The 2018 Global Order Book is now available as a Boat Pro exclusive. Armed with the top trends, Kate Lardy speaks to five key industry leaders to get their expert perspective...

“The sailing side of yachting is anaemic and seems to be diminishing annually," says Georges Bourgoignie, broker at Fraser. "There are fewer viable quality sailing yacht shipyards worldwide – probably a result of the lack of orders but this further adds to the problem. Two bright spots are Baltic and Nautor’s Swan. Both are composite construction specialised yards; perhaps this says that clients are seeking lighter performance-based yachts over the high volume metal yachts that previously have been at the heart of the sailing industry.”

“It is interesting that we are attracting yachting clients and we look forward to developing that," reports Stale Rasmussun, CEO of Kleven. "The segment we are building is the explorer yacht, more robust than the white yachts of the Med. Historically, Norwegian shipyards have our knowledge based on building vessels for harsh seas, for the North Sea and Barents Sea, for Greenland and Icelandic waters. We have knowledge of areas that yachting goes to these days. If there is a demand for a tough vessel, come to Norway.”

“There has been a flurry of deals over the past four months and we are experiencing a frenzy of activity for this time of year," reveals Jonathan Beckett (pictured above), CEO of Burgess. "The American market is extremely active, followed by Europe. The stock market is riding high. There is a lot of talk about the proposed new (and reduced) tax bill in the US. The perspective seems to be that life is short and fragile so clients want to enjoy their wealth.”

“The market between 70-90 metres is strong; that is the optimal size boat for yachting in the 21st century," argues Michael Breman, sales director at Lürssen. "You have more space in all the things you have grown accustomed to having on a yacht, as well as those things that relate to our 'land' life today, like spa, fitness and wellness areas. If a large yacht was unusual in the past, today, as the peer group grows, people are more comfortable in owning one.”

“There is no doubt that the demand for worldwide explorer yachts has increased," says Vasco Buonpensiere, sales director at Cantiere delle Marche. "We have never built on spec; we have sold an average of a yacht every 70 days in the last three years, with the demand moving from 24-30 metres yachts to 30-43 metres. Our business model hasn’t changed, but our organisation has, with the size increase bringing more technical and design complexity. The number of yearly deliveries is still three to max four.”

To read our in-depth analysis and download the full data of the 2018 Global Order Book, sign up for Boat Pro now.