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Over the years, countless car designers have built concept cars that were never destined to go into production - an idea totally alien to Chris Hrabalek, founder of car design agency Fenomenon.

His sensational Stratos - which pays homage to the legendary 1970's Lancia rally car - may look like a concept, but it was always going to be sold to the public.

Auto Trader's Stuart Milne caught up with Chris at the recent The Road Ahead concept car show in London's Brick Lane to find out the man behind the vision.

The original Lancia Stratos was the world's first purpose built rally car and quickly came up with the goods. It won three consecutive World Rally Championships from 1974 to 1976.

Based on a 1970 concept from Bertone, the Stratos was refined ahead of its 1973 launch - and mated a six-cylinder engine from the Ferrari Dino to a custom built chassis.

But it was the styling that really got petrolheads hot under the collar. It looked like nothing seen before - or since, until Fenomenon unveiled its worthy successor.

It's hard to believe the perfectly proportioned Stratos that sat before us belies a product of a company that was founded less than three years ago. Chris told us he "founded the company in 2002. I graduated from the Royal College of Arts and I needed a highlight before I could start consulting on car design."

It's undoubtedly a highlight and was met with whoops of delight when it was showcased at last year's Geneva Motor Show.

At the time, many wrote the Stratos off as another design study, but Chris knew otherwise: "We're a holistic design company, so we produce the whole package."

That means that although it is creating a jaw-dropping vehicle, it also had to keep one eye on the practicalities of production - and remember that they'd have to create a car that people would want to buy.