Dusseldorf great and Oyster Yachts not so..

Jamesuk said:
Sure. Supermarkets don't allow people in without at least wearing footwear, shorts and t-shirt.

As for the Internet: all a seller wants is to be paid within a short period of time from moment of sale and not defrauded.
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You've obviously not been to a Tesco in Bournemouth then. Men without tops on, people going barefooted, men and women in baby-gro's are all very common (in both senses of the word).
 
KellysEye said:
Serious buyers of Oyster book an appointment they don't want to waste time on tyre kickers.
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An attitude which was once common across the UK boatbuilding sector. The dead UK boatbuilding sector. These foreign bounders will talk to anyone, you know. It's just not playing the game. Now, where are my red trizers.
 
KellysEye said:
Serious buyers of Oyster Yachts book an appointment they don't want to waste time on tyre kickers.
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Quite, I'm looking to spend £1m on a boat and I don't phone to book an appointment, I'll just waft around the show getting on all the biggest boats when I like.

The guy that has reopened this thread worked for Oyster, stated that there is no typical buyer of their boats and dress code isn't an indication of intention to buy/seriousness.

He's also said they are happy to show people around regardless of their position to buy one as long as they book an appointment and the stand isn't overflowing with people who can actually afford to buy one.

I don't get the negativity towards the Oyster brand at all.

A mate of mine is taking his new £1.3m boat to SIBS, I don't think it's going to be a scrummage of people that know f all about boats, people that couldn't afford a weeks mooring fees for it and fender kickers on board. And there's nothing wrong with that.
 
xyachtdave said:
Quite, I'm looking to spend £1m on a boat and I don't phone to book an appointment, I'll just waft around the show getting on all the biggest boats when I like.

The guy that has reopened this thread worked for Oyster, stated that there is no typical buyer of their boats and dress code isn't an indication of intention to buy/seriousness.

He's also said they are happy to show people around regardless of their position to buy one as long as they book an appointment and the stand isn't overflowing with people who can actually afford to buy one.

I don't get the negativity towards the Oyster brand at all.

A mate of mine is taking his new £1.3m boat to SIBS, I don't think it's going to be a scrummage of people that know f all about boats, people that couldn't afford a weeks mooring fees for it and fender kickers on board. And there's nothing wrong with that.
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Just a million on a boat hummm id charter and pay a special insurance and arrangment with other owners to use their boats as skipper. 55ft-65.5ft is a good length for these purposes. Not to mention you dont have to worry about your boat and keep paying out for it when your not using it. On the other hand get a bank to buy it for you, HSBC marine finance. Register it in montenegro and renew the temp status for VAT reasons every 6-18 months ( it was 18 in 2011) to put off a hefty bill, when you want to keep it in the EU, i think you only pay VAT for the value of the yacht after it's depreciation.

Research Hallberg refits with Reginasailing speak to Leon. Buying a new boat is bad value.

"Montenegro’s simplified Law on Yachts is the Mediterranean Sea’s most yacht-friendly legislation. It allows charter yachts to take advantage of a user-friendly vignette system enabling multiple entries and frequent changes to the passenger and crew manifest. A low tax rate, reduced VAT on marine goods and tax and duty-free bunkering also serve to make Porto Montenegro a financially advantageous homeport and charter base."
 
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xyachtdave said:
Here's a selfie I took this morning - you'll get on anything at the boat show if you follow my lead and get yourself some stylish new threads.

5db2499ab96da6418abf617697ce4679.jpg
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Shoes look a bit cheep, gives the game away!!!!!
 
JumbleDuck said:
An attitude which was once common across the UK boatbuilding sector. The dead UK boatbuilding sector. These foreign bounders will talk to anyone, you know. It's just not playing the game. Now, where are my red trizers.
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Yes the fellows at Oyster really don't know what they're doing do they?.....I mean they're probably the only significant boatbuilder that was around 30 years ago that hasn't gone out of business at some point, but hey what the hell does that prove?

From my own experience, I've never had a problem getting on an Oyster at the boatshows I've attended.....I don't wear anything more dressed up than I would if heading to the pub of an evening; I just ask nicely and accept that I may need to come back an hour or two later if they're busy. - I do tend to avoid weekends, as I get quite enough of crowds on the commute.

I've never found them remotely snooty, even when my answer to the question 'What are you sailing at the moment?' has been 'we've just had a baby, so nothing right now';but I get the sense that some people get hung up on their own inverted snobbery and see such questions (and activities like filling out your details) as impertinent impositions and an attempt to make them feel inadequate in some way. Personally I don't mind fessing up that I'm not really in the market, as generally one gets left to wander around in peace rather than someone trying to sell to me.
 
AndrewfromFal said:
Yes the fellows at Oyster really don't know what they're doing do they?.....I mean they're probably the only significant boatbuilder that was around 30 years ago that hasn't gone out of business at some point, but hey what the hell does that prove?
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That there is only room for one boatbuilder with attitude in the market? Unless you think the survival of one more significant than the demise of all the others. There's still one factory in China making typewriters.
 
JumbleDuck said:
That there is only room for one boatbuilder with attitude in the market? Unless you think the survival of one more significant than the demise of all the others
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In the long term of course it's more significant; unless you think the only reason the others failed was because of the way they managed their stands at boatshows? From memories of going to shows in the 1980s, you could have brought a baboon onto the stands of most of the now defunct manufacturers, and no-one would have batted an eyelid. I remember seeing a family of four eating a packed lunch in the cockpit of a Westerly Oceanlord and no one gave them so much as a dirty look.
 
AndrewfromFal said:
In the long term of course it's more significant; unless you think the only reason the others failed was because of the way they managed their stands at boatshows?
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We'll just have to see how well a tiny company serving a niche market survives in the long term, then, shan't we? As long as Oyster sell an exclusive lifestyle rather than boats, and as long as people want that exclusive lifestyle, I imagine they'll do quite well.
 
JumbleDuck said:
We'll just have to see how well a tiny company serving a niche market survives in the long term, then, shan't we? As long as Oyster sell an exclusive lifestyle rather than boats, and as long as people want that exclusive lifestyle, I imagine they'll do quite well.
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Well they seem to have managed OK so far....so it's not like this is a voyage into the unknown.

If I understand you correctly you seem to think that selling a lifestyle is something that is exclusive to some yacht builders; buying a boat is about as discretionary as discretionary spending gets; it doesn't matter if you're buying an Oyster, a Hallberg Rassy, a Bavaria or a 40 year old Twister, they are all about lifestyle (no matter what colour your trousers or if your deskshoes came from Dubarry or Lidl).

One of the differences that probably marked Oyster out very early was they understood this, whereas a lot of boatbuilders seemed to be under misapprehension they were serving some sort of more serious minded purpose, even if their workmanship didn't bear this out.
 
Oyster was on my very very shortlist and I have to say they could not have been more helpful and taken more time particularly visiting them in person.

To be fair shows produce an enormous number of people (whatever the cut of their gybe) that have no intention of buying. While there is nothing wrong in that, I suspect most serious customers will know Oyster's approach and will book an appointment if they are serious. They might miss out on a few potential cusotmers but might gain a few because they give them a little more time and attention at the show.

Their formula seems to have stood the test of time, and for a long time and through a few recessions, so history would seem to be in their favour - never a bad thing.
 
AndrewfromFal said:
One of the differences that probably marked Oyster out very early was they understood this, whereas a lot of boatbuilders seemed to be under misapprehension they were serving some sort of more serious minded purpose, even if their workmanship didn't bear this out.
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I think we are in general agreement.
 
Jamesuk said:
Just a million on a boat hummm id charter and pay a special insurance and arrangment with other owners to use their boats as skipper. 55ft-65.5ft is a good length for these purposes. Not to mention you dont have to worry about your boat and keep paying out for it when your not using it. On the other hand get a bank to buy it for you, HSBC marine finance. Register it in montenegro and renew the temp status for VAT reasons every 6-18 months ( it was 18 in 2011) to put off a hefty bill, when you want to keep it in the EU, i think you only pay VAT for the value of the yacht after it's depreciation.

Research Hallberg refits with Reginasailing speak to Leon. Buying a new boat is bad value.

"Montenegro’s simplified Law on Yachts is the Mediterranean Sea’s most yacht-friendly legislation. It allows charter yachts to take advantage of a user-friendly vignette system enabling multiple entries and frequent changes to the passenger and crew manifest. A low tax rate, reduced VAT on marine goods and tax and duty-free bunkering also serve to make Porto Montenegro a financially advantageous homeport and charter base."
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Just to be clear James it's not me with the £1m to spend on a new boat!

It was more of a 'someone' with £1m plus to spend on a boat isn't just going to wonder around SIBS looking at different boats till they find one they like without doing a bit of research and appointment making first!
 
xyachtdave said:
It was more of a 'someone' with £1m plus to spend on a boat isn't just going to wonder around SIBS looking at different boats till they find one they like without doing a bit of research and appointment making first!
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Unless "doing a bit of research" = "wandering around SIBS looking at different boats till they find one they like". The rich aren't that different.
 
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