The prominent US superyacht and tender manufacturer, Hodgdon Yachts, expands by opening a new office in the glamorous Mediterranean yacht holiday location – Monaco. In addition, the company has appointed Cyril Le Sourd as new European Sales & Marketing Director.
Cyril Le Sourd - Photo credit to Guillaume Plisson
Le Sourd will be operating out of the company’s new Monaco office. Le Sourd is charged to develop Hodgdon’s business activities for new sailing and motor yachts, custom tenders and superyacht interiors within the region.
As European Sales & Marketing Director, Le Sourd will be a direct liaison with clients, as well as overseeing key projects, forging business relationships and facilitating the development and growth of HODGDON Yachts in the region.
Le Sourd’s career in yachting started 14 years ago, following a degree in naval architecture. Over his time in the industry he has held a range of technical and commercial positions, including five years at OCEA shipyard as a naval architect and seven years at CMN shipyard (starting as a project engineer and eventually leading the sales and marketing for yacht building).
Commenting on his appointment at HODGDON Yachts, Le Sourd says: “I am honored to be joining such a renowned shipyard with such a prestigious heritage. I have enormous respect for the attention to detail and dedication that is shown by the highly skilled craftsmen at HODGDON, led by fifth-generation owner Tim Hodgdon . Building a yacht should be an enjoyable and well-planned journey, and I look forward to helping guide our European clients through their projects, from the first sketches to after-sales support”.
Commenting on the appointment, HODGDON’s CEO Tim Hodgdon said: “We are very excited to be opening an office in Monaco, at the epicenter of the European luxury yacht industry. There is no place on Earth that represents uniqueness and quality at a higher level than Monaco. It is therefore a fantastic fit for the dedication to innovation, quality and integrity that HODGDON holds central to its core business philosophy”.
“We are delighted to welcome Cyril Le Sourd on-board to represent us in Europe; his wide experience, knowledge and commitment are a great asset to our team,” commented Ed Roberts, Hodgdon’s Worldwide Director of Sales and Marketing. “As well as leading sales in the region, our European expansion will include increased service support for our tenders” noted Roberts.
The opening of the Monaco office comes on the heels of the opening of the Newport, Rhode Island (USA) office. The Newport office will serve as home base to Eric Leslie in the newly established position of Sales Director for Hodgdon Yacht Services offering boatyard services as well as superyacht refit services at Hodgdon’s facilities in Maine. The Newport office will also be home base for superyacht industry veteran Holy Paterson who has served as Hodgdon’s Marketing Manager since January 2014.
