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By Corina Pons and Joan Faus
MADRID / BARCELONA (Reuters) – Chinese billionaire Jack Ma made a trip to the Spanish island of Mallorca last month to say it was his first foreign attempt since a fall with regulators in 2020 cut off his wings.
However, Ma’s sunny stay at the newly built 88-foot (289-foot) Zen cruiser – estimated to be worth $ 200 million – has focused on a global trend: the return of the superyacht.
As the number of billionaires grows and COVID-19s are adding incentives to avoid the crowds, the global multi-billion dollar luxury boat industry is rapidly bouncing back to the beginning of the pandemic after almost paralysis.
“2021 is significantly surpassing any of the last 12 years,” said broker Fraser Yachts.
Sales of luxury vessels longer than 30 meters (98 feet) rose by more than 8% in the first nine months of 2021 in the run-up to the 2019 pandemic, according to the industry publication Superyacht Group.
The cost of a superyacht can range from $ 10 million to a new second-hand $ 600 million, according to industry figures.
By September this year, more than 200 newcomers had entered the water for the first time, more than 165 at the same time in 2019, the Superyacht Group said.
They have promised to have 330 ready by 2023.
“Some have seen their ultra-rich friends who own sailboats have a good time during the pandemic, while they had to be locked up at home,” said Pepe Garcia, president of MB92 Shipyards, the world’s leading superyacht refurbishment company.
“I think this phenomenon will last for a few years.”
The MB92 Barcelona shipyard is full of 180-meter vessels. They paint about 1,000 workers, repair engines and do other maintenance for owners who want to have them ready for the end-of-year Caribbean season.
Txema Rubio, commercial director of the company, said that 10% of the purchase value is spent annually on maintenance and renovations.
And when the number of millionaires rose to 2,755 – 660 more than a year ago according to Forbes – it is clear that money is being laundered, even as campaigners denounce the impact of private yachts, jets and space travel on the environment.
“EVERYTHING YOU NEED IS NOW”
The order book of Italian yacht builder Ferretti exceeded 900 million euros ($ 1.04 trillion) in January-September, up from 691 million euros for the full year 2019.
“There’s a beautiful Duran Duran song called‘ All you need is now ’,” thought CEO Alberto Galassi. “The pandemic has taught us how fragile our lives are. Delaying is no longer an option for those who can afford it.”
Azimut Benetti, another Italian sailboat builder, tripled its order book in August from a year earlier, and U.S. customers boosted demand.
“The real boom started last spring,” said CEO Marco Valle, who added that customers were also looking for larger boats.
The yacht sector is one of the few winners in the post-blockade period. By contrast, only half of the large cruise ships returned to the sea by September, with drastic measures against COVID, the Cruise Lines International Association said.
Despite the additional costs associated with travel pollution and COVID, hunger remains high.
Amadeus, a travel group based in Spain, says demand for cruises is rising by 2022.
Renting a super-yacht is also an option if you can afford it.
A week-long luxury charter for 12 passengers in Greece or Italy can cost between 300,000 and 500,000 euros, according to two market sources. The ship’s facilities include a spa, Michelin-starred dining room, water sports teaching and fitness classes.
In another popular destination, Croatia, about 433,000 people enjoyed a sailing charter holiday until mid-October this year, 88% more than in 2020, according to the national tourism commission.
The boom has plenty of spin-offs.
Refitter MB92 wants to expand to the Middle East and the Americas, and Barcelona’s neighbor, Marina Port Vell, will build 23 new berths for superyachts.
Squircle Capital, a European investment fund, has stakes in two companies, attracted by the large margins and evolution of the sector.
“We believe there is a very clear trend towards growth and transformation,” said founder and director Jose Caireta.
($ 1 = $ 0.8678)
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