The superyacht industry is booming, while shipbuilders and yacht designers are clapping watching demand for luxury yachts rising. However, the traditional business model of the world’s superyacht manufacturers is expected to undergo some major changes. The young generation of super-wealthy people differs from their parents when it comes to spending behaviour. Thus, Erwin Bamps, the CEO of Gulf Craft predicts a large increase in the popularity of yacht charters versus yacht ownership. He mentions that technology will be a key driver in the super yachting industry in the future. Superyachts will still remain highly popular but the next generation of UHNWIs (ultra high net worth individuals) will prefer experience to ownership.

One of the biggest trends, Uber, has set a belief for some consumers that ownership equals restriction.

“We are going to see a time when traditional idea of a yacht ownership starts to follow the same path as car sharing services – more convenient than a traditional taxi, and a real alternative to owning a car,” says Bamps. “The same principle will easily apply to luxury yachts. Imagine a global, technology driven service that delivers the yacht you want, at the location you want, at the time you want, and can arrange a private jet to fly you there.”

Motor yacht GHOST

Technology these days has had a great impact on the young generation and their perception of ownership. Take as an example a collection of CDs or a record collection. Nowadays, it would be odd for a young person to have one, as online streaming and downloading are the most popular ways of getting media files.

“Technology is going to drive this change,” said Bamps. “We are going to see some very complex charter networks evolve to cater for this market, making sure customers get exactly what they want. From the business side, there will need to be some very complex mathematics in the background, analysing charter patterns in terms of yacht design, preferred destinations, which toys people want and so on, and then constantly moving the craft around the world based on predictions of demand.”

Gulf Craft’s Newest Tri-deck Majesty 110

With regard to operations management within the companies in the superyacht industry, there will be some significant changes to strategic management. With the help of technology, there will be a possibility to obtain data on yachts usage patterns. Consequently, computerised booking systems will enable charter companies to make better use of the assets. Although there are some challenges predicted to occur, there will be a lot of opportunities in the evolving market for the ones who will find the best ways of offering yacht charters.

Erwin Bamps CEO of Gulf Craft

For yacht manufacturers, such as Gulf Craft, this transformation could have a major effect on the way they design and build exclusive superyachts, as they will also be able to obtain “yacht share” data analytics. This might also mean that superyacht design will need to be changed from fully custom to more generic and comprehensive design.