SMOOTH OPERATORS
Yacht Style|Issue 59
Thailand’s Lee Marine is Riviera’s longest-serving international dealer, and offers larger steel yachts by Cantiere delle Marche and superyachts through Northrop & Johnson Asia, but confidentiality prevents the dealer from announcing several exciting projects.
NICK HUNG
SMOOTH OPERATORS

As Riviera stages the world premiere of its 645 SUV at the 32nd Sanctuary Cove International Boat Show, the Australian builder’s longest-serving international dealer won’t be present. Lee Marine was founded in Phuket in 1997 and has been representing Riviera in Thailand since 1998, but travel restrictions mean founder Josh Lee and colleagues can’t be at Sanctuary Cove this year.

However, that doesn’t mean Lee and his team aren’t keeping busy. As well as Riviera, which produces five ranges of fibreglass motor yachts from 39-72ft, Lee Marine also works closely with Cantiere delle Marche (CdM) as a ‘preferred partner’ of the Italian builder of steel motor yachts from 80-150ft. The Phuket-based dealer is also a broker for a huge range of yachts, new and pre-owned.

Furthermore, since 2018, the company has also owned the licence for Northrop & Johnson in Asia, making it a regional representative of one of the world’s leading brokerage houses.

Representing a global firm like N&J forced Lee Marine to advance its digital capabilities, while Covid deepened that knowledge. Lee is now very used to communicating and selling remotely with clients to offset the absence of local boat shows and the inability to travel to others, including in his native Australia.

“Now, we’re mostly marketing and selling yachts digitally, selling yachts ‘sight unseen’. We’ve sold two 40m superyachts this way. It’s amazing, really,” Lee says from his company headquarters in Ao Po Grand Marina, where staff include General Manager Martin Holmes, Lee’s first employee in 1997.

“Since Covid, boating has become the hot new thing in Asia and we’re sitting right in the middle of arguably the best playground in the region.”

Denne historien er fra Issue 59-utgaven av Yacht Style.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

Denne historien er fra Issue 59-utgaven av Yacht Style.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

FLERE HISTORIER FRA YACHT STYLESe alt
Wong Tet Choong - Singapore's Most Famous Sailor
Yacht Style

Wong Tet Choong - Singapore's Most Famous Sailor

TC Wong made global headlines last year when the rapid spread of Covid left him stranded at sea in his Leopard 50 for months until he was eventually allowed into Fiji, where he has remained since. Now, the adventurous 60-year-old is waiting for borders to open so he can continue his journey around the South Pacific on his beloved Ximula III.

time-read
9 mins  |
Issue 61
Burgess Marks New Milestone In Asia With 20th Superyacht Transaction
Yacht Style

Burgess Marks New Milestone In Asia With 20th Superyacht Transaction

Confirming its position as the regional leader in selling large yachts, Burgess’ recent sale of the 52m Amels Lind marked the 20th transaction by the brokerage house’s Asia team since it was formed in 2015.

time-read
3 mins  |
Issue 61
Premieres & Newcomers
Yacht Style

Premieres & Newcomers

Yacht Style provides an overview of this year’s exciting new models, with most on display at this year’s Cannes Yachting Festival and/or Monaco Yacht Show, some having shown earlier in the year and a couple making their debuts in other autumn shows around Europe.

time-read
10+ mins  |
Issue 61
Déjà Vu In Denmark
Yacht Style

Déjà Vu In Denmark

Halfway into SailGP’s second season, a familiar pattern begins to emerge. Australia, runaway winners of the first series, again top the table, despite having to sit out one of the four events held so far with gear failure.

time-read
4 mins  |
Issue 61
Galeon Spreads Its Wings
Yacht Style

Galeon Spreads Its Wings

With Hong Kong welcoming its first Galeon 640 Fly and 325 GTO this year and Asia’s latest 500 Fly arriving in Singapore, Yacht Style looks at the builder’s 20-year relationship with Tony Castro that has resulted in some of the world’s most innovative production motor yachts.

time-read
7 mins  |
Issue 61
How To Build A ‘Scent Wardrobe'!
Yacht Style

How To Build A ‘Scent Wardrobe'!

Johanna Monange founded Maison 21G in Singapore to offer customised scents for all clients and all occasions. The personal approach is proving popular, with growing understanding of how to build a ‘scent wardrobe’ and more boutiques opening around the city.

time-read
6 mins  |
Issue 61
Rolex Fastnet's “Coup De Cherbourg”
Yacht Style

Rolex Fastnet's “Coup De Cherbourg”

Fierce sou’west winds gusting 30 knots greeted 337 yachts starting the Rolex Fastnet Race, as the 49th edition of this famous offshore classic set off not for Plymouth as usual, but for Cherbourg in France, via Ireland’s Fastnet Rock.

time-read
7 mins  |
Issue 61
Stepping Out Of The Shadows
Yacht Style

Stepping Out Of The Shadows

As founder and Director of VP Yachts, Vivian Chan is quickly making a name for herself as the Hong Kong dealer for Italian builder Sessa, even if it appears a world away from her other role as General Manager of her family’s Sun Hing Shipyard.

time-read
7 mins  |
Issue 61
From Pollution To Purpose
Yacht Style

From Pollution To Purpose

Former Singapore Idol finalist and TV producer Mathilda D’silva explains how the Ocean Purpose Project evolved from what she saw on and around her hometown beach in Pasir Ris.

time-read
4 mins  |
Issue 61
TECH GIANT
Yacht Style

TECH GIANT

Camper & Nicholsons’ recent achievements include selling the 105m Lady Moura and adding the 126m Octopus to its charter and management fleets, but CEO Paolo Casani is most excited about the company’s focus on proprietary technology to engage clients in the new era.

time-read
10 mins  |
Issue 61