WANT to be the coolest of the cool?
Then you can forget style icons like Apple or Bang & Olufsen because the No 1 place to be is behind the wheel of an Aston Martin.
That’s because the distinguished marque hasn’t merely been named the UK’s coolest brand – it has done it for the fourth time in five years.
Since being established in 2001, the CoolBrands initiative has sought expert opinions from a panel of creative industry specialists and consumers to decide which brands combine desirable products with a dynamic public image.
And once again Aston Martin has topped a poll which includes design-driven names - including Apple and Bang & Olufsen - as well as other leading car companies.
The judging process involves an assessment of no less than 10,000 hopefuls, which are then whittled down to 500 'CoolBrands', from where the ultimate top 20 is compiled.
Aston Martin chief Dr Ulrich Bez said: “Once you can define precisely why a brand is cool, then it no longer has the magic that earns it that label.
“There has to be an element of mystique, something that eludes definition. In order for a brand to have that quality, it needs people behind it with a passionate, creative vision who care for and nurture it.”
The past decade has seen Aston Martin transformed from a small-scale manufacturer of specialist sports cars to a major international force in both road and racing cars.
This year has already seen the Aston Martin Rapide launched to worldwide acclaim and 2011 will see the first deliveries of the Aston Martin One-77, a hand-built carbon fibre and aluminium sports car powered by a radically reworked 7.3-litre V12 engine to create the fastest and most evocative Aston Martin ever made.