Long before “bespoke” became a marketing mantra, India’s maharajas perfected the art of personalisation. Their RollsRoyces were embellished with gold, mother-of-pearl, silver cutlery, and even equipped for hunting. One Phantom II was famously matched to a queen’s pink slipper. Today, the tradition continues through Ferrari’s Tailor Made programme, Bentley’s Mulliner workshop, and RollsRoyce’s Bespoke Collective, where veneer inlays, monogrammed umbrellas, and dashboard timepieces are crafted with almost ecclesiastical intent. But true personalisation goes beyond finishes and flourishes. It becomes transformative when a buyer is invited into the very making of a machine. That experience unfolds in Sant’Agata Bolognese in Italy, where the Lamborghini’s Ad Personam programme is a fullscale automotive theatre.
My day as a Lamborghini customer replicated the real buyer journey, from securing an allocation for the sports car Revuelto to arriving at Automobili Lamborghini’s gates. What unfolded next felt far more immersive than a typical purchase.
The factory tour is a sensory overture. The scent of leather, the whir of torque wrenches, and the soft clatter of spools of coloured thread fill the air. Along the assembly lines, carbon-fibre monocoques are lowered onto the chassis with clinical precision. Nearby, V12 engines, which are the throbbing heart of the Revuelto car, stand ready to be paired with their soon-to-be homes.
In another wing, artisans hand-cut north Italian leather and stitch with a finesse that would hold its own on Savile Row. While robotics hum in the background, the human hand leads. Under Ad Personam, craft is king: every stitch, shade, and finish is logged into the car’s digital DNA.
The Ad Personam Studio is where imagination becomes tangible. Here, a vehicle configuration specialist acts as both guide and gatekeeper, interpreting the client’s vision while safeguarding the brand’s design codes. “This is where your car finds its soul,” says vehicle configuration specialist Viktor Wurmboeck, gesturing at a massive screen displaying a virtual Revuelto. This is the essence of the programme’s “phygital” experience, where material samples meet digital renderings, enhanced by Apple Vision Pro’s spatial computing.
There are over 400 custom shades on offer —from timeless solids to audacious multi-layer finishes, the palette is staggering. Techniques like Harlequin (colour-shifting), Crystalising (a sparkling overlay), and Fading (gradient blends) elevate paintwork into art. At the top sits Diamond Coating: a translucent layer infused with real diamond dust for a glow no metallic flake can mimic.
Inside the cabin, nearly everything is customisable, from seat belts and switchgear to embroidery. In the saddlery studio, personal narratives are translated into stitching and texture. Every selection, from the rims, and callipers to leather trims, and steering wheels, materialises on screen in real time. My journey continued with a simulation of La Prima, the factory-delivery experience reserved for about 80 clients each year.
The ceremony unfolds inside the facility where the car was born. Champagne flows, photographers hover, and the atmosphere crackles with anticipation. It’s an experience engineered to underline one truth: very few people on earth will ever stand in this room. Leaving Sant’Agata, it’s clear Lamborghini doesn’t merely sell fast cars it trades in emotion and aspiration.
My simulated day ended with time behind the wheel of the Revuelto. In the hills surrounding the factory, the V12 didn’t just roar—it howled through tunnels. Every shift delivered a jolt of electricity; every straight, a brief sermon in speed. But that drive deserves its own chapter.