Just as companies like Hewlett Packard and Apple Computer were founded in a garage, so too was Lotus. In 1948, in a North London garage borrowed from his girlfriend's parents, British automotive genius Anthony Colin Bruce Chapman built his first Lotus, a racing car. Lotus went onto become one of the most famous and successful marques in motorsport and was renowned for its innovative thinking and voracious appetite for success in Formula 1™. Since its withdrawal from the sport's premier category the company maintained a lower profile but still produced dynamic cars that Chapman would have approved of.

In 2010 the Lotus name returned to the race tracks and, with a new CEO and an ambitious programme to restore their brand's reputation, Group Lotus embarked on an aggressive programme of product launches and brand revitalisation.