Lavish launch for Ducati Diavel

Ducati turned the glitz ‘n glamour dial up to 11 last month when it hosted an event celebrating the new Diavel V4 at the top of the famous ‘Gherkin’ tower in the City of London. Stars including Richard Hammond, Carl Fogarty and Chris Walker were there, along with Ducati dealers, owners’ groups and the press, to hear speeches from the engineers and designers behind the new power cruiser, as well as Ducati UK boss Fabrizio Cazzoli. Italian ambassador to the UK, Inigo Lambertini, gave a cheery few words about how great Ducati is before guests hit the free bar and danced to a top DJ. According to events specialists, the whole event could have easily topped £100k to put on.

BDN grabbed Cazzoli and Francesco Milicia, Ducati’s VP for global sales, to catch up on how the firm is doing in the UK and globally. We started by asking about sales in 2022 when Ducati achieved a global sales record. “We had record sales in the UK as well,” said Cazzoli. “The growth was a little over 9% versus the previous year, which is not massive, but it’s of motorcycles. Our aim is to give the best experience that a Ducatista can get.”

The Ducati manager returned to this point when asked about dealer network changes. “There are a number of new dealers in the pipeline,” said Cazzoli, “but it’s the quality of the dealer we are looking for. Our priority is to have a better and better dealer network in terms of quality, service and proposition.”

Global sales boss Francesco Milicia cut in to emphasise the point. “We live in a world where many retailers go to online sales or to an agency model, but we strongly believe in the relevance of the dealer through face-toface contact with our customers. Our dealers understand they are not just a trader, but brand ambassadors. Many of our dealers are really excellent ambassadors for the brand. They are passionate, and if the chemistry works, our brand will continue to succeed.”

How is the Ducati supply chain coping now? Much better, it seems. “There has been a change already,” says Cazzoli. “In Q4 last year, you could see good product availability when you walked into a showroom. But I must say the work that has been done behind the scenes by our suppliers, the factory, and purchasing departments is absolutely outstanding. The amount of effort, the late nights these people have been put through in order to provide those bikes has been outstanding.”

And how will a high-value luxury brand like Ducati handle the impact of the cost-of-living crises and rising interest rates? Cazzoli is cautious here. “I think it’s too early to say, but it would be complacent to assume that our product and customers won’t be affected. We are monitoring closely what is going on and keeping an eye on the behaviour of our customers.

“There are some encouraging signals, and inflation seems to have peaked. We will have to wait and see.”