Aston Martin to Cut 170 Jobs to Reduce Costs
Aston Martin, the British luxury car manufacturer, announced on Wednesday that it will eliminate 170 jobs, or 5% of its global workforce. The move is part of a larger strategy to achieve operational savings and navigate ongoing financial challenges.
These job losses are anticipated to result in approximately £25 million in savings for the company. The cost-cutting measures are designed to address persistent issues, including supply chain disruptions, operational inefficiencies, and, importantly, lagging demand from the Chinese market.
The company’s announcement follows another year of financial losses, underscoring the need for strategic restructuring. Aston Martin reported an operating loss of £99.5 million (€119.9m) in 2024, a marginal improvement compared to the £111.2 million (€134m) loss recorded in the previous year. During the final quarter of 2024, the operating loss was £33.3m (€40.1m), a slight improvement over the £34.1m (€41.1m) loss from the same period in 2023.
Aston Martin’s pre-tax loss for the full year was £289.1 million (€348.4m), marking a 21% reduction compared with 2023.
“We are commencing a process to make organisational adjustments, to ensure the business is appropriately resourced for its future plans,” stated Aston Martin in its earnings statement released on Wednesday. “Linked directly to this difficult but necessary action, we expect annualised operating expenditure savings of circa £25m.” Approximately 50% of these savings are expected to be realized within the current year.
Owner Lawrence Stroll, a billionaire businessman who acquired the firm in 2020, aims to improve the efficiency of Aston Martin.
In its earnings statement, the company emphasized the importance of “instilling better rigour and discipline in the planning and execution of our product launch cycles, collaboration with our supply partners throughout the process to drive efficiencies, and always putting the customer at the centre of what we do.”
The company also acknowledged the need for more realistic product launch schedules, as overambitious timelines led to excessive costs and customer dissatisfaction.
Aston Martin is concentrating on the 2025 launch of its Valhalla hybrid model, with deliveries slated to begin in the second half of the year. The launch of Aston Martin’s first fully electric model is currently scheduled for the latter part of this decade, having already been delayed to 2026 last year.
Despite an 8% increase in wholesale volumes during the final quarter of 2024, overall deliveries for the year decreased. The company delivered 6,030 cars in 2024, a decrease from the 6,620 delivered in 2023.
“Supply chain disruptions” and a “weaker macroeconomic environment in China” were cited as contributing factors to these challenges, according to the carmaker. However, the company credited its new core product range for a boost in end-of-year sales.
Looking ahead to 2025, Aston Martin aims to achieve adjusted EBIT (earnings before interest and tax) in the black, along with generating positive free cash flow during the second half of the year.
A potential obstacle could be future trade tariffs introduced by US President Donald Trump, potentially affecting British car exports.
Aston Martin CEO Adrian Hallmark commented on Wednesday:
“After a period of intense product launches, coupled with industry-wide and Company challenges, our focus now shifts to operational execution and delivering financial sustainability. I see great potential in Aston Martin, and our goal is to transition from a high-potential business to a high-performing one, better equipped to navigate future opportunities and uncertainties.”
