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February 5, 2020

The Luxury of Italian Design: Yachts With Vision

The Italian Yacht Market is hot. Of the 830 new yachts built in 2019, Global Order Book noted 379* of them were Italian brands. Projections for the Italian yacht market in 2020 look even more promising.

Italy ranked first for the number of yachts in build with a projected growth rate in the industry of 10+ percent, reported Nov. of 2019 by UCINA.** Italy owned the market with a leading total build length of 13,842 meters, averaging 35 meters per yacht, according to the Global Order Book.***

Why is this particular peninsula such a powerhouse in the yachting industry? That would be Italy’s secret sauce, and we are not talking pasta.

Respected peers in the industry awarded Italian yachts an impressive collection of hardware in 2019:

  • Ferretti’s Custom Line 120 named Best Power Yacht at FLIBS
  • Riva Dolcevita 110 took first place in Boat International’s Design and Innovation Awards
  • Sanlorenzo 64 Steel Attila won Monaco Yacht Show’s RINA award
  • Cantiere delle Marche’s 33-meter explorer yacht Mimi La Sardine won World Superyacht’s Best Displacement Motor Yacht Award in its class
  • Benetti 69-meter Spectre named World Superyacht’s Best Displacement Motor Yacht in its class
  • Rossinavi Utopia IV won World Superyacht Best Semi Displacement Yacht in its class
  • Perini Navi Rosehearty won World Superyacht’s Voyager’s Award

The competition is impressed with Italian craftsmanship, but customer interest in yacht builders Sanlorenzo, Ferretti, Benetti, and Mangusta confirms the strong appeal of Italian design. From full-on custom builds to semi-custom, refits, and refreshes, Italian yacht brands offer everything the others have, but with a little something extra in style.

Ingrained into a proud history of fine craftsmanship and a future packed with innovation, one thing remains constant in the success of Italian yachts: relationships. Builder and owner. Designer and craftsman. Captain and naval architect. Regardless of position and responsibility, everyone engaged in the build of an Italian yacht matters. That’s what makes the difference.

* Global Order Book for 2019
** UCINA Confinidustria Nautica member survey
*** Global Order Book for 2019

BY: KATHLEEN TURNER