Dusseldorf great and Oyster Yachts not so..

Talulah said:
I often pass that boat in Lymington. Great looking boat but what on earth is it doing in the Solent?
I understand Bare Necessities is a Lingerie company but could be wrong.
Click to expand...
Many, like other large yachts,are corporate owned / financed. a new Oyster last year had horrid coloured striping, in Corporate colours ( Dutch). Also most leave the UK VAT free. Its a big boys game.
Some are also permanently "for sale", many are on a charter fiddle to off-set / defray costs.
 
Sadly or luckily I'm of an age that doesn't remember Bristol cars.

Having good products and survival is about investing in R&D. Fail to improve and customers disappear leaving you with no sales. I believe Oyster are still selling yachts due to their improvements.

If the OP cannot handle rejection then perhaps he was not a serious buyer. In the past four years I've been to 3 boat shows and my boss has bought two boats upwards of 3m. We had planned what we wanted to see and do. As we had appointments we were not seen as fender kickers. Yes I agree that they may have turned away the odd sale but consider how much time and effort goes into sorting the suspects from real prospects. I have worked on boat show stands I know what happens......

Best quote "if I win the lottery".
Answer. You can afford to buy perhaps but then where will you find the XXXK per year to run this new purchase.....
 
Lozzer said:
Sadly or luckily I'm of an age that doesn't remember Bristol cars.
Click to expand...

Your writing is jolly good for a two-and-a-half year old ... they were in production until 2011. Beautifully made and ridiculously expensive toys for the super rich, bought as much for the sense of financial exclusivity as the product itself. See also: Rolex watches, Vertu mobile phones, Oyster yachts.
 
Has it occurred to you that the stand probably looked dead empty because all the staff were showing people around down below?

These boats will have been built for individuals, so Oyster need to keep the wear and tear at a show to the absolute minimum.

It's like having a house for sale, it doesn't mean anyone walking down the street should expect to barge in at their convenience, you talk to the agent and make an appointment.
It does relate to the question of what exactly boat shows are all about though.
 
Very funny Jumbleduck. Thank you for complementing my writing skills.

It is a brand I am not familiar with although I recall having heard some talk of it. I have just looked at website, product doesn't look that expensive or inspiring.

For your info Rolex is not exclusive even I had one until I lost it! Won't be getting another either.
 
Boat shows are for the manufacturers that build production yachts for stock so they can either sell before the season starts ie London BS. Or try to get some forward orders ie Southampton.

Typically real buyers have made their mind up before they get to the show.... IMHO
 
Lozzer said:
It is a brand I am not familiar with although I recall having heard some talk of it. I have just looked at website, product doesn't look that expensive or inspiring.
Click to expand...

When they were actually making cars I think they cost around £200k - £300k a pop. Rather bland styling, but that wasn't the point, really. The point was to buy entrance to an exclusive and expensive club, your membership of which would go unnoticed save by other very rich people ... and those few of us plebs who could recognize a Bristol in the street. Same goes for Oyster - the fact that the poor, and indeed the merely rich, don't get within a mile of looking one over is a major part of the appeal. You only have to look at their website to see that: lots of use of "exclusive", "luxury", "superyacht" and so on.

For your info Rolex is not exclusive...
Click to expand...

Yes, that was a poor example because (a) Rolex do some affordable watches and (b) their expensive watches are, unlike Bristols and Oysters (the luxury, exclusive superyachts, not the perpetuals) extremely blingy. A better choice would have been one of the very expensive, very discreet brands of watch which advertise in the Wall Street Journal
 
JumbleDuck said:
Yes, that was a poor example because (a) Rolex do some affordable watches and (b) their expensive watches are, unlike Bristols and Oysters (the luxury, exclusive superyachts, not the perpetuals) extremely blingy. A better choice would have been one of the very expensive, very discreet brands of watch which advertise in the Wall Street Journal
Click to expand...

Richemont owns a pile of the luxury watch makers including Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels, Piaget, Vacheron Constantin, Jaeger-LeCoultre, IWC, Panerai and Montblanc.

Vacheron is a good example of the higher end.

http://www.vacheron-constantin.com/en/
 
You know,
You're right, there is no issue for me here. Had just wanted to see an Oyster that was all, no drama.

lw395 said:
Has it occurred to you that the stand probably looked dead empty because all the staff were showing people around down below?

These boats will have been built for individuals, so Oyster need to keep the wear and tear at a show to the absolute minimum.

It's like having a house for sale, it doesn't mean anyone walking down the street should expect to barge in at their convenience, you talk to the agent and make an appointment.
It does relate to the question of what exactly boat shows are all about though.
Click to expand...
 
what is wronh with these people

w
sailorman said:
my son will let you know :encouragement:
Click to expand...

everyone is a potential customer no one has the right to judge you, most of these people are two bob salesman just car dealers in bowties

I have been to dusseldorf and london in previous years and found dusseldorf sales people very relaxed on viewings where as london is full of a--------holes

looking down their noses at you, how dare they
 
Lozzer said:
Oyster is a great brand with a great reputation. Hopefully the odd person getting the cold shoulder at a boat show will not disrupt that.

Over the past year I have been working closely with Oyster in search of a yacht for my boss. They have been fantastic and I commend them for their patience.

To say that they are in trouble seems strange. We were in their big boat manufacturing facility and it was full of yachts in various states of build. We agreed deal on a new yacht so there is another for there pipeline.

Perhaps the owners of the yachts at the boat show like to limit the number of people going on their boats. Remember unlike
Princess, Fairline and sunseeker these boats are all built to order, no stock boats that need to be shifted in a hurry.

Overall my experience of Oyster is way ahead of the motor yacht manufacturer we dealt with.

Also return customers, my friend has bought three new yachts from them, that's not bad....

Think the OP has an agenda....
Click to expand...

Hi Lozzer. Hope all well with you!

I gotta say I have some sympathy with OP. Over many years of going to boat shows and spending millions on new boats, I have never managed to get on an Oyster. I admit I haven't made an appointment, though I did try that, but they insisted on a fixed time and I couldn't commit to a specific time. When I've walked up and asked for a look at UK shows I've always been turned away with a "come back in a few hours" or the next day. (The broker in Cannes has always been fine, in contrast). A few times I've tried softly to explain I am serious and able to buy one, and am particularly interested in the 70++ sector, but it has made no difference. And anyway, when rejected at a boatshow stand most people don't particularly want to tap their iPhone online banking to show the snotty person their bank balance even if it's quite chunky (or especially if it's chunky). As background btw, I plan to buy an 80+ sailboat when I retire in a few years, hence my interest.

So, all in, I do share the same experience as OP. And I'm quite an experience getter-onner at boat shows, having many years of experience at it, and being a customer of several boats, but there is a point where I give up, and that point is Oyster. So, as I say, I share OP's view. Of course I know that if I contacted them privately and went to see them then they would no doubt be very nice. But that doesn't invalidate the point of this thread which is that they have a difficult and awkward attitude to walker uppers, and that has persisted for many years, and isn't a nice part of their persona imho.

lw395 said:
These boats will have been built for individuals, so Oyster need to keep the wear and tear at a show to the absolute minimum.
Click to expand...
That's BS. The manufacturers can and do fix any scratches. They have ample time (years) to schedule boats at shows that are owned by customers who allow their boats to be shown. Loads of customers are perfectly happy to do this. My last 2 boat have done 4 shows in total, including LIBS and Cannes, and didn't suffer any damage at all (or if there was the odd scratch then the builder fixed it before I even noticed). If a builder really doesn't want people on a particular boat then just don't bring it to the show
 
Last edited:
Hi John

Hope you're well. I have to say that from my experience I have found Oyster to be extremely professional. Having said that I did not turn up ad hoc at a boat show asking if I can look over one of their boats.

The boats they show are owned and to that end they are likely to try to manage the traffic over them. When I worked for Princess we were encouraged to invite everyone onto our boats and then it turned into a job of crowd management potentially losing sight of the real prospects.

I do have sympathy for the OP but I also understand the position of Oyster.

70++ sailing boat, fantastic. It's a bit of a funny size. I spent a year researching boats between 60-95' both new and used. Looked at bespoke and production. I tried to stay within Europe but did look at Southern Wind and Hinckley amongst others.

We finally decided on Oyster as we felt this gave us best package plus we were supporting the UK marine industry. Do engage them you will be surprised, I am happy to recommend our sales guy. Will pm you details.
 
yacht said:
hehe exactly, because a firm like Oyster can read people and their wallet by their looks:)
Click to expand...

They can’t put that much effort into it. I was in the Services and by definition could never afford an Oyster. Exempting the Household Cavalry of course. Back in 1990 Oyster let me walk round their boat at Dusseldorf with no appointment. Last year I called at Foxes to buy some chandlery and they asked if I wanted to put it against the boat account – they thought I had just bought an Oyster.

London boat show was different but one year a friend of mine made an appointment. He turned up in a pin stripe suite and I met him on the stand dressed in jeans – as his skipper – although he was actually junior to me. It was an interesting visit, more for the other visitors than the boat itself. Michael O’Leary was being shown round, although I don’t think he bought anything. Someone else had decided to buy and he was sitting at the saloon table discussing with the salesman which of his offshore companies it would be best to get to make the purchase to ensure it went down as a tax loss. Perhaps that’s why they don’t want too many of the great unwashed on board - hearing those sort of conversations. Different world!
 
Have had no trouble getting aboard an Oyster at London or Southampton but I have only tried at quiet times. I can quite understand the need for any company to require an appointment at busy times; as even to see one's doctor; or even seriously to view a particular second hand car. When aboard I have found the sales persons very happy to answer my questions about design, materials etc. of their product.
I eventually bought a 25 yr., 1 pre-owner Oyster largely as a consequence of the design and quality displayed on those dream visits.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Share this page

Top