It has been over four years since Lai Sun bought into Camper & Nicholsons in 2016. As well as being Chairman of Camper & Nicholsons Asia, you are on the Board of Directors of Camper & Nicholsons International, so how would you describe the journey so far?
I have been yachting in Hong Kong and the Mediterranean all my life and it’s my passion. The transition from being a yacht owner to being involved in the yachting industry by playing a role in the most prestigious and oldest brand, Camper & Nicholsons International, is simply amazing.
Where have most of your clients in Asia come from?
Camper & Nicholsons is owned by Lai Sun Group, which is a group of five companies listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, so Asia is certainly our stronghold. This allowed us direct access to penetrate the Asia market. Most of our clients in Asia are from Hong Kong and Chinese clients who reside in Hong Kong. However, we have recently experienced increased traffic from Australia and Thailand.
How do clients in Asia differ from clients in Europe, US and other traditional superyacht markets?
Clients from Asia have a great tendency towards new yachts or recent brokerage yachts. Furthermore, most clients, even firsttime buyers, are very well informed and lean towards to the well-established brands from Italy, UK, Germany and Netherlands. One notable trend is that Chinese owners trade up quickly and often have multiple yachts in Hong Kong and overseas.
How would you evaluate Camper & Nicholsons’ business in Asia, in terms of new builds, brokerage and charter?
In Asia, we experienced a wonderful 2020 in brokerage. Having sold one 60m, one 50m, one 38.5m and other yachts, we can say brokerage is the bulk of our business.
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