Bentley's CEO of North and South America reveals the biggest way millennials are different than older customers

Robert Galbraith/Reuters

Bentley Motors Inc. CEO Christophe Georges.

• Millennials care more than older customers about the origins of the products they buy and their environmental impact, Christophe Georges, the CEO of Bentley's Americas division, said in an interview with Business Insider.
• Each of Bentley's vehicles will have a hybrid option by 2023, and the luxury automaker plans to release its first fully-electric vehicle in 2025.
• Bentley's factory in Crewe, England, receives all of its electricity from renewable sources.
• "We want to be the most sustainable luxury manufacturer in the world," Georges said.
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Climate change has received more attention as its current and future effects become increasingly dire. Millennial luxury-car buyers have taken notice, according to Christophe Georges, the CEO of Bentley Motors Inc., Bentley's Americas division.

The biggest difference between millennials and older customers is that millennials care more about the origins of the products they buy and their environmental impact, Georges said in an interview with Business Insider.

Like other automakers, Bentley plans to increase its electric and hybrid offerings in the coming years. Each of its vehicles will have a hybrid option by 2023, and the luxury automaker plans to release its first fully-electric vehicle in 2025. Bentley's factory in Crewe, England, receives all of its electricity from renewable sources.

"We want to be the most sustainable luxury manufacturer in the world," Georges said.

While millennials, like older generations, care about craftsmanship and aesthetics, aligning an auto brand's values with those of its customers will in the future have as big an impact on sales as beauty and luxury, Georges said.

Rising global temperatures have led to more extreme weather and could displace hundreds of millions of people in the next 80 years in some scenarios. Driven by tightening emissions regulations in China and Europe, automakers plan to spend $225 billion on electrified vehicles through 2023. While demand for electric vehicles in the US has been light, consumers in general have shown an increased preference for sustainable products.

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