New build Princess F55 flybridge

[henryf]

Is one of those yours?

Sadly not. The one closest to the camera is my next boat

Looks like an X80 closest to the camera and can't quite make out the other one but it's got a hard top on it.

Henry

 

[henryf]

Nice to hear - progress seems very fast . Any pictures of the sea trials that must be happening?

I haven't got any photos from the factory sea trials. As everything coincided with Dusseldorf I didn't get to do a final factory visit. In fact everything is a little bit ahead of where I expected it to be after Christmas. No fault on Princess' part, I just assumed they'd shut up shop and the build would take a bit longer. I think the last thing to go in was the carpet once the trials were complete or certainly towards the end of that bit.

I'm just in the final stages with Argo / Princess Yacht sales who now have taken delivery from the factory - which means I have to raid the piggy bank again

I would like to visit the Turnchapel site in Plymouth and be on the boat when it comes round from Plymouth to Swanwick if possible to see her under her own steam. Not sure if it will happen but if it does you will know on here first.

Then once Swanwick do their checks it's handover time. There's quite a lot of new stuff to take in so I'm clearing what little space remains in my brain in preparation. The nice thing about Argo / Princess sales is that it isn't a one shot process where they hand it over and you're on your own. When I looked elsewhere other than Princess not being able to just get in touch with them with a question or a technical was a significant factor. But I'll go through the whole handover and running in stages on here in due course.

In this final stage my abiding memory will sadly be the lack of joined up thinking and general poor service received from the so called professionals dealing with funding aspects of the purchase. If you're thinking of ordering a new boat be aware that you can't get finance during the build process. Most people end up selling their boat and having a year off the water which seems at odds with the boating lifestyle being sold. Once the boat is complete funding options are available but it feels very clunky and they want to fund huge amounts over very long periods. Without going into specifics we have financed a small portion of the boat through a slightly different source and the amount of arse covering, legal paperwork, lack of common sense and tardiness is staggering. A 15 page document and 2 weeks of communication to say if the business can't keep up payments I'll cover them personally on a loan with over 15 times it's value in security including a boat worth more than 4 times the loan.

I'm sure once the boat is doing charters in the Solent Sunshine I will have long forgotten my frustrating telephone calls and emails to over paid people in suits some of whom I pay to supposedly fight my corner.

Rant over !

 

[benjenbav]

I haven't got any photos from the factory sea trials. As everything coincided with Dusseldorf I didn't get to do a final factory visit. In fact everything is a little bit ahead of where I expected it to be after Christmas. No fault on Princess' part, I just assumed they'd shut up shop and the build would take a bit longer. I think the last thing to go in was the carpet once the trials were complete or certainly towards the end of that bit.

I'm just in the final stages with Argo / Princess Yacht sales who now have taken delivery from the factory - which means I have to raid the piggy bank again

I would like to visit the Turnchapel site in Plymouth and be on the boat when it comes round from Plymouth to Swanwick if possible to see her under her own steam. Not sure if it will happen but if it does you will know on here first.

Then once Swanwick do their checks it's handover time. There's quite a lot of new stuff to take in so I'm clearing what little space remains in my brain in preparation. The nice thing about Argo / Princess sales is that it isn't a one shot process where they hand it over and you're on your own. When I looked elsewhere other than Princess not being able to just get in touch with them with a question or a technical was a significant factor. But I'll go through the whole handover and running in stages on here in due course.

In this final stage my abiding memory will sadly be the lack of joined up thinking and general poor service received from the so called professionals dealing with funding aspects of the purchase. If you're thinking of ordering a new boat be aware that you can't get finance during the build process. Most people end up selling their boat and having a year off the water which seems at odds with the boating lifestyle being sold. Once the boat is complete funding options are available but it feels very clunky and they want to fund huge amounts over very long periods. Without going into specifics we have financed a small portion of the boat through a slightly different source and the amount of arse covering, legal paperwork, lack of common sense and tardiness is staggering. A 15 page document and 2 weeks of communication to say if the business can't keep up payments I'll cover them personally on a loan with over 15 times it's value in security including a boat worth more than 4 times the loan.

I'm sure once the boat is doing charters in the Solent Sunshine I will have long forgotten my frustrating telephone calls and emails to over paid people in suits some of whom I pay to supposedly fight my corner.

Rant over !

Sounds great, Henry - bureaucracy aside. Would be special to do the delivery leg with the team.

 

[henryf]

Sounds great, Henry - bureaucracy aside. Would be special to do the delivery leg with the team.

Then at least I can say I had a ride out on her if she sinks.....

It would actually be quite nice to wander round and have a look at stuff under way whilst not having to be the skipper.

I'll take a flask, some biscuits, a couple of cheese & pickle rolls and some loo roll.

H

 

[MapisM]

Yup, in your boots I definitely wouldn't want to miss the opportunity.

As an aside, did you possibly hear from someone at Princess their take on the latest news?
Sorry for the website in German, but Google makes a decent translation, for anyone not keen on the language!

 

[jfm]

Yup, in your boots I definitely wouldn't want to miss the opportunity.

As an aside, did you possibly hear from someone at Princess their take on the latest news?
Sorry for the website in German, but Google makes a decent translation, for anyone not keen on the language!

It's in EN here. https://www.bwb.gv.at/en/merger_control/merger/6207
This is consistent with general rumours on the street over last couple of weeks (Mapism, as per WhatsApp) that L Catterton (as current owner/seller) and KPS have agreed a deal on Princess. KPS is a midmarket New York private equity firm. Pretty sure the price won't be revealed publicly (is very small).

 

[stelican]

Is one of those yours?

Not making enough wash!

 

[henryf]

I don’t have any knowledge of the bigger financial picture at Princess but there was talk of new investment for additional manufacturing facilities, I think at the bigger end of the range. We didn’t visit the X class production facilities.

 

[MapisM]

According to the above website, it's rather a complete (100% shares) change of ownership, than just a new investment.
Hence my curiosity about how this is being seen by those involved. But I guess it's too early to tell.

 

[rafiki_]

Then at least I can say I had a ride out on her if she sinks.....

It would actually be quite nice to wander round and have a look at stuff under way whilst not having to be the skipper.

I'll take a flask, some biscuits, a couple of cheese & pickle rolls and some loo roll.

H

Camera?

 

[henryf]

Camera?

Most definitely. Fingers crossed this will happen.

In terms of Princess ownership I spoke to a number of people from the factory at Dusseldorf who I’d met during the build process and there was no sense of concern or worry. In fact quite the opposite. I’d heard a couple of times that they were hoping for some specific investment and whilst cautious I sensed this was more likely to happen. This could be the reason.

When I started out on this process there were some who asked if I was going to insure my payments. I didn’t and at no time felt any concern. The only problems I’ve come across have been around component supply and Princess seems to have worked hard to mitigate even if it cost them money, they’ve done the right thing. Striving for efficiency, yes but no sense of panic cost cutting. In fact quite the opposite, they are continuing to invest in product development rather than resting on laurels and selling the family jewels for short term gain.

Being totally honest our boat probably followed the harshest of the problems. Engines were there on time, the move to a more expensive (for Princess) generator had already been taken several boats before ours. The boat whizzed through the assembly process. If there were problems I was protected and shielded from them.

 

[Portofino]

Sometimes the real estate of a Co to a developer is worth more than the weak balance sheet .The brand has minor value too , that’s sellable or relocatable .

Good luck with the new boat .

 

[DAW]

The financial statements of the UK-based builders are available from the Companies House website. To try to understand their financial position, you need to do some investigation and look not just at the operating companies but also the holding companies above them to get a consolidated view of the acquisition cost and financing arrangements. In the case of Sunseeker, you also need to include the Sunseeker London Group which although under separate ownership has exclusive distribution rights in most of Europe and accounts for a significant percentage of sales and profit.

After years of dire results in the wake of the financial crisis, a combination of bouyant markets, new product launches and operational improvements has allowed them to return to modest (for a luxury product) levels of profitability and in some years positive operational cash flows. The problem for their owners is they don't generate the returns that luxury brands (such as those in the LVMH portfolio) are expected to deliver or generate sufficient surplus cash to allow them to repay debt or finance capital investment in a meaningful way. Consequently, while they may be "successful" as boat builders, the implied business valuations are the same or less than the equity/debt their owners have injected to purchase them and keep them afloat, and achieving a successful exit is challenging.

The UK builders are not alone in this. Many of the European "luxury" production boat builders are (or have been) in similar positions.

 

[henryf]

Sorry for the radio silence but there hasn’t really been much to chat about. The boat has now completed sea trials with the factory and been handed over to Argo / Princess Motor Boat Sales. They have a facility in Turnchapel Plymouth which undertakes initial PDI inspections and also does retrofit works.

The plan is to bring her round from there to Swanwick where Argo / PMYS have their office on Friday subject to weather. They are working to get me on board the delivery trip so obviously photos and videos will be taken should that happen.

Once in Swanwick it’s a final check before hand over and then the fun begins. We have to start the coding process for commercial charter use.

In the meantime a photo of Emily Jo our Princess 50 Mk3 leaving our berth in Haslar under the command of her new owner. It seems strange to see her out on the water as normally I’m the skipper !

 

[Commercial Dave]

Good luck - what category are you going for?

 

[Croftie]

Once in Swanwick it’s a final check before hand over and then the fun begins. We have to start the coding process for commercial charter use.

Did Princess have to do anything over and above std because you were going to code?

 

[henryf]

Good luck - what category are you going for?

We will be a Cat2 coded boat, 60 miles from the nearest safe haven. Hoping to code for 12 plus 3 crew rather than 2 crew to give us the option of 2 hosties. There are times when the client wants to bring their own and I still want to have my own crew member.

 

[henryf]

Did Princess have to do anything over and above std because you were going to code?

No, that’s all down to me. I’ll keep everyone informed if there’s anything special to do.

 

[Hooligan]

The financial statements of the UK-based builders are available from the Companies House website. To try to understand their financial position, you need to do some investigation and look not just at the operating companies but also the holding companies above them to get a consolidated view of the acquisition cost and financing arrangements. In the case of Sunseeker, you also need to include the Sunseeker London Group which although under separate ownership has exclusive distribution rights in most of Europe and accounts for a significant percentage of sales and profit.

After years of dire results in the wake of the financial crisis, a combination of bouyant markets, new product launches and operational improvements has allowed them to return to modest (for a luxury product) levels of profitability and in some years positive operational cash flows. The problem for their owners is they don't generate the returns that luxury brands (such as those in the LVMH portfolio) are expected to deliver or generate sufficient surplus cash to allow them to repay debt or finance capital investment in a meaningful way. Consequently, while they may be "successful" as boat builders, the implied business valuations are the same or less than the equity/debt their owners have injected to purchase them and keep them afloat, and achieving a successful exit is challenging.

The UK builders are not alone in this. Many of the European "luxury" production boat builders are (or have been) in similar positions.

Yes. I think the Covid boom for boats ie driving second hand prices up which slides through usually to new boats, was a one off. The current environment is fairly grim for boat builders in my view unless you are at the seriously high end where buyers really don’t care ie the cost is a drop in the bucket relative to their net worth. Inflation and supply issues have seriously impacted the build cost process and it is tricky for the builders in an inflationary environment to price the build. I think you have got in on the nick of time Henry so well done. I suspect that logic dictates we are at start of a down cycle if not in midst of one with new build suffering first - buyers generally who really want a boat and can’t afford spiralling prices will go to second hand market so that may keep firmer for a while in certain categories. So I am not surprised by sale of Princess.

 

[Commercial Dave]

No, that’s all down to me. I’ll keep everyone informed if there’s anything special to do.

Does it come with all the safety equipment required for cat 2 commercial operation?