UK Shipyards Like Princess Yachts See Record Revenues
With the 2017 fall boat show season now underway the superyacht industry in the UK is alive and very well as shipyards report record revenues. Leading the charge for UK designers and builders in high global demand is Plymouth-based Princess Yachts, known for their world-class product line that ranges from the new V40 model to their flagship vessel, the Princess 40M - an incredible superyacht that has surely helped to boost the country's top-end of the luxury boating industry. Recently an exhibitor at the 40th Annual Cannes Yachting Festival, Princess Yachts noted a whopping £640m on their order books, thats an 85% year-on-year increase in orders taken over the 6-day show, a testament to the confidence currently being seen round the yachting sector.
Supporting the strength and positivity in the industry are new figures released just last week in a report by Superyacht UK, an association within British Marine, which come as many boat builders and brokerage houses head to the Monaco Yacht Show, the largest superyacht show in the world. Despite continued uncertainty that followed the EU referendum and recent General Election, the UK’s superyacht sector remains extremely healthy, posting its fifth consecutive year of growth. The new statistics demonstrate that industry revenue has grown 1.7% to £615m and superyacht sector exports to both the EU and the rest of the world have grown at their fastest rate in the last 7 years, with supply chain businesses finding a strong market for their products outside of the EU.
Further statistics reveal that three out of five businesses trading in the sector are confident about the future, the UK’s superyacht service and support businesses continue to be world leaders and full time employment figures have risen 3.3% to 4,244. Princess Yachts employs 2,500 people total at its Plymouth manufacturing site, and has been trading for 52 years. Since 2008 it has been backed by US private equity firm L Catterton, which also owns retailers Sweaty Betty and Pepe Jeans.
With a third of superyacht owners basked in the UK and the country providing an appealing hub for both owners and maritime businesses seeking quality, expertise and efficiency, the UK’s network of designers, shipyards, charter companies, brokerages, distributors, suppliers and service businesses continues to thrive. Despite the current trend of political uncertainly, further growth in the UK superyacht industry is anticipated as we move into 2018 especially since this is a sector mostly influenced by a customer base that is minimally exposed to economic risk both in the UK and EU, so the market will remain healthy.
Princess Yachts will continue to bring their ever-growing and advancing world-renown product line built with the passion and dedication of their talented craftspeople to not only the UK market but also to the American market with the support of one of the strongest dealer sales and service networks known to the industry. The HMY Yacht Sales Team was with great honor, recently named the number one Princess dealer in the US by Princess Yachts America with HMY Sales Professional Mike McCarthy coming in at number two for individual sales and HMY's Ale Navarro coming in at number five. It is precisely this kind of partnership that helps further the yachting industry, world-wide.
About Princess Yachts
Founded in 1965 as Marine Projects Ltd., Princess Yachts has grown into one of the finest luxury yachting brands in the world, producing beautifully elegant and innovative designs that continue to grow in sophistication and technology. The powerful and sleek hulls of every model offer a unique combination of speed, maneuverability, efficiency and gracefulness, crowning Princess as the perfect yacht for any passage. With over 80% of each yacht produced in-house, a Princess yacht is truly crafted by the hands of the nearly 2,500 artisans and shipwrights that work within the nearly 1 million square feet of manufacturing space on England's picturesque Southwest coast that has been home to Princess for more than 50 years.
