Aston Martin & the supercar tender trend
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66 WWW.SUPERYACHTBUSINESS.NET | FEBRUARY 2016 FEBRUARY 2016 | WWW.SUPERYACHTBUSINESS.NET 67 Brand vision Aston Martin Aston Martin & the supercar tender trend T he romance between supercars and superyachts seems, with every dazzling Monaco Yacht Show, to rise in temperature. Each year a new collaboration is unveiled, demonstrating how cars and yachts can dwell in a symbiotic landscape enabling both to feed off the aspirations, imagination and wealth of their respective clients. High rolling designers of automobile fame are seduced by the glamour of the yacht world and, and eager to earn a slice of the pie, regularly churn out concepts to demonstrate their multi-facetted design skills – after all, several yacht designers began their careers in automotive and industrial design. In 2012 Jaguar cars unveiled a speedboat concept by director of design, Ian Callum. When describing the project Callum explained, “We recognise that both our existing and future customers enjoy diverse and active lifestyles. With the launch of the new Jaguar XF Sportbrake, we had an opportunity to create a vision of how our design philosophy might be applied to an alternative product, in which speed and beauty are also priorities.” He described a boat that looked “powerful” but had the “sleek and fast characteristics that you would expect from a Jaguar Car”. More recently Bugatti announced its collaboration with Palmer Johnson for the development of a new yacht series Niniette with a range made up of 42, 63 and 88ft models. The brand association exercise was undoubtedly a shrewd move for Palmer Johnson, which had a short time previously shut down its US operations. Under licence granted by Bugatti, the yacht builder has designed open, carbon-fibre sport yachts, which it says feature distinctive Bugatti design elements and advanced materials citing the close ‘design DNA’ of the two companies as a starting point. PR opportunity But one can’t help to wonder whether these collaborations are merely exercises in PR. Accompanied by press releases studded with phrases such as “delicate alchemy” and “design DNA”, the tried and tested technology and naval architecture of the boats can sometimes seem more of an afterthought to design and branding. One of the latest brands to feast on the spoils of the yachting world is Aston Martin. SB was eager to ascertain exactly why it is investing in its first nautical endeavour Many car manufacturers are jumping on the yacht band wagon in order to attract more UHNWI clients. Aston Martin is one of the latest to join the boating arena ROBIN POULTON REPORTS The AM37 features supercar styling and will be the first boat to bear the Aston Martin badge Cars and yachts can dwell in a symbiotic landscape enabling both to feed off the aspirations, imagination and wealth of their respective clients and what it hopes to achieve as an outcome. Paying a visit to Aston Martin’s London offices, SB sat down with Katia Bassi, managing director of the Aston Martin brands, to find out more about the vision. The project is being led by a dedicated design team, based at the Gaydon HQ of Aston Martin and represents a well-funded construction plan that was formed some two years ago and which Aston Martin hopes will evolve into a world leading powerboat collection over the next decade. The project will contain automotive design and technology based inputs in conjunction with hull and engineering designs from Mulder Design in the Netherlands. Supercar features The 11.3m AM37 will be the first powerboat to carry the Aston Martin badge and will be built in the UK. Quintessence Yachts is the Dutch company collaborating with Aston Martin and champions a philosophy that will integrate supercar features into the powerboat experience. The boat is envisaged as a fast grand tourer for beach hopping and marina visits offering occasional overnight accommodation when required. Its credentials as a tender are obvious. The company had expected to unveil the actual boat at the Monaco Yacht Show in 2015 but met with delays. SB has been told that the production process is about to the completed. Talking about the target audience for the range Bassi expained, “We want to tempt superyacht owners, loyal Aston Martin collectors and other high income individuals who want something totally different which can be customised to their individual requirements.” Which prompts the question what constitutes ‘totally different’? The pedigree of the GT racing car teams undoubtedly adds kudos to the badge as Bassi elaborated, “The Aston Martin brand is very understated and as part of the brand expansion the AM37 is very much formed as an important part of that mandate, along with the recent rebranding of the Formula One Force India racing team to Aston Martin.” The move returns the sportscar manufacturer back to F1, after over half a century. Aston Martin will build the boats in a dedicated manufacturing unit in Southampton where it will be able to implement the effective control of production which it says will eventually be modelled on car production. Planning to build only ten units per year, the exclusivity of the boat will be a big draw. Marek Reichman, Aston Martin’s director of design, said at the original April 2015 media unveiling, that the AM37 represented a move towards having “great partnerships with great companies”. Quintessence Yachts, a young Dutch company, boasts extremely well seasoned leaders as CEO Mariella Mengozzi explained, “The formation of the company came about when a very loyal supporter of the Aston Martin brand, well known to them, floated the idea of an AM brand powerboat range.” Henk de Vries, director of Feadship and owner of a 1963 Aston Martin DB4 is chairing the supervisory board thus sealing the company’s approval by superyacht industry royalty. Brand partnerships Aston Martin’s brand partnerships don’t stop with its speedboat offspring, in August it announced a new ‘strategic global collaboration’ with Northrop & Johnson. The union saw N&J clients test drive Aston Martin cars at both the 2015 Monaco and Fort Lauderdale shows. The partnership will be ramped up throughout 2016 with collaborations for future shows. N&J’s strategic partnership director Ottaviano Iacono commented, “Our continued passion for excellence and dedication to provide our clients with the most distinct and opulent services has led us to build a strategic global partnership with Aston Martin. This unique long-term collaboration will pair the iconic luxury of Aston Martin’s automobiles with the glamorous lifestyle of yachting”. Importantly Aston Martin has a sterling reputation for the treatment of its clients. Each potential AM37 owner will be invited to sea trial and then to visit the dedicated factory to view boats on order being constructed. Bassi added, “They will also be invited to our Gaydon HQ where they can discuss with our design team the specification of their boat and have a VIP conducted tour of the factory. At the April press briefing Reichman commented “There’s something missing in the world of yachts which is that emotional connection to a depth of heritage”. Undoubtedly Aston Martin’s brand heritage among automobiles is hard to beat, but among the likes of Riva, Wajer & Wajer, Hacker-Craft and J Craft, it may find its prospective new market deals in tough competition. Only time will tell how this beloved British brand will fare in its marine endeavours. The formation of Quintessence Yachts came about when a very loyal supporter of Aston Martin floated the idea of a powerboat range The prototype model and early drawings of the AM37
Transcript of Aston Martin & the supercar tender trend
66 www.SUPERYACHTBUSINESS.NET | FEBRUARY 2016 FEBRUARY 2016 | www.SUPERYACHTBUSINESS.NET 67
Brand vision Aston Martin
Aston Martin & the supercar tender trend
T he romance between supercars and superyachts seems, with every dazzling Monaco Yacht Show, to rise in temperature. Each year a new collaboration is unveiled,
demonstrating how cars and yachts can dwell in a symbiotic landscape enabling both to feed off the aspirations, imagination and wealth of their respective clients.
High rolling designers of automobile fame are seduced by the glamour of the yacht world and, and eager to earn a slice of the pie, regularly churn out concepts to demonstrate their multi-facetted design skills – after all, several yacht designers began their careers in automotive and industrial design.
In 2012 Jaguar cars unveiled a speedboat concept by director of design, Ian Callum. When describing the project Callum explained, “We recognise that both our existing and future customers enjoy diverse and active lifestyles. With the launch of the new Jaguar XF Sportbrake, we had an opportunity to create a vision of how our design philosophy might be applied to an alternative product, in which speed and beauty are also priorities.” He described a boat that looked “powerful” but had the “sleek and fast characteristics that you would expect from a Jaguar Car”.
More recently Bugatti announced its collaboration with Palmer Johnson for the development of a new yacht series Niniette with a range made up of 42, 63 and 88ft
models. The brand association exercise was undoubtedly a shrewd move for Palmer Johnson, which had a short time previously shut down its US operations.
Under licence granted by Bugatti, the yacht builder has designed open, carbon-fibre sport yachts, which it says feature distinctive Bugatti design elements and advanced materials citing the close ‘design DNA’ of the two companies as a starting point.
PR opportunityBut one can’t help to wonder whether these collaborations are merely exercises in PR. Accompanied by press releases studded with phrases such as “delicate alchemy” and “design DNA”, the tried and tested technology and naval architecture of the boats can sometimes seem more of an afterthought to design and branding.
One of the latest brands to feast on the spoils of the yachting world is Aston Martin. SB was eager to ascertain exactly why it is investing in its first nautical endeavour
Many car manufacturers are jumping on the yacht band wagon in order to attract more UHNwI clients. Aston Martin is one of the latest to join the boating arena robin poulton reports
the AM37 features supercar styling and will be the first boat to bear the Aston Martin badge
Cars and yachts can dwell in a symbiotic landscape enabling both to feed off the aspirations, imagination and wealth of their respective clients
and what it hopes to achieve as an outcome. Paying a visit to Aston Martin’s London offices, SB sat down with Katia Bassi, managing director of the Aston Martin brands, to find out more about the vision.
The project is being led by a dedicated design team, based at the Gaydon HQ of Aston Martin and represents a well-funded construction plan that was formed some two years ago and which Aston Martin hopes will evolve into a world leading powerboat collection over the next decade. The project will contain automotive design and technology based inputs in conjunction with hull and engineering designs from Mulder Design in the Netherlands.
Supercar featuresThe 11.3m AM37 will be the first powerboat to carry the Aston Martin badge and will be built in the UK. Quintessence Yachts is the Dutch company collaborating with Aston Martin and champions a philosophy that will integrate supercar features into the powerboat experience. The boat is envisaged as a fast grand tourer for beach hopping and marina visits offering occasional overnight accommodation when required. Its credentials as a tender are obvious. The company had expected to unveil the actual boat at the Monaco Yacht Show in 2015 but met with delays. SB has been told that the production process is about to the completed.
Talking about the target audience for the range Bassi expained, “We want to tempt superyacht owners, loyal Aston Martin collectors and other high income individuals who want something totally different which can be customised to their individual requirements.” Which prompts the question what constitutes ‘totally different’?
The pedigree of the GT racing car teams undoubtedly adds kudos to the badge as Bassi elaborated, “The Aston Martin brand is very understated and as part of the brand expansion the AM37 is very much formed as an important part of that mandate, along with the recent rebranding of the Formula One Force India racing team to Aston Martin.” The move returns the sportscar manufacturer back to F1, after over half a century.
Aston Martin will build the boats in a dedicated manufacturing unit in Southampton where it will be able to implement the effective control of production which it says
will eventually be modelled on car production. Planning to build only ten units per year, the exclusivity of the boat will be a big draw.
Marek Reichman, Aston Martin’s director of design, said at the original April 2015 media unveiling, that the AM37 represented a move towards having “great partnerships with great companies”. Quintessence Yachts, a young
Dutch company, boasts extremely well seasoned leaders as CEO Mariella Mengozzi explained, “The formation of the company came about when a very loyal supporter of the Aston Martin brand, well known to them, floated the idea of an AM brand powerboat range.” Henk de Vries, director of Feadship and owner of a 1963 Aston Martin DB4 is chairing the supervisory board thus sealing the company’s approval by superyacht industry royalty.
Brand partnershipsAston Martin’s brand partnerships don’t stop with its speedboat offspring, in August it announced a new ‘strategic global collaboration’ with Northrop & Johnson. The union saw N&J clients test drive Aston Martin cars at both the 2015 Monaco and Fort Lauderdale shows. The partnership will be ramped up throughout 2016 with collaborations for future shows. N&J’s
strategic partnership director Ottaviano Iacono commented, “Our continued passion for excellence and dedication to provide our clients with the most distinct and opulent services has led us to build a strategic global partnership with Aston Martin. This unique long-term collaboration will pair the iconic luxury of Aston Martin’s automobiles with the
glamorous lifestyle of yachting”.Importantly Aston Martin has a sterling
reputation for the treatment of its clients. Each potential AM37 owner will be invited to sea trial and then to visit the dedicated factory to view boats on order being constructed. Bassi added, “They will also be invited to our Gaydon HQ where they can discuss with our design team the specification of their boat and have a VIP conducted tour of the factory. At the April press briefing Reichman commented “There’s something missing in the world of yachts which is that emotional connection to a depth of heritage”.
Undoubtedly Aston Martin’s brand heritage among automobiles is hard to beat, but among the likes of Riva, Wajer & Wajer, Hacker-Craft and J Craft, it may find its prospective new market deals in tough competition. Only time will tell how this beloved British brand will fare in its marine endeavours.
The formation of Quintessence Yachts came about when a very loyal supporter of Aston Martin floated the idea of a powerboat range
the prototype model and early drawings of the AM37
