STRATEGIC REPORT IN CONVERSATION WITH OUR CEO CONTINUED TH SS 2023 SAW ASTON MARTIN CELEBRATE ITS 110 OVERALL, HOW DO YOU ASSESS THE COMPANY’S TRTR ANNIVERSARY. HOW IMPORTANT WAS THAT MILESTONE FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE IN 2023? AA FOR THE BRAND? At our Capital Markets Day in June 2023, we spoke about accelerating TETE GG th II At the start of 2023, we said that we wanted our 110 year to be just as progress and I think we have demonstrated our ability to execute CC R R exciting as our first, and I believe we’ve firmly lived up to that promise! with improved financial performance this year. This has been EE The anniversary itself has been a fantastic opportunity to celebrate supported by continued demand for our new and existing ultra-luxury PP OO not just our unique heritage and brand equity, but also look firmly high-performance vehicles. RR to the future through the new products we’ve launched and the TT global series of events that have taken place to bring our community The rich mix of sales, driven by our ongoing commitment to product of customers even closer to the brand. innovation, supported growth in total and core average selling prices. GG OO Combined with ongoing business transformation efforts, this provided VEVE th Our 110 anniversary special edition Valour has proved to be a a significantly improved gross margin, continuing progress towards RR monumental commercial success and demonstrated our unique our mid-40s% gross margin target in 2027/28. NANNAN ability to operate at the very highest levels of the luxury automotive CC segment and attract new customers and collectors to the brand. THE FOURTH QUARTER HELD HUGE SIGNIFICANCE FOR EE ASTON MARTIN, WITH RECORD Q4 ADJUSTED EBITDA. IT HAS BEEN ANOTHER YEAR OF EXCITING NEW PRODUCT DOES THIS SHOW THE POTENTIAL OF THE BUSINESS? FF LAUNCHES FOR ASTON MARTIN. HOW SIGNIFICANT IS As expected, due to the timing of new models, Q4 was very strong II PRODUCT INNOVATION TO THE OVERALL with around a third of the year’s wholesales recorded in the period. NANNAN TRANSFORMATION OF THE COMPANY? Despite the slight delay to the DB12 ramp up, we saw strong ASP CC It’s essential. We know that to achieve our growth ambitions for the growth due to the pricing of our next generation sports cars and IALIAL Company we must have leading products in all of the fastest growing Specials, supporting record adjusted EBITDA in Q4. S S TT segments of the ultra-luxury market. The introduction of DB12, and AA TT now Vantage, has driven huge reappraisal of Aston Martin amongst Whilst pleased at our overall operational performance and ability to EE MM new audiences, as well as engaged and excited loyal customers adapt, clearly the longer-term opportunity for our business from 2025 EE NN who have always adored the brand. onwards is to deliver greater consistency across the year, underpinned TT by our product planning. SS 2024 now sees us begin to complete our vision to have a world-class FF product portfolio, with an incredible line-up of new front-engine HOW IMPORTANT HAS INVESTMENT IN PEOPLE UU RR sports cars to be completed by the end of this year, joining the best BEEN IN 2023? TT HH performance SUV in our segment. Then to complement the portfolio Driving forward investment in our people and culture has been one of EE RR we have an incredible, mid-engine supercar in Valhalla on the horizon, my key priorities since becoming CEO. In 2023, we launched new INF INF with prototype testing already taking place and the model currently company values which are at the heart of our commitment to making on course to enter production before the end of 2024. Aston Martin a Great Place to Work®. We’ve also completed phase OROR one of our plans to enhance communal facilities at our Gaydon MM AA WHAT INSIGHTS AND LEARNINGS HAVE THE DB12 LAUNCH headquarters and expanded our employee engagement programme TT II PRESENTED FOR THE BUSINESS AS YOU PREPARE TO with new internal initiatives and events, including a family weekend, ONON REVEAL FURTHER SPORTS CARS IN 2024? which saw more than 10,000 employees and their friends and families Commercially, I think the successful launch of DB12 has reinforced the attend. market opportunity we saw in our new positioning at the crossroads of ultra-luxury and high-performance. Media and customer feedback As part of our efforts to deepen our colleagues relationship with the about the design, performance and driving dynamics of the car have Company, during 2023 we also successfully launched our first been incredible, while the new interior and bespoke infotainment all-employee share plan, “Sharing Success”, which awarded 425 free system have been viewed as a huge positive for our future product shares to 2,541 employees. direction. The model was recently awarded “Car of the Year” for 2024 by Robb Report and confirmed by Autocar magazine as a true “Super GT”. This year we also welcomed a breadth of new talent to complement our skilled and passionate team. This ranges from an enhanced early On an operational level, clearly, during Q3 readiness and EE platform careers intake through to the recruitment of more than 100 people to integration issues caused initial production ramp up delays of DB12, new manufacturing positions at Gaydon and senior appointments which led to slightly lower wholesale volumes than we originally in areas such as electrification. Supported by our Electrification expected for the year. We have built stronger resilience in our supply Centre of Excellence, we continued our journey towards the first chain and product development processes over the last 18 months battery electric Aston Martin, with 205 colleagues completing over through increased alignment and investment in our relationships with 2,377 hours of specialist EV-related instructor-led training. suppliers. However, as we bring new products to the market in 2024 and navigate a challenging global environment, we must continue AMEDEO FELISA to build even more resilience. CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER ASTON MARTIN LAGONDA ANNUAL REPORT AND ACCOUNTS 2023 20