Pitasso: ‘There’s always a buyer somewhere on the planet’opinion Rob Hodgetts 26 Apr 24 0Ignoring Eleonora Pitasso won’t work. She’s just not the kind of person to take “no” for an answer. “I like to open doors. If I… Read more
McCartney’s relationship focus offers ticket to rideopinion Rob Hodgetts 19 Apr 24 0He’s no stranger to the uber rich but even Vincent McCartney was starstruck when he was invited to have breakfast with a movie legend. McCartney,… Read more
Alfa: Why investing in time reaps biggest rewardsopinion Rob Hodgetts 12 Apr 24 0As an investor in time, Anton Foord hopes to reap perpetual rewards. Foord, of Ocean Independence, has recently represented the buyer in the purchase of… Read more
Why new-builds need operational design inputopinion Rob Hodgetts 8 Apr 24 0A dive at Belize’s famous Blue Hole was to be the crowning moment of the owner’s trip but captain Lee Stevenson had a serious issue.… Read more
Heesen’s Drontmann bullish despite headwindsopinion Rob Hodgetts 2 Apr 24 0Spring is a time for fresh hope and green shoots, tempered by the knowledge that storms are still possible. That certainly seems to be the… Read more
Jim Evans on the good, bad and ugly of yacht brokingopinion Rob Hodgetts 15 Mar 24 0Jim Evans knew the game was up when the captain took him aside. “You’re too clumsy, too rubbish to be a deckhand. You should be… Read more
Why tea and biscuits can beat AI yacht surveysopinion Rob Hodgetts 8 Mar 24 0Plain or covered in chocolate? That’s a choice you don’t get with artificial intelligence (AI) but you do with deluxe oat biscuits such as Hobnobs.… Read more
American ‘pysche’ sparks US sales optimismopinion Rob Hodgetts 29 Feb 24 0Maybe it’s the Taylor Swift factor – most things are these days – but the US superyacht market seems to be heading into 2024 with irresistible… Read more
Ian Petts on the whims of the rich & finance ‘headaches’opinion Rob Hodgetts 29 Feb 24 0His dream is to become the second person in his family to develop a British royal yacht, but Ian Petts says he hasn’t “found someone crazy enough to… Read more
Relationships, time & playing the long gameopinion Rob Hodgetts 2 Feb 24 0Time in the market, not timing the market is the old investment adage but it could equally apply to building relationships in the superyacht world.… Read more
IYC’s Sauleau on ultra running and the art of the CEOopinion Rob Hodgetts 26 Jan 24 0Endurance athletes need a goal, a plan, discipline and determination, and the flexibility to react to hardship along the way. The same is true of… Read more
Sales market predictions for 2024opinion Rob Hodgetts 18 Jan 24 0It’s mid-January and the year is steaming ahead at pace, but the consensus among superyacht brokers is that the sales market will settle back to… Read more
Christie on the art of a deal, slow burns & bear marketsopinion Rob Hodgetts 11 Jan 24 0For a man who hates losing, broker Will Christie is in no rush to sell you a yacht. The Briton has been busy since setting… Read more
N&J’s Coote on ‘dream job’, US elections and carrotsopinion Rob Hodgetts 21 Dec 23 0His schoolfriends stuck pictures of Pamela Anderson or Harley-Davidson motorcycles on their bedroom walls, but Patrick Coote only had eyes for superyachts. A trip to… Read more
Burgess’ Craven-Smith on painting, prospecting and the trials of a brokeropinion Rob Hodgetts 14 Dec 23 0His love of procedure made Henry Craven-Smith lay newspaper on the chalet floor before painting. That’s when he saw it. The cryptic advert that changed… Read more
Instability breeds uncertainty for marketsopinion Rob Hodgetts 7 Dec 23 0Financial markets might be looking forward to a Santa rally but global instability continues to cast an air of caution over the superyacht industry. War in… Read more
How serious is yachting about sustainability?opinion Rob Hodgetts 30 Nov 23 0Just as turkeys are famously unlikely to vote for Christmas, so the superyacht industry is unlikely to downplay its progress in sustainability. The mood music… Read more
6 brokers on headwinds facing the industryopinion Rob Hodgetts 22 Nov 23 0The superyacht industry is used to weathering storms and even came out of the pandemic with increased forward momentum. But there are always headwinds on… Read more
Sales market suffers hangover from triple cocktailopinion Rob Hodgetts 16 Nov 23 0It’s a potent cocktail and is making the superyacht sales market a touch dazed and confused. The triple mixture of post-Covid party comedown, inflation and… Read more
Cecil-Wright on the art of a brokeropinion Rob Hodgetts 9 Nov 23 0Money is a useful by-product of selling a superyacht, but broker Chris Cecil-Wright insists he is driven more by a “psychological” need for acceptance and to make… Read more