Automobili Lamborghini’s Middle East sales grew just 1 per cent in 2024 compared to 5 per cent globally, as the Italian luxury automaker witnessed what its CEO described as a “normalisation” following the post-pandemic luxury spending surge.
“The Middle East is a very important region… it is the third largest market after Germany and the UK,” Lamborghini Chairman and CEO Stephan Winkelmann told reporters during a Dubai media roundtable. “On a global level, it is at number six.”
The more modest regional growth comes as Lamborghini achieved record global results, with revenues exceeding 3 billion euros ($3.27 billion) for the first time, reaching 3.09 billion euros ($3.37 billion) in 2024, a 16.2 per cent increase over the previous year.
UAE remains regional stronghold
Within the Middle East, the United Arab Emirates – particularly Dubai – continues to drive the company’s regional performance.
“The biggest market is the UAE amongst the Middle Eastern market, and Dubai is the biggest selling point,” Winkelmann said, adding that the company maintains a balanced portfolio in the region with approximately equal sales between its super sports cars and its Urus SUV model.
“We have a very good mix in terms of the super sports cars and the SUV. It’s almost 50-50, which is where we want to be and where we should be,” he explained.
Despite regional geopolitical tensions, Winkelmann expressed cautious optimism about the UAE’s future growth potential, citing the continued migration of wealthy individuals to the country.
“The UAE, inside the Middle East, even if it’s not the biggest car market because it’s Saudi Arabia, is the one in terms of high-net individuals and luxury business which is going to have the biggest opportunity also in future,” he said when asked about the influx of high-net-worth individuals into the emirate.
End of ‘YOLO effect’ impacts luxury spending
Winkelmann attributed the more moderate regional growth partly to a broader normalisation of the luxury market following a post-pandemic surge in spending.
“After COVID, there was this YOLO effect,” Winkelmann said, referring to the “you only live once” spending surge.
“This bubble, which surprised all of us a bit, because the market was coming back sooner than expected… now has reached again a normal level.”
The CEO disclosed that 2024 witnessed the first decline in the global high-end luxury market in years, with an estimated 8 per cent slowdown, though he characterised the current situation as “stability” rather than crisis.
“If nothing is going south, we have now a stability on a level which is the one we saw last year. So a bit of a flattening curve, but not a crisis or a stable market we are foreseeing now,” he added.
EV plans delayed to 2029
Winkelmann reiterated the company’s decision to delay its first fully electric vehicle to 2029, a move first reported by Reuters in December 2024. At that time, Winkelmann told Reuters that “the market will not be ready” for full electrification in the sports car segment in 2025 or 2026.
In Dubai, the CEO expanded on this position, citing a “flattening curve in the adoption of full electric cars” globally, particularly in the ultra-luxury segment.
“We see a flattening curve in the adoption of full electric cars globally, but also for the luxury market, even a bit more postponed,” he said. “The market has to be ready; otherwise, even if you have the best car, but it’s not in the mind of the customers, you’re going not to succeed.”
Lamborghini, a unit of Germany’s Volkswagen, had previously planned to launch its first EV in 2028. The delay puts it further behind Italian rival Ferrari, which is set to launch its first electric model in late 2025.
Record global performance
Despite the moderation in Middle East growth, Lamborghini delivered an all-time high of 10,687 vehicles globally in 2024, breaking the 10,000-unit barrier for a second consecutive year with 5.7 per cent growth. The company’s operating income rose 15.5 per cent to 835 million euros, maintaining a 27 per cent operating margin.
“Despite the difficulties in the automotive market and the highly competitive climate, in 2024 we recorded growth in all three macro-regions,” Winkelmann said in a statement ahead of the official March 20 announcement.
The record performance follows an 18-month period during which Lamborghini completely renewed its product range with three new models: the Revuelto, a V12 hybrid supercar; the Urus SE, an updated version of its successful SUV; and the Temerario, featuring a redesigned engine.
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