Feadship De Voogt Naval Architects have created plenty of exceptional superyacht designs over the decades, clearly demonstrating the commitment to the Feadship. On September 25, 150 staff members left their drawing boards and computer screens behind them to take their message of perfection in person to the Monaco Yacht Show. Their dedication was once again on show as the lightning visit entailed giving up a day’s annual leave on a trip that lasted almost 24 hours, paying for it themselves!

‘All these other yachts are a great way to find out that what you really want is a Feadship.’ This was the bold statement displayed on the T-shirts of the enormous flash mob that appeared out of nowhere on the main superyacht boulevard at the Monaco Yacht Show on the afternoon of 25 September. All those involved were members of the staff association of De Voogt Naval Architects, who had met en masse at Amsterdam Schiphol Airport at the ungodly hour of 04.30 am to catch the flight to Nice.

“The De Voogt personnel have been so busy with Feadship projects over the past year that we had not had time to organise an event together,” explains Tanno Weeda, chair of the staff association. “Seeing the funds that had accumulated, the board decided to recommend a visit to the Monaco Yacht Show for a day. This idea was very well received and we went ahead under the condition that everyone took the day as annual leave. It was a great opportunity for us all to see the fruit of our labours in a very different environment. And it was also a chance to have a laugh together with our competitors in the superyacht industry.”

Exhausted but pleased with their day’s ‘work’, the flash mob arrived back at Schiphol Airport at 11:50pm before making their way home full of fresh ideas. The Dutch coffee will be extra-strong in the morning at the Feadship de Voogt office in Haarlem to ensure that the creative juices continue to flow.