Nov 10 | 2021
No Tail Off in Demand for Yacht Moves
By Felicity Landon
Timing is everything.
When Simon Judson took over as CEO of Peters & May in November 2020, his appointment “heralded a new era of ambition, expansion and consolidation.” His arrival was also, of course, in the midst of the global pandemic and its considerable fallout.
“It goes without saying that stepping into this role in the middle of a pandemic presented its own unique set of challenges,” he told Breakbulk. “Contrary to what some might assume, the market demand for yacht transportation remained strong and, in fact, increased over the course of the year; however, it was noted that uncertainties related to travel restrictions led to many boat owners holding off before committing to booking transport.”
One reason for the increase in demand was a growing number of clients seeking to bring their yachts “back home” from the Mediterranean to Northern Europe so that they could use them locally without incurring the risks involved with travel, Judson said. “Allied to this, another factor which fed into the increased demand for P&M’s services was that yacht owners were unable to travel to their yachts to relocate them themselves. Additionally, they would have been unable to find a suitable captain and crew, as Covid restrictions meant that everybody was homebound.”
Traditionally, P&M has often arranged skipper and marina services as an integral part of its transport arrangements, and there has been a definite upsurge over the past 18 months in customers opting for the company’s “all-inclusive” service package, including skipper, transport insurance, marina, boat cleaning and Customs clearance formalities.
Covid-19 has not been the only new challenge to day-to-day activities. “The new sets of regulations and requirements introduced because of Brexit have also kept us extremely busy. Our freight forwarding section has had to expand quickly to support all Brexit-related queries concerning VAT,” Judson said.
Meanwhile, in addition to its sizable client base of long-term and returning customers, P&M has seen an increase in demand from people who are completely new to boating and yachting.
“A typical phone call might be received from someone interested in buying a second-hand yacht for the first time ‘but the yacht is in Spain, and I need it in the UK – can you help?’ ”
‘Business as Usual’
Jan Maarten Boissevain, commercial director at Amsterdam-based Sevenstar Yacht Transport, said that in terms of overall volumes, the past 18 months have been “business as usual,” albeit with a different mix and far higher shipping rates.
“For us, this year has been the same as the year before and the year before that – not much more or less busy,” he said. “The big changes have been that some trades are no longer being used, mainly because of the pandemic, and racing and other fun events vanished from our scope of work – and we still think there is only a small number of boats going to places to have fun. They are either going to a new owner or somewhere else or being repatriated.”
Racing and other events have been picking up again this year, he said. “People are keen to move again – that’s for sure. But they also need to understand that what was happening two years ago with shipping rates is no longer the case. People need to get in line with double the price almost, otherwise they can’t go anywhere.
Pricewise, he added, everything has gone through the roof and there is an issue in sourcing proper vessels to perform yacht transportation. The high rates are good for the carriers, he noted – “otherwise there would be no money for new investment.” However, “it is devastating for a lot of cargoes and one of them is yachts, which are seen as a low-paying, high-demanding cargo. We can only sell certain routes for a certain amount of money. Shipping is not going to bail us out if they can make more money elsewhere.”
Part of the Spliethoff Group, Sevenstar’s established network of people based in key locations around the world has paid off during Covid-19 travel restrictions.
“We have people to do operational work in the ports everywhere, working for us exclusively, so we can continue to do business,” Boissevain said. “That is very important to our clients and ourselves. It is how we have always worked, both before and after the pandemic, and now we can benefit from that.”
‘Unfair’ Competition
Copenhagen-based Thorco Projects reported an increase in demand for yacht transport, as well as a growing demand for luxury vessels. Its regular services from Europe (Baltic/North Europe/Iberian Peninsula/Med) are divided into trade lanes, so from Europe to the Middle East Gulf, Bay of Bengal, Asia, Australia, Africa West and East, U.S. Gulf and East Coast South America.
Since March 2020, Thorco Projects has transported all sorts of yachts from Europe, mainly the UK and France, and also from Asia to the U.S., Thorco’s Business Development Manager Wallace de Barros noted.
“What we can say is that yacht transport increased, at least in our regular services. Inside Europe, we saw movements – orders from brokers and forwarders – from the UK to France, Spain and Gibraltar, for repositioning purposes mainly. We also handled many new yachts and boats out of Italy to many destinations.”
However, he said, although Thorco saw the orders, he viewed the competition with small coasters, containerships and roll-on, roll-off vessels as unfair, “as they have a different way to calculate the ocean rates.”
As for changing demands, Thorco noted it had seen more luxury yachts and boats, “maybe because the condition to work from home (or ocean or anywhere) opened up new possibilities for new work environments.”
Thorco describes the transport of yachts and boats around the globe as “an important niche market” for the company, with its regular trade lanes ensuring a speedy and cost-efficient solution for everything from heavy tugs to high-tech racing boats.
“For Thorco Projects, which has projects in its name and blood, the transport of yachts is a central part of our business, and we acquired this know-how over past years,” de Barros said. “We have got closer to companies specialized in moving boats and yachts – they really add value to the business and see that they are able to consolidate a good number of boats and dilute the transport cost among all their clients.”
Thorco can construct tailor-made cradles for boats as required, he added. “Our port captains can design lifting beams or lifting devices to make lifting possible without damage, and we contract divers’ assistance case by case.”
Clients Take an Interest
P&M has in recent years seen a growing interest from boat owners in the actual transport itself, even if the shipment has been arranged by the broker from whom they bought the yacht. Judson sees this as a positive and as an opportunity to explain what is involved and help clients to understand the process, especially on the technical side.
“We have the most experienced and skilled technical team and loadmasters in this market, all of whom are happy to set time aside to talk clients through each step of a shipment,” he said. “It is important for us that owners tell us all they know about their yacht, so we know what to look out for when planning and lifting their yacht. Equally, the owner – being involved in the plan and attending the lift – may learn more about their yacht which they can refer to in case the yacht is lifted again somewhere else.”
One of the company’s most traditional sailing routes between the Mediterranean and Northern Europe is still running on a monthly basis and has been expanded to call into more ports in the Eastern Med and the Baltic.
“Croatia and Turkey are becoming ever more popular, as are Baltic countries. The clear inference is that clients are foregoing crowded marinas and nightlife hustle and bustle for the lure of exciting new cruising grounds,” Judson said. “Encouragingly, P&M is regularly informed by industry customers and manufacturers that this thirst for new sailing areas is matched with a rising demand for new yachts. The broad perception of yachting/boating as a “safe haven” is great news for the marine industry, especially following a time when Covid forced many factories to close temporarily.”
P&M has seen an upswing in requests to ship both power and sail catamarans, as well as hybrid- and solar-powered boats – the latter being partly manufactured in Asia then shipped to Europe for completion before being delivered to the end customer. “We expect this niche to grow in the coming years as well.”
The company said it adapted rapidly and comprehensively to accommodate the increasing demand and the working methods necessitated by the pandemic. There has also been the challenge of ensuring that equipment such as shipping cradles and lifting gear is in the right place at the right time, even with bookings often being made at the last minute, due to client uncertainty related to Covid restrictions.
“At the beginning of the pandemic, there were even cases where all yachts had not been booked for a certain shipment, but the company had a loadmaster flown out to the port of loading anyway to ensure he was there and had gone through quarantine in time for the day of loading,” Judson said. “Thankfully, the process has become easier again, but it nevertheless taught us a great deal about the way we wish to work in future, bringing the team together and inspiring trust in colleagues and clients alike.”
Felicity Landon is an award-winning freelance journalist specializing in the ports, shipping, transport and logistics sectors.
PHOTOS:
Photo 1: The pandemic saw an increase in demand from clients looking to bring their yachts back home. CREDIT: PETERS & MAY
Photo 2: Boat owners are showing a growing interest in the transportation process. CREDIT: PETERS & MAY
Photo 3: A thirst for new sailing areas is being matched by rising demand for new yachts. CREDIT: PETERS & MAY