Aston Martin to cut a third of workforce

Well, one would think there was very little left of the British motor industry to be hit by the present crisis. The British luxury marques are still around but, surely, they are immune to the economic crisis? After all, don't really, really rich people not need to be making even more money all the time in order to keep buying insanely expensive stuff?

Well, for Aston Martin it seems like it isn't so.

Aston Martin has announced that it will be cutting about a third of its work force to meet the challenge of falling demand for its models.

The luxury maker of models such as the DB9 and the Vantage, who have also supplied James Bond with his set of wheels since the 60s, has said it will cut about 300 regular staff and about another 300 temporary workers. Aston Martin will also be shutting down production at Christmas for an additional two weeks beyond its normal break.

The car maker said that this year it will sell less than the 7,000 units it sold in 2007. Sales in the UK were down 25 percent in October compared to the same period last year. About a third of Aston Martin sales are from its domestic market.

Aston isn't the only British luxury brand cutting back. Rolls Royce, owned by BMW, has cut about 40 jobs and closing down its Goodwood, UK plant for two days this week.

Aston Martin, based in Gaydon, Warwickshire in the UK, currently employs about 1850 people.