Welcome to Stradale Icons
Our Story
Some passions are chosen. Others are inherited.
Mine arrived early, in the form of a bright red Ford Capri GT — my father's car, the one that started everything. He was a committed car man, and the influence was inevitable: weekend drives and the thrill of a car that was built to make experiences rather than just merely driven. The Capri maybe long gone — but it survives in photographs, and in the memory of a child who understood, even then, that certain cars carry a significance that outlasts their ownership.
The Early Years
Growing up in Kent, Brands Hatch was a short drive away. Every summer, my father and uncle would take me to the British Grand Prix and the Race of Champions — to watch James Hunt, Niki Lauda, Gilles Villeneuve and Emerson Fittipaldi racing wheel to wheel in an era when the sport was raw, dangerous and completely unfiltered. Pitlane access was informal, which meant meeting the drivers whose cars adorned my bedroom walls was not only possible, but expected. I still have the autograph book to tell.
It was not only racing that shaped me. The cars parked in the paddock and display areas — rarely seen Ferraris, Aston Martins and Jaguars that existed outside the pages of magazines — deepened an obsession that has never left. Significant cars owned by family and friends included the Giugiaro-penned Lancia Delta, Scimitar GTE and vintage Bentley Blower - and The Persuaders Ferrari Dino and Aston Martin on TV - further fuelled my passion.
Car Ownership
My own ownership began at sixteen. Many wonderful Italian, British and German cars have come and gone over the decades, each one fastidiously maintained, many parted with reluctantly. For those of us who share the passion, ownership is never simply possession. We are stewards — responsible for a car during our chapter of its life, before passing it on to the next custodian in better condition than we received it. That philosophy is the foundation on which Stradale Icons is built.
The Maserati Years
My fascination for Maserati began as a boy after reading about Fangio and Moss racing the 250F. Then in my early-20s, while working for a City trading firm, a currency dealer I supported owned a glorious Shamal, unlike most of his colleagues who drove a BMW or Porsche — a Maserati was something very special indeed. The word ‘Maserati’ literally hangs in the air when spoken - evocative, thrilling and historic. When he brought the Shamal to work, I was in awe.
Twenty years later as a Maserati owner myself, what began as a modest idea — five local Maserati owners meeting at a pub — became something considerably more. Over time, the informal Maserati drivers group grew, through shared enthusiasm and word of mouth, into a community that met monthly and travelled together to the likes of the Le Mans Classic, Spa Classic and cultural driving tours through France, Italy and Spain. The connections made, the events organised and the experiences created over those years, built both a network and a skillset that now sit at the heart of Stradale Icons' events and experiences offering.
Those years also reinforced something I had always believed — that the most meaningful moments happen on a great road, in the right company, and in a car worthy of the drive.
Confluence
Decades of ownership, events and direct experience in this world leave a mark. The network I have built — specialist workshops, restoration professionals, historic race support teams, leading automotive media, marque experts and fellow collectors — is not a contact list. It is the infrastructure that makes everything Stradale Icons does possible.
Collectors of truly significant cars deserve a trusted partner who understands what their car means, where it belongs, and how to protect its legacy.
That is what I built Stradale Icons to be.
I came to this from two directions simultaneously. A professional background in the City of London — the kind of work that teaches you how trust is built when the stakes are significant. And a lifelong obsession with the cars themselves: not as objects of speculation, but as mechanical expressions of a particular moment in history — when Italian coachbuilders and British engineers were creating cars that have never quite been equalled. An obsession lived as much as studied, through owning and running these cars at first hand.
When those two worlds converged, Stradale Icons became inevitable.
Simon Crockford — Founder
Simon Crockford - Founder
Please do not hesitate to get in touch — we would be delighted to discuss how we can help you.