Back in 2015, a man who decided to place a bulk order on Land Rover Defenders before modifying them and selling them to make an eye-watering profit.
Charles Fawcett founded Yorkshire-based automotive company Twisted 26 years ago, before releasing their first Twisted TD5 90 demo vehicle by 2003.
The Brit decided to purchase 240 Land Rover Defenders in 2015, after hearing that the manufacturer would no longer be making the car.
His plan was to modify them and sell them through Twisted as bespoke premium vehicles, after storing them in a secret bunker.
Advert
Fawcett wanted to make each of them unique for the buyers, selling them in the early years for about $100,000 (£72,700) each.
While the profit margin was decent, there was plenty of room for improvement - something the businessman has remained focused on hitting.
While several doubted him, just 10 years on from his outrageous purchase, he's reaping the benefits of the risk.
More recently, Fawcett said that Twisted are looking to grow beyond their Defender venture, with the company enjoying huge success over the past decade.
The Defenders were some of the last to roll off the production line as they decided to discontinue the popular model (before bringing it back a few years later).
Like the name, Fawcett's company modifies and 'twists' these Defenders to such a high level, that even Jeremy Clarkson came around to liking their take on the Defender, despite hating the original.
Why did Charles Fawcett buy the Land Rover Defenders?
Speaking to LADbible, Fawcett admitted that his £8 million investment into the discontinued cars proved fruitful in the end, as he has a list of A-list clients who he couldn't share.
It wasn't an easy feat though, as he explained: "Land Rover are very protective of their brand, they didn’t want people taking the product, changing it and making money off it.
"When I placed the order, what I didn’t tell [Land Rover] was that I had no money to pay for them and I didn’t have anywhere to put them."
After some convincing, he struck a deal but 'ad to borrow every single penny of that money', later aiming to 'pay back every single penny of that money'.
"Everyone thought we were nuts," he admitted.
The risk wasn't too high in his head though, as Fawcett claimed: "These vehicles would always sell even if they sold for what they cost me."
"History has proven that an outgoing model in the automotive sector always depreciates quickly. We believed it would appreciate and we needed it to," he added.
How much he has made from them?
Opening up on how much he spent on the bulk order, Fawcett said: "I negotiated a 14.8 percent discount of 240 vehicles that had a retail of around £30,000, so I probably paid £22,600 per vehicle."
Fawcett said that his company 'put 1,500 hours into every single build', adding: "That's 1,500 hours of labour using parts, components and processes developed over 25 years.
"It really is an extraordinary level of craftsmanship and attention to detail that justifies the premium price point, but it was still a huge risk. Ultimately, we build something no one needs but the desire for it is huge."
He claimed at the time of the interview, in 2024, that in the nine years since production ended, they 'will have turned well over in excess of £50 million'.
Fawcett said that the business 'would look quite different' without those Defenders, claiming at the time that they were down to the final 25 models.
"I'm going to keep some for myself," he admitted.
How much are they selling for now?
Fawcett said that in the early years, the vehicles could go for anywhere between £70,000-£90,000, but as time has gone on, the company can sell the modified Defenders at £180,000-£320,000 a pop.
Joshua Nair