Premium price because of celebrity owners.

Eyore

Eyore

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Came across this rather nice Biscay 36 when I was browsing as you do, despite having no intentions to change my boat. However despite a great spec and having lots of money spent on it I get the feeling that the broker seems to think adding a premium due to previous celebrity (in sailing circles anyway) ownership is ok.
At the end of the day its still a 1982 boat, and I always believed that a good spec and work done dosen't necessarily add value although it certainly makes a boat more desirable and therefore more saleable. To me the previous ownership is irrelevant, would you pay a premium ?

http://www.networkyachtbrokers.co.uk/boats_for_sale/Biscay_36_Ketch-1011028.html/
 
Red Ensign sold a nice Rustler 36 that belonged to Princess Anne from new. It was advertised at the top end for a bit then, I think I recall, the price was reduced and it then went pretty quickly.

I guess the fit out would have been top notch from the yard, plus the celeb cred would have made it a very good long term investment, I would have thought.

Apart form Royalty and A Listers, Mick Jagger etc, I would have thought the previous ownership is a "so what" issue.
 
I recall that HRH's Rustler 36 "Doublet" had a healthy celebrity premium attached to it when recently for sale. I can't imagine anyone being daft enough to pay a premium and I expect HRH would concur with that as she seems to be a "no nonsense" woman.
 
The Biscay 36 you refer to is in top notch condition and a good spec. It was on the mooring next to us last season and is ashore near us now. Not sure about a 'celeb' premium though!
 
Who cares about previous ownership. If you are interested and its a good boat offer the vendor what you believe it is worth, if the current owners spent 30K on it they are unrealistic in thinking they will get that back. Its a very dated GRP cruising yacht.
 
I'm not sure this sort of thing should be encouraged. Before we know it English Heritage will get in on the act and we'll be seeing 'listed' yachts with blue plaques nailed onto them.

Anyway, it won't affect me. The boats I have owned were more likely to have writs nailed onto them.
 
I don't know any more about celeb premium than previous posters but could it be that the broker is merely trying to establish the boats credentials as a blue water cruiser with reasonable performance? paul Heiney and Libby Purves are well known for making longish offshore passages and "Old Varnish" has made documented long distance trips; perhaps it adds more credibility than the broker merely stating that it is an established blue water boat.
 
It's nice to have a blue book, beautifully filled in copperplate, with an impressive name or two to peruse.
But you can't do more than that, and it's obsolete, so why pay?
 
Sandgrounder said:
I don't know any more about celeb premium than previous posters but could it be that the broker is merely trying to establish the boats credentials as a blue water cruiser with reasonable performance? paul Heiney and Libby Purves are well known for making longish offshore passages and "Old Varnish" has made documented long distance trips; perhaps it adds more credibility than the broker merely stating that it is an established blue water boat.
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Smacks of desperation to me - might be of interest to some people. How does the price compare to other Biscay 36 with a recent refit?

They might have been better saving the money and selling it for £20k?
 
Sorry, don't get this. Where is the 'celeb' premium being asked for? The broker mentions my previous ownership, but only with the intention of showing that this is a boat capable of making worthy voyages. The chap who had it before me took her singlehanded to Antarctica and back -pity he's not mentioned too.

All I can say is that the Biscay 36 is an excellent boat for making long passages in safety and comfort and well worth the price being asked whatever kind of refits have taken place.
 
oldvarnish said:
Sorry, don't get this. Where is the 'celeb' premium being asked for? The broker mentions my previous ownership, but only with the intention of showing that this is a boat capable of making worthy voyages. The chap who had it before me took her singlehanded to Antarctica and back -pity he's not mentioned too.

All I can say is that the Biscay 36 is an excellent boat for making long passages in safety and comfort and well worth the price being asked whatever kind of refits have taken place.
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They did mention some of that. Record for furthest south and Antarctic trip. Just didn't give the guy a name check. Looks like a nice boat though.
 
£30,000 to refurbish a 36-foot grp cruising yacht is a lot of money. It's hard to think what could have necessitated so much being spent on it.
 
oldvarnish said:
Sorry, don't get this. Where is the 'celeb' premium being asked for? The broker mentions my previous ownership, but only with the intention of showing that this is a boat capable of making worthy voyages.
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Not the way it comes across to me:

Under the previous owners (well known broadcasters Paul Heiney and Libby Purves) Ayesha took part in the 2003 AZAB race. Following this Paul Heiney took part in the twelth OSTAR race in 2005 (single handed transatlantic race) and his book "The Last Man Across The Atlantic" tells the story.
 
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