Italian design house Bertone nearing bankruptcy

The Italian design house Bertone is reportedly nearing bankruptcy again, according to a report from Autocar. The carrozzeria has experienced financial problems in 2008 and 2013, and even though it generated more than €20 million, or approximately $28 million, last year, the company reportedly laid off 160 employees recently. At least 30 workers who have been laid off have taken action against the company, seeking to recover monies owed to them.

There are a number of other court cases in progress that concern Bertone's finances, most filed by suppliers who haven't been paid. Adding to the company's challenges, a large group of designers led by Bertone's ex-chief designer Michael Robinson have left in late 2013 and formed their own design consultancy in Turin called ED Design. It's unclear at this point in time how much damage the mass departure of the core group of designers has done to the company.

Bertone's primary source of revenue in recent years has been business in Asia, which includes design and engineering consultancy work by Bertone R&D. 80 percent of the company is currently owned by family matriarch Lilli Bertone, with the remaining 20 percent belonging to an investment firm.

The company started by Marcello Gandini has been responsible for some of the most iconic supercar designs of all time, including the Lamborghini Miura, though its most prolific design efforts have been mass market cars such as the Citro

By Jay Ramey