
SUPERYACHT #497 September 2003
Article selected from our quarterly magazine dedicated to the largest
and most luxurious boats with information, interviews, technical
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Gianfranco Rizzardi interviewed by Fabio Petrone
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Rizzardi Group SUPERYACHT "HAUTE COUTURE"
Impressive technical knowledge, managerial skills, entrepreneurial
farsightedness. These, in our opinion, are the cardinal qualities
explaining Gianfranco Rizzardìs success. Rizzardi, given his
total involvement in the management and growth of his shipyard, is an
almost elusive figure even for a "bloodhound" journalist.
He is a zealous worker, dividing his time between production (he is
personally involved in the choices made, in the search for technical
solutions, in the progress of boats in production and in the design of
new models), meetings with dealers and customers, administration,
endless trips to the world's major trade fairs, promoting his boats
with specifically conceived, ad hoc initiatives. And as if this
wasn't enough, there is his involvement in pleasure motorboating,
following the lives of his boats and his sons, who sail them, in the
various stages of world championship endurance races. His visceral
love for his work, for the sea and for the beautiful craft that sail
on it has led the Rizzardi shipyard, with its open cruisers and its
Posillipo brand, with its flys and superyachts, to horizons that would
be unthinkable to others.
You have successfully made a name for your motor yachts in an
extremely difficult context, one in which national and international
competition is fierce, especially because most of the players are
large, international shipbuilding groups. What is the secret?
We are a small group, if it can even be called a group, and one might
say that we are the "haute couture" of the market. A ready-made
garment, or worse, is one thing; a tailored garment is another. We
have focused on quality and on the customer. Our customers choose the
details with us, they participate in the creation of their own yachts,
right here in the shipyard. This means that, since the beginning, we
have also invested significantly in technological research and
innovation, and we continue to do so with utmost professionalism. And
then, we first of all establish an amicable relationship with our
customers, creating the trust that, for us, is essential.
Last year, during the Cannes Salon, you presented the first super
yacht over 100 feet. How did the market respond to this debut?
It was quite the undertaking, I might even say challenge, and a great
success. The market has undoubtedly responded with great interest to
our "Technema 105'". I could tell you about the requests we have
had... but I would prefer to point out that it was those of you from
the specialised press that showed great "curiosity" about our boat,
and your very positive comments contributed to making the product
known and appreciated.
With respect to a medium-sized fly motor yacht, what basic
differences have you found in the design and building of such a large boat?
We did not encounter any particular difficulties at the design level,
the "Technema 105" followed the same cycle that is normally used for
other, smaller boats in our range. On the other hand, there were some
logistical problems, such as the physical space in which to build the
boat, and all of the outfitting and launching operations for such a
large craft. Even the transport of a boat of this size is a
challenge, and for this reason, I recently acquired our new premises
in Fiumicino.
Was the "Technema 105 " created solely in-house?
Yes, certainly, this has always been our prerogative, one which we
wanted to keep, even for the flagship. The boat's engineering was
also done by us, by the shipyard's designers. For me, this is an
essential part of our work.
Was it necessary to adapt your production facilities and, if so, in what way?
As I mentioned, I invested in Fiumicino in order to acquire a shipyard
with access to the sea. In my opinion, this facility is particularly
strategic precisely because it opens up new growth perspectives for
our firm's future flagships.
What, according to you, is the ideal business strategy for selling this type of boat?
The shipyard's gradual growth has gone hand-in-hand with the growth of
our projects and the reorganisation of the sales network. Then, it
has been very important to participate in the top nautical salons for
pleasure boats, which are excellent international sales windows,
offering an opportunity for comparison with our various competitors,
which in turn stimulates us to continue to improve.
What pleases you the most about the "Technema 105'" and what, on
the other hand, would you improve?
Among the things that most pleased me is undoubtedly the arrangement
of the boat's volumes, which translate into comfortable spaces, into
unconditional usability and liveability throughout. Then, many people
appreciate the originality of the exterior colours. From the
technical point of you, everyone has been struck by the hull's
performance, which is de rigueur for Posillipo, the distinctive
characteristics of all of our flys. No one who has tried the boat has
found any defects whatsoever, the "105'" functions perfectly as it is.
Our second customer, for example, made only a few changes to the
interior, but this is common practice for owners who want a "made-to-
measure" boat that suits their individual requirements. Moreover, as
I said before, this is why our customers come to us, because we give
them an "ad hoc" boat
How and when will you expand the range of Posillipo superyachts?
As it happens, that is what we are now doing. In the shipyard, we are
building the first of the new "Technema 95's" and we expect to deliver
the first of these completely original super yachts before the end of
the year. For a shipyard, extending its product offer, making it more
varied, means knowing how best to respond to customers' various
requirements, chosen from among a wide range of high-quality
possibilities. For us, our customers are our point of reference.
With the Rizzardi brand, on the other hand, you recently presented a
new flagship, the "CR 73 Top Line". When will we see a Rizzardi open
super yacht?
This is something else that we are currently working on. An ambitious
project, but, for us, it is essential to find new challenges. "Step-
by-step" has always been the Rizzardi shipyard's motto and, in this
case as well, we are respecting this philosophy fully. We are putting
a lot of effort into the project. At the present time, all I am at
liberty to tell you is that we are working on a "Cr 110".
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