Superyacht maker Sanlorenzo rides personalisation wave
Italian group looks to sustain sales boom with hyper bespoke vessels including its latest built around a living tree
Italian superyacht maker Sanlorenzo is betting on hyper-personalisation to attract more wealthy customers in the Americas and Asia, with recent commissions including a vessel built around a living tree that rises through its decks.
As with luxury cars made by Ferrari and Rolls-Royce, rich individuals are willing to spend large amounts to make their superyachts highly personalised, which has pushed up revenue and profits for Sanlorenzo despite disruptions caused by the global trade war.
Following a four-year process involving 18 months of weekly calls, its latest 74-metre 74Steel yacht Virtuosity, expected to cost more than €100mn, was customised for a Canadian who wanted his ship to feature a large tree and aquarium.
“This is a clear example of how the company has so much flexibility to really have every product tailor-made,” chief executive Massimo Perotti told the FT, adding that personalisation accounted for roughly 20-25 per cent of the group’s revenue. “We tend to make more profit with personalisation.”
Perotti bought the yacht maker in 2005 and has increased its revenue from €40mn in 2004 to €960mn last year. Its share price has doubled since it listed in Milan in late 2019, as the global superyacht market has grown to reach annual sales of more than €25bn.
The group generated about 60 per cent of its revenue in Europe last year, with the Americas accounting for 21 per cent and Asia-Pacific for 10 per cent. Perotti said the company was aiming in coming years to expand the sales ratio in the Americas to 30 per cent and in Asia-Pacific to 15 per cent.
While the US remained an important growth market, he expects expansion to be restricted by higher tariffs and a stronger euro against the dollar, while he sees potential in Canada as well as central and South America.
“Probably the Middle East, due to the war in Gaza and the war in Iran, for a few years will be quiet,” he added.
Global sales of superyachts — typically defined as a leisure vessel more than 24 metres in length — soared following the Covid pandemic with a record 1,203 ships built or on order in 2023, compared with 830 in 2019, according to research company Boat International. Sales fell last year to 1,138 superyachts, with about half of production based in Italy.
Sanlorenzo, whose superyachts sell for an average of €12.5mn, pursues a similar strategy to Ferrari in creating “scarcity” and pricing strength by limiting volumes. Perotti said its limited output, of only about 70 yachts a year, also strengthened the group’s resilience to economic cycles.
The group, which last year poached executives from Aston Martin, will open its first showroom in central London on Tuesday as it seeks to attract more wealthy customers in the UK and build its presence at a time when the British shipbuilding industry has come under severe financial pressure.
“The UK is out of Europe but . . . if we have to choose a capital of Europe, London for sure is the most important place in respect to Paris, Berlin, Rome or Milan,” Perotti said. “Most of the super-rich have a house in London, like they have a house in New York.”