“Radford was originally founded in 1948 as Harold Radford (Coachbuilders) Ltd. After the Second World War, founder Harold Radford made a name for himself offering coach-built Bentley and Rolls Royce motor cars. Radford made its debut at the London Motor Show in 1951, where it showed the luxurious Bentley Countryman. The company was also involved in creating bespoke fibreglass bodywork for the prototype GT40, but it was Radford’s modification of Bentley models and later Minis that gave the company its admired reputation for luxurious, tailored bespoke automobiles.”
It is a British luxury brand focused on creating “on-trend cars with timeless designs”. It’s motto: “Design – Build – Drive”.
Harold Radford was the creator of opulent and custom-made cars for stars like John Lennon and others.
This revived initiative will employ Mark Stubbs as the designer. The builder craftsman will be Ant Anstead and the driver will be Formula One world champion, Jenson Button. Roger Behle will be the group’s business adviser.
All products will be designed and custom-made for those truly discerning customers.
“It’s the perfect time for the Radford brand to be rekindled. Harold Radford’s creations were the ultimate in personalised, tailored transport and with the renaissance of the art of coachbuilding, now is the time to bring Radford back in contemporary form. We intend to create designs that will be true to the Radford legacy and go on to create a new heritage for this storied brand. In fact, in the long time that we’ve been planning this, one question we will keep asking ourselves is ‘what would Harold do if he were here today?’ and that is going to shape our thinking for the exciting cars in our immediate future,” said Stubbs.
Anstead said, “The time for a revival of proper coachbuilding is right now. People want something unique, something different and something tailor-made. That’s where Radford comes in – our cars will offer the ultimate in global luxury and personalisation, blending British heart and soul, state-of-the-art technology with traditional craftsmanship. Jenson, Mark and I are proud to be reviving Radford and humbled to be custodians of this legendary company. Future partnerships that we already have in place are a testament to what Radford is capable of achieving. It feels like fate that a designer, a builder and a driver have all united at this perfect time. It’s really exciting.”
Button said, “To be able to help revive this iconic name is such a special and unique opportunity. The Radford brand carries such prestige and magnetism for anyone with an appreciation of cars. The work that Harold Radford and his team were responsible for in the mid-1900s is simply incredible, so I jumped at the chance to join Ant and Mark in their quest to put the Radford name back in the spotlight. The journey has very much begun, and news of our first car will follow shortly, so watch this space.”
Behle said, “This is a special project. I’ve never seen anything quite like it. We’ve brought together the talents of three automotive greats, Mark, Ant and Jenson, collaborating under the banner of a historic British brand. We’ve already achieved a lot in a short space of time and the tremendous energy in this company is palpable. We can’t wait to reveal the exciting plans and products that we’re already working on. It’s going to be fun telling the world about them in the coming weeks and months.”
A new journey with a respected brand can but only deliver the next generation of iconic vehicles and it would seem the market is ready for this.
Source: Radford / influenceassociates.com
