With its super-sized, super-styled floating villas, Ferretti Yachts has cruised into the Italian luxury lifestyle market. Boyd Farrow talks to CEO Fulvio Dodich about the secret of his success
The sort of person who owns a Ferretti yacht appreciates old world sensibilities and the latest technology, according to the legendary Italian company’s chief executive Fulvio Dodich. They are also the sort of person, it must be said, who carries more in their back pocket than sunblock and a strip of seasickness tablets. They might not necessarily be as rich as, say, Saudi businessman Mohamed Hussein Al Amoudi, who paid €13m for a 112-footer just to float around Sweden’s Lake Mälaren, but they must at least be able to rustle up the €1.2m needed for an entry-level craft.
“An indulgence, yes, but once a successful person has the Bentley or the Aston Martin and the villa, a Ferretti yacht is the logical next step,” reasons Dodich. “What can you buy after a home with the most amazing view but a beautiful ‘floating home’ that has endlessly different, amazing views? Our customers are not simply buying another luxury item – they are buying into a lifestyle.”
The luxury superyacht – as cruisers longer than 24 metres are known – is now the fastest-growing sector of the world’s boat-building industry, and Italy’s manufacturers are leading the way. While Italian shipbuilding is expanding at a rate of 1 per cent a year, superyachts are powering ahead at 9 per cent – and Ferretti is in pole position. Not only was it Italy’s top company – and 28th out of all European companies – in 2006 in terms of growth according to Business Week, it found itself the subject of a bidding war last October that dramatically scuppered its long-standing flotation plans. UK private equity house Candover Partners finally trumped French rival PA Partners by paying €1.7bn for a 60 per cent stake in Ferretti, a deal that, according to founder and chairman Norberto Ferretti, will enable the brand to expand farther and faster.
Norberto Ferretti and his brother Alberto started out selling high-end yachts in the 60s, but soon began making their own luxury boats; their first, the Khamsin, was a fishing boat refitted as a cruiser. They later made the Altura 33, the first motorsailer to be made from fibreglass. The Ferretti Group ramped up its yacht-building operations over the next decade, launching a research and development division in 1989. The company’s combined sales rose 18 per cent to €770m last year, while net profit rocketed 118.8 per cent to €26m.
Dodich attributes Ferretti’s success to the company’s exclusivity, innovation and attention to design. Last year Ferretti opened its Advanced Yacht Technology centre, where 106 engineers collaborate with 54 external designers and architects
“Boating is in an Italian’s blood,” says Dodich. “Our country extends into the Mediterranean, and we have a long history of marinas and a love of boats. Italian design is also very well known but while we may make the Ferrari, we also make cars that aren’t so good! Italian yachts, on the other hand, capture centuries of skill on the technological side and incorporate stylishness. Ferretti yachts are particularly sought-after because we’ve always tried to make boats to be used, not shown off. A lot of work goes into the design, but we’re incredibly selective about the materials and components we use. We’ve been developing engines for more than 40 years. The workings of the vessels are technologically very advanced.”
Perhaps not surprisingly, the majority of Ferretti boats are bought by people living in Mediterranean countries (27 per cent), with 22 per cent of customers living in Europe and 12 per cent in the US. South America, the Middle East and the Asia-Pacific region account for the rest.
One can certainly see why the water looked so inviting for Candover Partners. While the global luxury yacht market is currently worth around €11bn, there are more than 900,000 people worldwide earning more than €4m a year – the minimum requirement to enjoy the Ferretti lifestyle. Moreover, Merrill Lynch says the number of people worldwide with €750,000 a year or more to spend on premium luxury goods is rising 7 per cent annually, and predicts that within two years there will be around €1.7bn sloshing around for the sort of status symbols that make Cartier watches look like Christmas cracker fillers. Demand for superyachts is growing in Russia, the Middle East and, increasingly, China, where Ferretti hopes to double its sales in 2007. This year the company will also focus on the under-exploited US.
“It’s always a golden age for yachts,” Dodich laughs. “When times are good, our buyers splurge; when times are not so good, they comfort-buy.” He adds that the profile of the average Ferretti customer has not changed in recent years: “Around 95 per cent are businessmen who look for the best quality. Often they collect old cars – Bentleys, Aston Martins, Ferraris; there’s normally one Mercedes S-class in the family. When we started we assumed that the boat’s performance was the major draw, but it was the ambiance and the finish that people looked for.
We had to educate people to appreciate the boats’ technical capabilities.”
Ferretti attends a few boat shows a year and holds ‘privilege days’ in Monte Carlo for dealers and particularly high-rollers. Little is spent on advertising because, as Dodich puts it: “What can we show? We’re not selling a product – we’re selling a lifestyle.” He also points out that although there are only an estimated four million potential customers in any year, there is a three-year waiting list for Ferretti’s products.
But surely the sort of person who owns a Ferretti is used to snapping his fingers and getting what he wants instantly? “That’s the beauty of luxury yachts,” Dodich confides. “The buyers aren’t used to waiting for anything, so the pleasure is heightened. When the big day arrives and people finally get their first boat, it is the start of an era for them – the Ferretti world. And as soon as people get their boat, they start thinking about their next, bigger, one.”
Vitesse de croisière
Le secteur des super yachts de luxe est aujourd’hui l’industrie qui connaît l’une des croissances les plus rapides, et dans ce marché, le constructeur italien Ferretti arrive incontestablement en tête. “En Italie, nous avons la navigation dans le sang”, explique Fulvio Dodich, le CEO de Ferretti. “Notre pays s’étend vers la Méditerranée et nous avons une longue histoire portuaire doublée d’un amour pour les bateaux. Les yachts italiens sont le fruit de siècles de développements technologiques et de design. Chez Ferretti, nous voulons avant tout concevoir des bateaux qui puissent être utilisés et pas seulement montrés. Nous consacrons une grande partie du travail au design, et nous sommes extrêmement sélectifs dans le choix des matériaux et des composants.”
Globalement, on évalue le marché du yacht de luxe à environ €11milliards. Merrill Lynch estime que le nombre de personnes dans le monde qui disposent de €750 000 ou plus par an, à investir dans des biens de luxe augmente graduellement de 7 pour cent annuellement. D’après leurs prédictions, d’ici deux ans, une manne représentant près de €1,7 milliards rejaillira sur ces status symbols, à côté desquels les montres Cartier ont l’air de petits cadeaux surprises enrobés dans les crackers de Noël.
“Il y a toujours un âge d’or pour les yachts,” sourit Dodich. “Lorsque les temps sont bons, nos acheteurs se jettent à l’eau; lorsque la situation est moins favorable, ils font un achat de confort. Lorsque nous avons démarré notre business, nous étions persuadés que les amateurs étaient attirés principalement par les performances des bateaux. En réalité, ils recherchaient plutôt l’ambiance et la finition. Nous avons dû éduquer le public à apprécier les capacités techniques de nos yachts.”
Ferretti dépense peu en publicité, parce que comme l’explique Dodich : “Que pouvons-nous montrer? Nous ne vendons pas un produit en particulier – nous vendons un style de vie. Et dès que les gens acquièrent un bateau, ils commencent déjà à penser au suivant, plus grand, bien évidemment.”
De jacht is open
Wat boten betreft zijn luxejachten wereldwijd het snelst groeiende segment, met het Italiaanse Ferretti op kop. “Varen zit elke Italiaan in het bloed”, zegt Fulvio Dodich, CEO van Ferretti. “Ons land reikt tot ver in de Middellandse Zee en heeft een rijke geschiedenis van jachthavens en liefde voor boten. Italiaanse jachten zijn stijlvol en kunnen bogen op honderden jaren ervaring. Bij Ferretti hebben we altijd al echte ‘vaarboten’ gemaakt, en niet zomaar showboten. Daarbij gaat veel aandacht naar het ontwerp, maar we zijn ook erg streng op gebruikte materialen en onderdelen.”
De wereldmarkt van luxejachten is momenteel goed voor € 11 miljard. Volgens Merrill Lynch groeit het aantal mensen dat per jaar € 750.000 en meer aan absolute luxegoederen besteedt jaarlijks met 7%. De bank voorspelt dan ook dat er binnen twee jaar niet minder € 1,7 miljard zal circuleren voor statussymbolen waarbij Cartier-horloges speelgoed lijken.
“Voor jachten zijn het altijd gouden tijden”, lacht Dodich. “Als het economisch goed gaat kan de pret voor onze kopers niet op, gaat het slechter dan kopen ze troost. In het begin dachten we dat het klanten vooral om technische prestatie te doen was, maar gaandeweg bleek dat ze vooral oog hebben voor sfeer en afwerking. We hebben hen moeten leren om ook de technische kant te waarderen.”
Ferretti besteedt weinig geld aan reclame. Dodich: “Wat zouden we moeten tonen? We verkopen geen product, maar een lifestyle. Zodra we een boot opleveren, begint de koper al te dromen van zijn volgende, grotere aanwinst.”
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