMW Individual’, sees the strongest demand for custom-made cars from buyers of the carmaker’s flagship and high-performance models, particularly the BMW 7 Series and BMW M cars. Some select a distinctive paint, upholstery or trim, while others commission a complete exterior-and-interior theme. Through BMW Individual, customers commission engraved or embroidered initials, signatures, family crests and other insignia.

At Audi, customers spend Rs 50–70 lakh on customisation of top-end models such as Audi Q8, SQ8 and Audi RS Q8, says Balbir Singh Dhillon, Brand Director of Audi India. “One notable example is an Audi RS Q8 owner from Bhubaneswar who opted for 17 customisation choices, the highest number recorded at Audi India, including an exclusive Java Green paint finish priced at Rs 12.29 lakh. Another customer from Coimbatore personalised his Audi RS e-tron GT with options worth Rs 36 lakh, including the RS Styling Package, a carbon fibre roof, black styling elements, all-wheel steering and Matrix LED headlights with laser light,” says Dhillon.

At Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles-owned luxury carmaker JLR, demand for personalisation in India has more than doubled in the past two years. “The new Indian luxury customer is younger, self-made and well-travelled. They don’t want to arrive in the same car as someone else. For them, personalisation is not about adding features, it’s about creating an identity,” says Rajan Amba, Managing Director, JLR India.

In India, JLR offers personalisation through its SV Bespoke commissioning service. “Over 10% of our Range Rover clients opt for some personalisation,” says Amba. Range Rover and Range Rover Sport drive the highest level of personalisation. “The investment depends entirely on the level of personalisation a client chooses—in some cases clients spend an additional Rs 1 crore,” says Amba.

Range Rover has curated a bespoke Sawai Collection for India. Limited to just 18 units across three editions—Jaipur, Jodhpur and Jaisalmer —the collection features polished chrome Range Rover lettering with a 24K gold-plated surround.

All this is true luxury on wheels.

@karandhar11