Ferrari enjoys sales boom as super-rich pay extra for logos and coloured wheels

Demand from super rich drivers for cashmere interiors and personalised paint jobs on their cars has fuelled a sales boom at Ferrari.

There has been a “stunning” jump in ultra-wealthy customers buying add-ons for their sports cars, according to Benedetto Vigna, Ferrari’s chief executive, with some drivers spending tens of thousands of pounds for extras.

Cashmere and corduroy interiors and kevlar and carbon fibre trims are among the details that have been popular among the car maker’s clientele, as well as Ferrari badges emblazoned on the fenders of vehicles.

Brightly coloured brake callipers which are visible inside the car wheel have also been requested by Ferrari’s customers.

Rival luxury car makers including Bentley and Rolls Royce have also been able to charge much more per vehicle as buyers choose more options and wait for their bespoke motors to be delivered, rather than buying a ready-made car from a dealer.

Demand for pink and orange interiors, hand stitched seats and stone trims helped increase the average cost of a Bentley from €170,000 before the pandemic to €237,000 today, it revealed last month.

Richer wood trims, bespoke seat designs and other extras can quickly add €100,000 to the cost of a Bentayga SUV, Continental GT or Flying Spur.

Buyers can choose from trims of eucalyptus, walnut and even 5,000-year-old wood salvaged from East Anglian bogs and rivers.

Ferrari said demand for personalised touches and higher prices charged for its cars helped drive sales 15pc higher in the three months to the end of June to €1.3bn (£1.1bn).

Meanwhile, demand for more environmentally-friendly vehicles boosted the company, with 43pc of Ferrari’s sales made up of hybrid cars, which pair loud, powerful engines with a battery which soaks up wasted energy from braking and uses it for added acceleration.

These include the £242,000 V6 296 GTB and the pricier convertible 296 GTS, which start at £278,000.

Luxury car makers have had a record run as their wealthy customers splashed out during the pandemic and have been shielded by the cost-of-living crisis.

This has helped propel Ferrari’s value sixfold since it listed on the stock market in 2015, when it was spun out of Fiat. It is now worth more than €56bn, just shy of the €57bn valuation of Stellantis, which owns Chrysler, Peugeot, Maserati and Vauxhall.