CREWE/GOODWOOD, U.K. (July 10, 2026) – It’s no surprise that cars steal the spotlight at the Goodwood Festival of Speed. From cutting-edge concepts to vintage classics, whether on static display or roaring up the legendary Hill, jaw-dropping machinery is what pulls thousands of fans to the West Sussex estate every summer.

But there’s another story unfolding behind the scenes: a small crew of Bentley employees who made the trip down from Crewe to give the Bentley experience at Goodwood its own distinct flavor. For a few days, a slice of the Crewe factory relocates to Goodwood, carrying with it the same standards, craftsmanship, and pride found at Bentley’s home base in northwest England.

Guests stopping by the stand are welcomed with a warm smile from James Haywood, Senior Marketing Manager, who mans the Lounge Reception Desk. Like many of his coworkers, he made the trip from Crewe to lend a hand.

“It’s all about authenticity — not just as a brand, but as people,” Haywood notes. “It’s how we connect with customers and the public, and it’s easy to get behind because it lets us show our genuine passion for Bentley.”

Custom-Built, No Limits
For Phill Dean, Bespoke Design Manager at Mulliner, Goodwood is where customers get to see just how far Bentley personalization can go. Now 17 years into his career at the company and attending his seventh Festival of Speed, Dean works out of The Studio on the Bentley stand, where clients can order their next car.

Mulliner is Bentley’s custom-build division, turning individual ideas into meticulously crafted details. While Bentley’s online configurator already offers a massive range of combinations, Mulliner pushes that even further.

“Our website lets you build billions of combinations,” Dean says. “Mulliner makes that limitless.”

At Goodwood, that translates into a constant stream of design consultations, often set up by dealers who fly customers in from around the globe for the Festival.

“Every customer is different,” Dean adds. “Some want something sporty, others want something understated, and some show up with really specific asks — matching leather to a watch strap, or a finish nobody else has. Bentley offers 14 standard leathers, but Mulliner can pull from a much bigger range and, when needed, match any color across the full RGB spectrum.”

The Hands Behind the Wheel
Elsewhere on the stand, visitors can watch Bentley’s craftsmanship happen live. For Alison Bourne, Goodwood is a chance to showcase the skill that usually stays behind closed doors at the Crewe factory.

Bourne has been with Bentley for 23 years, the last 19 spent trimming and stitching steering wheels. This is her second year at Goodwood, where she’s demonstrating the materials and hand techniques behind one of the most touch-driven parts of any Bentley cabin.

“I love my job,” she says. “Every wheel comes out different. Leather is a natural material, so no two steering wheels are ever alike. I love working with these materials — they’re so soft and satisfying to shape.”

Seventeen people work on steering wheels at Bentley, and each one owns their work completely. Bourne signs her name on every wheel she finishes — a quiet point of pride tucked inside the final product. She also came up with a new stitching technique for Bentley wheels, the box stitch, which she’s enjoyed showing off to visitors at the stand.

“I’m really proud of what I do,” she says. “And I love being here at Goodwood — meeting all kinds of people and getting to answer questions from folks curious about our work.”

Keeping Bentley on the Hill
That same pride shows up in the technical crew keeping Bentley’s cars race-ready. For 27-year-old Callum Downham, a Vehicle Technician in the Press and Special Division, this marks his first Goodwood with Bentley. He joined the company in 2021 and handles the cars both on the stand and headed up the Hill.

Downham’s work — inspections that mostly go unnoticed — matters most when those cars are flying past huge crowds at speed.

“The atmosphere, the cars,” he says, pausing as an engine roars past the Bentley stand in a cloud of noise and smoke. “It’s incredible. I’m a total car guy, so there’s no better place to work than this.”

That same dedication carries over to Bentley’s heritage fleet. Adam Critchley, a Mulliner Technician, takes care of the historic cars at the Festival — an event he’s attended many times as a fan and twice now for work.

“There’s nowhere else with this mix of cars and people. The energy here is unreal.”

Critchley inspects the heritage cars before they head up the Hill and handles any repairs on the spot. Working on cars up to a century old takes real skill, but he says he’d rather see them pushed hard than sit still.

“These were built to race, and they love being driven fast — like they are here. It’s great watching them do what they were made for. I’m not driving this year, but I’d love to get behind the wheel next time.”

More Than Just Cars
Not every job at Goodwood revolves around the vehicles themselves. Caitlyn Murrell, a Project Management Degree Apprentice from Crewe, signed up to help sell official Bentley merchandise on the stand.

“I’m having a blast,” she says. “The energy from the team on the stand is contagious.”

One of the best sellers is the 1919 Collection, a limited run of merchandise sold exclusively at Goodwood and Monterey Car Week. Demand has been high, with some fans making the trip to the Festival just to snag a piece.

“Stock is limited, and we get fresh inventory every day, so it’s smart to show up early if you want to grab something specific.”

The People Behind Bentley
Together, these team members represent a full cross-section of life at Bentley — design, craftsmanship, engineering, heritage, and customer experience. Their jobs may differ, but they all share the same pride in the company, in Crewe, and in the details that make a Bentley what it is.

The cars will always be the headline act at the Festival of Speed. But look a little closer, and Bentley’s presence tells another story too — about the people who build these cars, and what they bring to the brand.