The 2012 Jaguar XF & 2012 Range Rover Evoque - JLR's latest models
Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) has posted profits of £1 billion on sales of £10 billion, with record monthly sales in March 2011.
Who’d have believed it just a year or two ago?
Jaguar Land Rover has reported a turnover for the year to the end of March 2011 of £9.9 billion and has made a profit (after tax) of £1.04 billion – almost £3 million a day.
From proffering the begging bowl in the direction of a short-sighted Labour government in 2009 – and getting nothing without untenable conditions attached - and making plans to close one of its three UK plants, JLR’s renaissance has been astonishing.
We’ve endlessly reported record sales figures for both Jaguar and Land Rover over the last year, and March 2011 saw huge sales rises in China and India, and the best monthly sales in Land Rover’s history.
But despite – or actually, because of – the success they’re currently enjoying, JLR are not resting on their laurels.
They are pushing forward with a five-year plan to launch 40 new product ‘Actions’ (that’s models, variants, engines…), have plans to build a £750 million engine plant in the UK and spend £1 billion a year on R & D in the UK. Oh, and they’re taking on an extra 1,000 employees.
Didn’t they do well?
An impressive result, but wouldn’t it be interesting to see a breakdown of sales by country? Where are JLR making their money?
Is it from high prices in emerging markets where big profits are hidden behind protectionist tariffs, or is it in countries like the US where they have to provide a lower price and higher levels of service, much higher levels of service and at lower prices than in the UK or Europe.