Why is the UK leisure marine market dominated by oversized luxury motor yachts?

[Sea Master]

Having recently attended the Southampton Boat Show 2016 for the first time, which I thought was a very well organised and enjoyable event, I came away feeling that the UK marine leisure market is dominated by a few big UK brands that produce very large, white, inefficient, luxury planning motor yachts for a very small percentage of the population and I wondered if this is just a misconception based on that one show or has the modern UK leisure marine market changed to cater more for the global elite at the cost of the more modest regular boater. I understand that many UK brands need to go after the high end market to generate the returns needed to sustain and grow a UK based business, and good luck to them, but it also seems that the UK boat buying public desires these status symbols over more practical, fuel efficient and seaworthy cruising motor boats which are much more common in Northern Europe and were noticeable missing from the SBS show. And the topic of fuel efficiency seems to be irrelevant in the UK motor boat market and hardly mentioned by any sales brochures, whereas the German manufacturers are all over Hybrids, surely that has to change. I may be confusing different genres of boating such as luxury planning motor yachts vs semi displacement cruising yachts and I understand there are a few UK manufacturers such as Aquastar and Trader providing the later to a very high standard, but my question is 'why is there such an obsession with large, white, inefficient, luxury planning motor yachts in the UK, or at least in Southampton?'

 

[Cheery]

The Sunseeker 86 which replaced the 88 has a range of 1,500 miles. The new 95 doesn't quite hit that figure, managing 1,250. I do agree that UK manufacturers are missing something though. As Deleted User has mentioned on more than one occasion there are no UK trawler builders, never mind a large hybrid propulsion vessel made here. Columbus do a 40m hybrid and Greenline do more realistic size boats but UK manufacturers are left in the wake of others.

 

[paul salliss]

I like Sea Masters post it raises some relevant questions

 

[[2068]]

The smaller end of the market is fulfilled by American boats or RIBS.
The mid-market is now dominated by a small number of large French and German builders (e.g. Bavaria, Jeanneau, Beneteau), all have which have invested hundreds of millions of pounds in efficient production engineering.

Which leaves the expensive, not-very-high-volume, UK builders, to produce large, white, inefficient, luxury planing motor yachts for a very small percentage of the population, chasing buyers further up the market as each year passes. It's not because they are out of touch with regard to more fuel efficient and seaworthy designs, more that "it's not what they do", and as costs keep rising, they become unable to make a profit on anything smaller.
Semi-d boats aren't always fuel efficient either, unless operating at low speeds: look at the wake pushed out by an Aquastar at 18kts!

 

[PowerYachtBlog]

The Sunseeker 86 which replaced the 88 has a range of 1,500 miles. The new 95 doesn't quite hit that figure, managing 1,250. I do agree that UK manufacturers are missing something though. As Deleted User has mentioned on more than one occasion there are no UK trawler builders, never mind a large hybrid propulsion vessel made here. Columbus do a 40m hybrid and Greenline do more realistic size boats but UK manufacturers are left in the wake of others.

Both the Sunseeker 86 and 95 are not entirely correct in that figure.
Yes it is possible they can do it, but I think the only way they can do it is at an idle 8 knots speeds.
For me that is just a marketing hook, as nearly all boats can do that at idle speed.

 

[maby]

I think you just have to look round the average Southern UK marina to see why. A high proportion of new boat purchases, both power and sail, are used as the ultimate seaside weekend cottage. We have several friends with middle to high end motor boats and their normal pattern of usage is a ten or fifteen mile round trip once per week to somewhere to anchor up for lunch plus several dinner parties each week. They may well do one long trip each year for the summer holiday, but the overall pattern of usage is such that fuel efficiency is a lot less important than comfortable, large accommodation.

 

[Nick_H]

... it also seems that the UK boat buying public desires these status symbols...

Why ask, if you've already decided?

 

[BruceK]

Excellent 1st post troll :encouragement: but the subject was already answered directly by at least one of your OSLYM's Maybe it'll make iPlayer again http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b077kgw9

However if memory serves me correctly it went something like it takes the average 200k punter up to two years to make up his mind and sign the bottom line but the monsters of the fleet are pocket change to those punters and sell easy. Or something very similar.

 

[RobWales]

I doub't it is, I reckon that there's a perception it is because those big 3 manufacturers are UK based, bet most of the trade done at SIBS was not for the UK market.

 

[Richard.C]

Maby highlighted a valid point in his first sentence.

It's not just motorboats, we were a sailing family when I was young all the way up to the late 90's, back then a 40ft boat either power or sail was considered big. I just have to look in the marina we berth in and I'd say there as many if not maybe more sailing boats over 50ft than there are motorboats over 50ft. Unfortunately the sailing boats are almost all foreign built.

 

[BruceK]

I doub't it is, I reckon that there's a perception it is because those big 3 manufacturers are UK based, bet most of the trade done at SIBS was not for the UK market.

I didn't allude it was for the UK market. I said the average punter according to a Sunseeker salesman in that documentary IIRC was too much hard work for too little return.

 

[RobWales]

Oh my mistake, could have sworn you asked "why is the UK leisure marine market?"

 

[BruceK]

Oops :ambivalence: Actually my mistake. I read it as an answer to my post not the OP's.

 

[oldgit]

Simples ,the big three(err alright two) can actually make money in low volume high spec builds aimed at the Euro Market or UK buyers who will keep their boats abroad.
They are designed to compete with the smaller Italian stuff, the layout and power requirements reflect the type of craft Med buyers want and need down there.
The Spanish and especially the French have invested vast amounts to dominate the peche and utitlity market with basic and budget concious volume boats.
The UK market is dead on its feet,Broom being the last boat builder designing quality craft for UK market and who went bust. Nobody regards boating in the UK as a prestigeous hobby or pastime any longer, the "working man" is skint and having trouble merely keeping a roof over his head.
There is no longer anybody able to build and sell the sort of numbers needed to make an affordable boat for this country and make money on it.
Doubt they could sell them anyway
For a real home grown success story look at the explosion in canal boats.

 

[Whitelighter]

I get what you are saying about Scandinavian design but they are not cgeap.

£400k for a 35ft boat.

 

[jfm]

In answer to your question at the end: (a) I wouldn't call it an obsession, but lot of people love boats; (b) it's not just in UK - same in other affluent countries; and (c) lots and lots of people love boats and boating, and these days a significant minority can and do buy pretty large boats. Hence boat shows are going to contain quite a lot of them.

I don't think it's objective to say white boats dominate Southampton. There were loads of small boats there too. If you concentrate on the big stuff outside on the pontoons, "dominate" is an easy impression to form.

On a few specifics:

inefficient,

Really? Moving tens of tons takes fuel but its not inefficient and the amount of fuel burned for the enjoyment created is sensible

... for a very small percentage of the population...

. Not trying to pick a fight but are you saying things displayed at shows or other venues should be restricted to things for a large element of the population? Graff sell diamonds to only a few - should they not be on the high street? I'm not understanding the point.

has the modern UK leisure marine market changed to cater more for the global elite at the cost of the more modest regular boater

Absolutely not. There is no reason why making big boats prevents making smaller boats too.

it also seems that the UK boat buying public desires these status symbols over more practical, fuel efficient and seaworthy cruising motor boats

Sure they do, but what is wrong with a bit of desire? You can set up a UK or Mediterranean dealership for N. Europe boats if you think everyone else is missing a trick

fuel efficiency seems to be irrelevant in the UK motor boat market and hardly mentioned by any sales brochures

Yes - fuel consumption isn't a big factor in buying or running a boat, for most customers

UK manufacturers such as Aquastar and Trader...

Guernsey and Taiwan are not UK. But anyway, anyone who wants to and is able to buy one of their boats does. Everyone else doesn't.

 

[Momac]

I don't know anyone who has bought a brand new motorboat with the overwhelming majority of British people buying a bigger used boat in preference to a new small boat.
There are plenty of older boats in our marina. Some boats are sold many times and few if any go to the grave. I don't see any demand for new boats. Therefore not surprising the builders are looking to millionaire markets.

 

[Blue Sunray]

I understand there are a few UK manufacturers such as Aquastar and Trader providing the later to a very high standard'

I'm rather afraid that as pointed out above that rather illustrates your level of understanding as neither are UK manufacturers. I can't see how a neutral observer with any degree of mathematical ability looking round a even marina in the Solent, let alone swinging moorings there or elsewhere would come to your conclusion.

BTW try googling Hardy, Seaward or Broom before you even start on the ones with masts.

 

[Deleted User YDKXO]

And the topic of fuel efficiency seems to be irrelevant in the UK motor boat market and hardly mentioned by any sales brochures,

You're right. The UK boat builders seem obsessed with big white gas guzzling planing boats to the exclusion of anything else. I went around SIBS and my overriding impression was that I've seen it all before. The French and Italian manufacturers are at least giving a passing nod to fuel efficiency by producing semi displacement cruising boats with smaller engines which are designed to operate at slower speeds. In the long run this industry is finished unless it can find a step change improvement in the fuel economy of its products and if fuel economy considerations don't finish it off, ever tighter emissions regulations and increasing environmental awareness probably will. The UK boat builders show no sign of recognising this. Maybe thats why they're all losing money

 

[maby]

Is it possible to improve fuel efficiency enough to make a difference without ceasing to be recognizable as a motorboat? We have a 43 foot sailing boat with a 50HP diesel engine - I reckon we get something close to 20mpg but can't go over 6 knots. Our friends with large motorboats seem to get around 2mpg and cruise at over 20 knots. They would sooner give up boating than travel at 5 knots, but even if the manufacturer could halve fuel consumption and get 4mpg, it would still be ruinously expensive to run by our standards - a lot of the time we can raise the sails, turn off the engine and get infinite mpg.