Bentley relaunches customer magazine as W.O. Magazine, spotlighting owners and heritage
Bentley revamps its 25-year-old customer magazine as W.O. Magazine, named after founder Walter Owen Bentley and centered on the people behind the marque.
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What Happened
Bentley's customer magazine has been relaunched as W.O. Magazine, named after founder Walter Owen Bentley. First published in 2001, the publication has evolved through numerous iterations over 25 years and was previously known simply as Bentley Magazine. The new editorial direction is customer-focused, placing owners and their stories at the centre and presenting Bentley through the people who know it best. The relaunch also highlights the enduring appeal of print and the value of carefully crafted, tactile experiences.
The new issue — Issue 86 — travels around the world, from Tokyo to the Italian lakes, meeting people whose lives and interests intersect with Bentley in unexpected ways. It features the cover story with American actor and filmmaker Billy Zane, known for Titanic, Dead Calm and Waltzing with Brando, in which he portrays Marlon Brando. Zane, a Bentley Turbo R owner, shares his passion for cars, his career in film and the journey that led him to Bentley ownership, and writes a personal welcome as a guest contributor. Each issue will continue to place an owner and their Bentley at its heart.
“W.O. was an inspiration to so many people, and his vision is embodied in every Bentley that has left our factory, both past and present. We wanted this new magazine to be representative of his strive for perfect, innovative engineering. With W.O. Magazine, we wanted to shine a light on our extraordinary community of customers and enthusiasts, celebrating their stories and the shared passion for cars and the automotive world that brings them together. W.O. Magazine is a collectible piece in its own right, one that we are looking forward to seeing in the hands of our customers and friends of the brand.”
A photograph from the Bentley Heritage Collection shows four Bentley racing cars and their drivers on Mount Street ahead of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, where Bentley claimed its fourth victory with a 1-2-3-4 finish.
Bentley's customer magazine is first published; it runs for 25 years as Bentley Magazine until the relaunch.
W.O. Magazine launches at the Bentley Newsagent in Mayfair; limited-edition copies are available there until 4 September.
The exclusive availability period at the Bentley Newsagent ends.
- Greg Williams, Bentley External Creative Director and VIP photographer
- Kate Peck, TV presenter and acclaimed writer
- Kasper Garnell, founding partner of Joe and the Juice coffee and pioneer of the brand's evolution into the zeitgeist
- Peter Grunert, Editor of the cult car magazine Road Rat
- Jeffrey Lee, Bentley's Head of Art Direction, with a career that included roles at Condé Nast and British GQ
To celebrate the launch, Bentley has transformed Automat, Mount Street in Mayfair into the Bentley Newsagent for one week, open to the public from 28 August. The location is steeped in the marque's racing history: a photograph from the Bentley Heritage Collection shows four Bentley racing cars on Mount Street in 1929, just 150 metres from the Mayfair apartment once owned by Bentley Boy Bernard Rubin. That year Bentley claimed its fourth Le Mans victory, with Woolf Barnato and Tim Birkin's Speed Six leading three Bentley 4½ Litres to a historic 1-2-3-4 finish. Visitors can collect a limited-edition copy of W.O. Magazine with the purchase of a hot or cold drink while stocks last; after the public launch, the magazine will be distributed directly to Bentley customers.
W.O. Magazine has been created with the support of leading creative voices, and the design brief was to craft a customer magazine with the quality and permanence of a collectible publication. The format has been reimagined with considered materials and a tactile combination of paper stocks, giving it a sumptuous coffee table book quality. Creative direction is deliberately pared back with bold typography, full-bleed imagery and white space, while Bentley's heritage colour palette is woven throughout. Physical finishing includes Bentley's signature Bentley Green specially colour-matched, a textured wrap, white foil detailing and a subtle spot UV finish.
Why this matters
For a beginner, this shows how a heritage carmaker uses print and community to reinforce brand identity, not just sell cars. Bentley customers and enthusiasts get a collectible magazine with owner stories, a Billy Zane cover, and an exclusive Mayfair pop-up where limited-edition copies can be picked up with a drink. The relaunch also ties modern Bentley to its 1920s racing roots and the Bentley Boys and Girls.
Terms in This Story
- Bentley Boys and Girls
- Wealthy British motorists and racers associated with Bentley in the 1920s and 1930s, known for daring exploits and competition success.
- 1-2-3-4 finish
- A race result in which one team's cars take the top four positions, often considered a dominant performance.
- Spot UV
- A print finishing method that adds a glossy, raised coating to selected areas of a page for visual contrast.
- Masthead
- The printed name or title of a magazine or newspaper, usually at the top of the front cover.
Summarised from the linked release; details can be imperfect — always verify against the original source.