The Walpole Luxury Awards have presented BMW-owned Rolls-Royce with its 2016 "Best British Luxury Craftsmanship" award.
The award, accepted by CEO Torsten Müller-Ötvös on behalf of the entire company, comes at a time when demand for premium automobiles, and competition within the luxury automotive segment has never been greater.
For proof look no further than McLaren deciding to offer a GT version of its 570S supercar dedicated to comfort rather than top speed, or Bentley launching its first long wheel-base six-seater Mulsanne flagship limousine.
Even at the comparatively mass-produced level, Jaguar, Land Rover and even Lotus now have dedicated divisions that exist solely to personalize their models to each client's exacting specifications.
But the most telling development is that of Mercedes-Benz's decision to resurrect the Maybach brand and to once again go toe-to-toe with the current Rolls-Royce line-up. It will be bringing its answer to the Rolls-Royce Dawn drophead -- the Mercedes-Maybach S 650 Cabriolet -- to the LA Auto Show on November 18.
Based on the same underpinnings of the company's flagship S Class Cabriolet, the car is expected to boast a turbocharged V12 engine, a bespoke interior and cutting-edge technology and be limited to just 300 individually numbered examples.
However, none of these competitors can truly lay claim to the Rolls-Royce crown yet, when it comes to craftsmanship, and Müller-Ötvös used his acceptance speech to highlight the gulf he perceives that still exists between the company and the competition.
"Our success is borne of a profound understanding that patrons of true luxury seek to curate, commission and collect extraordinary objects, crafted to their exacting specifications at true global centers of excellence," said Müller-Ötvös. "Rolls-Royce is the most celebrated luxury house in the world, built on the foundations of the skill and application of the world's finest craftspeople."
It's also notable that Rolls-Royce (along with Bentley and Bugatti) has decided to forego this year's LA Auto Show altogether, preferring to save its next new model -- widely anticipated to be the company's first ever SUV -- for the Geneva motor show in March 2017.
