Bentley Motors has officially opened its new Design Studio, transforming one of its most iconic buildings—the historic ‘Front of House’ at the Crewe headquarters—into a modern design hub. Conceptualised by Bentley’s in-house design team, the revamped facility represents a significant milestone in the brand’s design journey. The launch was celebrated in a special event attended by Bentley Chairman and CEO Dr. Frank-Steffen Walliser, board members, and the company’s 4,000-strong workforce, with renowned architect and TV personality George Clarke hosting the occasion.
Originally dating back to 1939, the building has long been a symbol of Bentley’s legacy and has welcomed esteemed guests, including the late Queen Elizabeth II. The new studio is nearly twice the size of its predecessor, featuring an added third floor. This project blends modern architecture with heritage preservation, aligning with Bentley’s commitment to sustainability at its carbon-neutral manufacturing site. Before becoming a secure design environment, employees were given exclusive access to preview the future of Bentley’s design direction.
The result is a design space that keeps the character of Bentley’s history, maintaining continuity to the past and present, however redefining rules and creating inspiration for around 50 designers to set the future evolutions of Bentley’s exterior and interior design.
This new, creative environment also encourages ultimate collaboration as for the very first time under one roof, the new Studio will include designers from colour and trim, Bentley’s bespoke division, Mulliner and the increasingly pivotal role of UX (User Experience) and UI (User Interface), creating the future of how drivers will interact with all elements of their car.
Commenting on the new environment, Dr. Frank-Steffen Walliser, said: “We are currently steering the biggest Bentley design revolution in our history and so to inspire our designers and wider team with an innovative and creative environment that enables the ability to drive the creation of Bentley’s future BEV models, is a necessary positive next step to create the next great chapter for Bentley Motors.
“Having the ability to form a truly collaborative group within one space will offer a step change in how we work together and that holistic team will enable us to truly achieve success by design.”
As well as the biggest design and product revolution in Bentley’s history, the headquarters in Crewe, or ‘Dream Factory’ as it is known, is preparing for this future with a level of site investment never seen before in the luxury automotive industry.
Following from the recent openings of an Excellence Centre for Quality and Launch, and the ongoing construction of a new Paint Shop and BEV assembly line, the new Design Studio maintains Bentley’s commitment to restoration where possible, rather than recreation.
This is perfectly encapsulated by taking what the original ‘Front of House’ was famous for, it’s original brass 1939 stairwell, lovingly restored for the new building and placed in its original position with a plaque signifying where old meets new with the addition of the new floor.
Commenting, Andreas Lehe, Board Member for Manufacturing, said: “The modernisation of our site, while at the same time respecting our origins, is something I am particularly proud of in this building, and it gives me great delight to say that our talented design team have a new home they can be proud of. This is just the next step in our state-of-the-art site transformation as we continue to revolutionise our headquarters into benchmark truly digital, innovative, highly-flexible facilities.”
