Finishing touches are being put to the flagship McLaren Bahrain Tower – shortly opening its first phase for business in the shadow of the Sakhir circuit, coinciding with the coming Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix 2020.
Bahrain’s sovereign wealth fund Mumtalakat is the majority shareholder of the McLaren Group. Within it, the British sports car marque considers the kingdom its second home and its automotive wing’s Bahrain-based regional managing director Brett Soso can’t wait to move in with his team.
“Our new brand centre opens up so many opportunities for us,” the 47-year-old South African expat said. “I think it reflects the commitment that shareholders have to the McLaren brand. It is positioned ideally when you think of McLaren’s heritage coming out of Formula One.
“And, I think from a statement perspective, it shows our customers, and our potential ones, that this is a brand going somewhere - that we’re investing in the future, making sure they have the best of the best.
“It’s incredibly exciting to be in that position. It’s going to make a significant statement come Formula One time in March.
“We are looking to have a facility that customers can come through, see a bit of the history and understand what the brand is all about. We will have merchandising available, as well as a coffee shop where customers can relax and enjoy the atmosphere. That will happen during the course of 2020.”
The McLaren Bahrain Tower, boasting an area of approximately 8,000sqm across eight floors, is set to become the brand’s third largest global facility after its technology and production centres in the UK.
Phase I not only sees relocation of the regional office for McLaren Automotive’ s Middle East, Africa and Latin America division from its temporary home at Bahrain Bay, but also a McLaren Special Operations (MSO) facility on the top floor.
“I think that’s what makes it so exciting,” said Mr Soso. “Customers can come in and spec their car, and we can take them through a number of options we have available to then really bring to life their dream McLaren.”
Those options include individual paint colours and leather interiors, different combinations of both, with instant onscreen visualisations at hand.
These sessions could take several hours if need be. “It’s all about making sure we can deliver to our customers something truly special,” he explained.
And those who can splash out more than BD90,000 - and the rest - on a unique, luxury sports car can afford to be discerning, if somewhat demanding at times.
One customer, for example, wanted her McLaren to have the same shade as her favourite handbag.
And all customers are different, especially considering the vast and diverse area he and his 13-strong team has to cover.
McLaren Automotive’s Middle East, Africa and Latin American region comprises 13 retail locations in 11 markets, taking in Mexico City, São Paulo Brazil, Santiago Chile and a service centre in Lima, Peru. There’s South Africa’s Johannesburg and Cape Town too as well as the ‘local patch’ covering Bahrain, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Lebanon, with Muscat in Oman opening this year, and other locations on the horizon.
“We share the responsibility of travelling, we all understand it is all part of the job. If we are going to deliver a world class service to our retailers and our customers we need to be on the ground where the action is,” said Mr Soso, who says he hasn’t clocked the number of air miles he’s collected since joining the company 18 months ago, although he has visited every one of them.
The new regional headquarters has the potential to accommodate future business requirements in line with growth plans outlined in the company’s much-heralded Track25 business plan.
“We have a magnificent white canvas to create something truly special,” he said. “As a team we’re looking at various options that will allow us to explore a number of different facets of the McLaren brand.”
Although it’s not a retail operation, that task is being performed ‘admirably’, says the makers, by Kanoo Motors’ McLaren Bahrain operation in Tubli, with ‘impressive’ after-sales care. The brand centre will have most models on display, including examples of the 570S, 600LTs, 720S and the recently launched McLaren GT.
Mr Soso has 25 years’ experience in the automotive industry, holding executive management positions, including the prestigious post of regional director Middle East and Africa for Rolls-Royce Motor Cars in Dubai.
He has settled in Al Jasra with his wife, Megan, who home-schools their two children, aged 11 and six. A former marathon runner, he now enjoys cycling, a sport, incidentally, with strong McLaren ties.
UCI World Tour road racing outfit Team Bahrain McLaren recently unveiled its new identity. Originally conceived by Shaikh Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa, and having competed as Team Bahrain Merida since 2017, the change in the team’s name signals a bold new chapter. This year, it has signed Grand Tour stars Mikel Landa and Wout Poels, as well as Mark Cavendish, the most successful Grand Tour sprinter of all time.
Don’t be surprised to spot a two-wheeled Team Bahrain McLaren racing cycle on display alongside the four-wheeled mean machines at the new Sakhir regional centre.
Mr Soso joined McLaren Automotive at an important time, shortly after the launch of its £1.2bn Track25 business plan promising 18 new models and derivatives by 2025 and a desire to grow its global retail offering.
“I think McLaren is an incredibly exciting brand, if you look back at what it has achieved over the last 10 years,” he said, “from an automotive perspective, it’s something really special. And, look at the heritage that comes out of Formula One, it’s a brand that is going places.
“What enticed me was the chance to join a relatively young company and have the opportunity to make a difference.
“Given the region I’m responsible for, I have that opportunity. The structures aren’t firm and set, it’s a lot more dynamic and a lot more entrepreneurial. It’s exciting and we’re empowered as a team to go out and engage with our customers and retailers. That’s something I really love about the McLaren brand and what I saw from the outside before I joined.
“We’re going places, and with Track25 it’s an incredibly exciting place to be. I feel very pleased and privileged to have the opportunity to work for a company like McLaren.”
Mr Soso comes with a human resources background which he believes offers an essential asset in his current role.
“We sell cars but it’s all about people, so from the regional team I am responsible for, through the retail network and supporting our customers, it’s all about people,” he explained.
“Having a background in human resources allows me to engage, react and interact. I think also the diverse markets I have already been exposed to in Africa, China, the Middle East and now Latin America, plus Europe to a certain extent, allows me to better understand cultures and the need to tailor our approaches in different markets.”
And the differences are apparent to the seasoned eye. “You might find in one market that a customer has read all about the car, will come into a showroom and want one there and then, so we have to make sure our retailers are carrying the right stock level to be able to support the demand,” he explained.
“You’ll find in another market, however, customers like to ‘spec’ their own cars and therefore you have to manage that and have the ability to allow them to make all their bespoke choices.
“We need to cater for these differing markets and when we launch a new model, for example, we have to consider how to best cater for differing tastes too!”
In one part of his patch, for example, drivers particularly love dark interiors whereas those in another prefer a much lighter look.
It is horses for courses, or perhaps horse power … which comes neatly to the hurdles facing an industry, if not racing ahead, appearing to be gearing towards an electronic future.
“We have a clear plan up to 2025 but the way things are changing around the world, especially with the introduction of new regulations, we need to be mindful of what changes are afoot,” said Mr Soso.
“We represent a global audience, have a global customer base, and our customers want to make sure they can drive their McLarens wherever they are around the world.
“I think, specifically when it comes to gaps in the market, we have already stated that by 2025 all our cars will be hybrid, and then we will be looking at future options to make sure our cars remain relevant.”
It has been suggested in some motoring journals that weight is the reason for the delay of an electric McLaren hypercar coming on to the market, although Mr Soso is not convinced that’s the only consideration.
“If you talk about electric cars, one of the things is range, particularly when it comes to the Middle East where you face the kind of intense heat that we do.
“There has been a lot of work done around electrification and we are mindful as to what is happening in the broader context and we will continue to explore a number of options.
“I think for McLaren as a brand, one of the challenges we face for an all-electric car, is the driver experience. Whilst the torque is incredible you’ve got to understand if you have to go fully electric you’ll have a very quiet car. You’ll lose that vibration, you’ll lose that sound which are all part of the driving experience of a McLaren.
“Legislation might further steer the automotive industry down that route, we might not have a choice, and we will adapt as we need to.”
The future, whatever challenges it brings, looks bright, a confident Mr Soso predicts, which is good news for McLaren, good news for luxury sports car fans and, ultimately, good news for Bahrai
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