Aston Martin Really Needs $1M Valhalla to Sell as It Lays Off 170 Workers
Sales are down and debt is up at Aston Martin, leaving it with hard decisions to make if it wants to financially recover this decade—let alone this year. The post Aston Martin Really Needs $1M Valhalla to Sell as It Lays Off 170 Workers appeared first on The Drive.
Aston Martin is laying off 170 people. The iconic British luxury brand saw sales drop 9% last year, so to cut costs for 2025, the company decided to trim 5% of its workforce. There could be light at the end of the tunnel as it launches its seven-figure Valhalla flagship, though right now, it’s simply too early to call because mega-millionaires need to actually buy them first.
“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,” Aston Martin CEO Adrian Hallmark said in a recent statement according to Reuters.
Among the challenges Hallmark mentioned were supply chain issues and falling demand in China. The latter certainly hurt since China is one of Aston’s key markets. Additionally, the brand’s total sales fell to 6,030 cars in 2024—far short of the 10,000-unit goal set by Aston Martin part-owner and executive chairman Lawrence Stroll.
The 170 job cuts span all departments, including manufacturing and management—both plant workers and office dwellers. In the statement, Aston Martin called this a “difficult but necessary action,” and it’s one that will reportedly save the company $32 million. That doesn’t seem like a lot of money for a car company to save, especially since the company’s pre-tax losses totaled $325 million last year, bringing its net debt up to $1.47 billion.
And the road to financial success is only going to get more difficult for Bond’s favorite brand. The United States is Aston’s biggest market and new tariffs will make it more difficult to find sales across the Atlantic. However, the release of the new Vanquish helped improve sales by 10% toward the end of 2024, giving Aston the momentum it hopes to carry into this year.
In theory, Aston should net some increased cash flow with sales of the Valhalla, its upcoming mid-engine hybrid hypercar. Only 999 Valhallas will be made, though each one will reportedly cost $1.1 million, injecting the brand with some much-needed revenue. While Aston expects roughly the same sales volume in 2025, Hallmark believes Valhalla sales will be a “significant contributor” to the marque’s hopeful financial recovery in the coming years.
Valhalla deliveries are expected to begin in the second half of 2025.
Got tips? Send ’em to tips@thedrive.com
The post Aston Martin Really Needs $1M Valhalla to Sell as It Lays Off 170 Workers appeared first on The Drive.
