BRISBANE RACES TO THE TOP IN FERRARI'S BOOKS

FERRARI has officially roared into Newstead, with already strong sales from a local clientele that has placed Brisbane as the fastest growing market for the luxury Italian brand in Australia.

Auto baron Martin Roller is behind the wheel of Ferrari's new standalone Brisbane showroom, set across 550sqm on the corner of Breakfast Creek Road and Waterloo Street.

The new showroom was officially opened last night to meet what Roller describes as 'pent-up demand' that is 'absolutely' an indication of the economy's strength.

"Forget the short-term stuff about the stock market, that's just a small blip - car and property sales are typically great indicators of economy activity," says Roller.

"Since we've had the Ferrari brand, which hasn't even been 12 months, we've sold more than 60 new and used cars - this is up 300 per cent on the year before."

Last night's showroom launch featured the unveiling the new Ferrari 488 GTB (pictured), which has established a pre-launch sales record for Ferrari in Australia, with the Brisbane dealership leading the way in terms of client order per capita of population. The Ferrari 488 has sold out until 2017.

Ferrari Australasia CEO Herbert Appleroth (pictured with Martin Roller), visiting from Sydney, says there is a host of reasons why Queensland sales are up 300 per cent from a year ago which has outstripped interstate rivals.

Already, total year-to-date sales for the Brisbane dealership are at 140 and anticipated to break through the previous record of 160.

"There was a period of abstinence during and after the GFC and I'm sure the extreme of that is in Queensland where there are always greater highs and lows," says Appleroth.

"In that moment of abstinence it wasn't cool to be driving a $600,000 Ferrari when you had just laid off 300 people, so there has been a pent-up demand and people have now decided it's the right time to reward themselves."

Appleroth says driving this surge are local developers, builders and cosmetic surgeons, who fit a profile five years junior to the Ferrari owner of five years ago. The average age of Ferrari owners worldwide is currently 49 years. 

In terms of volume, Queensland is now about 20 per cent of Ferrari's Australia and New Zealand business, tracking above the long-term average of 15 per cent.

"The hardest thing right now is keeping those people who are waiting for their new Ferrari 488 GTB happy," says Appleroth. 

"Buying a Ferrari is all about passion and now we have to work to calm that passion.

"But it's a good problem for us to have - and there are other models available to keep them happy in the meantime."