SUPERYACHT MARKET PERFORMANCE
Trends and evolution
In spite of the negative economic situation that has recently
characterised the Euro currency countries, the luxury superyacht
market continues to be dynamic, achieving absolutely notable and
growing market performances in the last few shipbuilding years.
A few figures may illustrate the extent of the phenomenon: in the
course of the 2004-2005 shipbuilding year the overall superyacht
market touched record heights with a world order book equal to 651
units and an overall length of 75.996 feet . From certain estimates
it appears that during the last shipbuilding year the market has
grown for an overall value of $1,22 billion.
With regard to this phenomenon it may be helpful to evaluate the
overall luxury superyacht industry in terms of market performance
with view to drawing up an overall picture of market evolution.
In this context, figure 1 shows the evolutional progress of the
order book over the last 3 shipbuilding years, precisely the years
in which the entire superyacht market experienced an average
annual growth of 10%, with increasing annual growth rates that led
in the current year to a growth of 28.40%. Important indicators
then, especially in consideration of a world economic situation
that is hesitating to take off, which denote how the luxury yacht
segment is an increasingly attractive business.
With view to evaluating the market performances of the superyacht
industry it is important to analyse, over and above the
evolutional trend of the whole order book, the market share among
the various shipbuilding industries/countries. Figure 2
illustrates the market shares of the main international
shipbuilding industries during 2004-2005 and their evolutional trend.
The first thing to underline is the considerable concentration of
the market: in fact the first 5 countries (Italy, the United
States, The Netherlands, the UK and France) represent overall the
biggest share. From the analysis carried out it emerged that the
motor superyacht sector has a concentration of 73% as against the
60% of the sail superyacht market.
Though the values are high (see figure 3), the degree of
concentration of supply on the part of the main
industries/countries is in slight decline (-1,3%). This fact,
compared with the performances of past years, is a sign of an
increasing competitive ability on the part of shipbuilding
industries in countries which until not long ago could be defined
as "of little importance".
In comparing the overall market share by macro segments of the
superyacht market it emerges that the Italian shipbuilding
industry is market leader in the motor superyacht market (40%)
while the Dutch industry holds the same position on the sailing
superyacht market (24%).
With regard to the Italian industry, various aspects must be
considered with reference to the last shipbuilding year. First of
all, the total share of the superyacht market has grown by 3%.
Moreover, with reference only to motor superyachts, in spite of a
33% increase in the order book (in terms of units produced), at
overall level the market share has not undergone variations.
(Among the main countries the only one with a positive variation
in market share is the United Kingdom whose order book more than
doubled in 2004-2005).
If on the other hand we consider only the sail superyacht market,
this has grown with a share of 17%, confirmation of the continuing
high competitiveness of Italian yards also in the building and
marketing of custom sailing superyachts.
Superyacht market performances were analysed under another aspect
by considering, in terms of international ranking, the first 3
industries/countries for the respective business macro segments
(see figure 4).
In the macro segment of motor superyachts Italian yards hold first
position in the various business micro segments in terms of length
range. Only in custom motor superyachts does Italy share market
leadership with Dutch yards. In the 80-90 foot motor superyacht
segment, Italy is joined by Industries/Countries such as the UK
and the USA. This notwithstanding, the eye is caught by the
numerical gap existing between Italy and the remaining countries
(105 units as against 44 in the 80-89 foot segment, and 111 units
as against 38 in the 100-149 foot segment).
In the upper 100-149 foot micro segment, as well as the USA there
are, in third place, Chinese shipyards which, according to some
estimates, have considerable positioning in the business micro
segment (expressed in terms of boat shape) of expedition yachts.
(Surveys point out that in 2004-2005 almost 25% of the entire
world portfolio of expedition yachts are being built in Chinese
shipyards). In the custom motor superyacht business the
outstanding producers, apart from Italy and The Netherlands, are
the USA and Germany.
But there are also important indicators in the sailing yacht
sector. In fact on the sailing superyacht market Italian
shipbuilding industries occupy first positioning in the upper
segment, which is to say the segment of custom sailing
superyachts. The United Kingdom is leader in the 80-99 foot
segment while the Netherlands holds the same position in the next
segment of 100-149 foot sailing yachts. Unlike the motor
superyacht sector, sailboat market leadership varies from one
business micro segment to another, without taking into account
that in numerical terms the two business macro segments have order
books that cannot be compared (the sailing superyacht sector in
fact represents only 9% of the whole market).
All these data confirm the dominant position of the Italian
shipbuilding industry on the overall superyacht market.
This survey of market performances must be completed with analysis
of the market share trend of the main shipbuilding industries (see
figure 5).
In this case too, needless to say, the data are astonishing.
In fact it emerges clearly from the analysis that the Italian
shipbuilding industry is in continual growth: over the last 4
years it has gone from 33.5% to 38.2%, almost 5 percent in only 3 years.
For the 2004-2005 shipbuilding year all the main
industries/countries show a diminishing market share, with the
exception of the United Kingdom which shows a trend inversion.
This diminishment (see The Netherlands and the USA) followed by an
overall growth of the whole international order book is certainly
the symptom of an increasing level of competitiveness on the
luxury vessel market, and is also a result of the entry of new
shipbuilding industries from the so called emerging countries.
The superyacht market is therefore once more confirmed as a
growing one, complex and dynamic, in which Italian shipbuilding
industries occupy a position of undisputed leadership. At this
point it is legitimate to wonder what the future holds. It will
certainly be a future with an increasingly competitive market in
which it is no longer enough to have production capacity: on the
contrary there will be a need to draw up and position the market
offer with view to acquiring advantages over the competition.
In recent years various yards have undergone a great number of
vicissitudes whereas, this notwithstanding, many others have been
able to grow with not inconsiderable economic rhythms.
Why do some grow and others grow less in spite of the fact that
they are marketing the same typology of product The answer is
certainly to be sought in the concept of competitive ability, the
only ability that makes one yard stand out from the others in an
increasingly varied competitive situation.
The gap between effective and potential market is such as to
presuppose decisive market growth, but this does not mean that all
yards will grow: growth will come only to those that have learnt
to develop their competitive skills.
This market analysis refers to the shipbuilding year 2004/2005
and this is why there are differences between it and Mr
Pollicardo's analysis dealing with 2004 (L'Opinione - page 168).
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