Does anyone know who the designer is?

Shipyard:Lürssen
Length:192 ft
Delievery:2006

But on the other hand we only see renderings of Lurssen yachts if they are represented by Moran. Lurssen doens´t publishes anything and other brokers also don´t publish renderings of Lurssen yachts.

Diane, do you know who is the broker/representative of the owner?

Quote, originally posted by Aeolos »

hmmm, this project must have been very popular to count 3 similar yachts based on this project... I think that the dark blue hull doesnt suite this yacht so much although the slight improvements are very good...

I think we are going to see more and more multiple boat projects, they are much more cost effective for the yards the days of the totaly unique yacht could be numbered.

Quote, originally posted by mattias »

Well... I'm sorry if this sounds a slightly bit rude but I believe that any kind of change in the design of this 3-piece series could be considered as an improvement.

Hmm... I think I side with Mattias. Apoise had some distinct similarities to a wedding cake, while Saint Nicholas looks a little better with her rectangular windows in the hull and a few extra metres. The blue hull makes Martha Ann look better than Apoise, in my opinion.

The main problem with this trio is that there is too much superstructure and too little hull. If the forward facing lounge on the main deck (which admittedly is a nice feature, at least from the inside, I guess) would be omitted and the hull raised, that would quite likely make them look quite good.

Modified by Andy Lindy at 8:55 AM 12/13/2007

The "top heavy, stubby looking" design is explained by a large enclosed volume (gross tonnage) that would probably look better adding 10m to her LOA.
On the other hand, I do agree with earlier reviewers saying that the dark hull of Martha Ann looks better than the white hull of Saint Nicolas or Apoise although it's just an optical illusion. The design of these three related yachts is not very successful - look at Kismet and the difference is obvious! Kismet having a LOA of 68m measures 1,796 GT and still looks well balanced. And we're talking the same exterior designer here.

Even though I believe that series production has benefits for the yards and potential customers, I can't see unique yacht production ever going the way of the Dodo. If I where to spend $50 million plus on a yacht I would certainly want a unique yacht built to my requirements in both styling and function. Couldn't cope with rolling up to an anchorage or berth and having a twin moored nearby.

Quote, originally posted by Andy Lindy »

And if you're afraid of meeting one of your sisters or cousins, check in on their whereabouts at yachtspotter.com Yachts Positions and plan your sailing accordingly.

Good thinking Andy and further to the above quote in a different vein ..............I'm more afraid of meeting my ex wife

Just one thought: Mentioned prices are ASKING prices, right? The asking price represents what the present owner hopes to get in his/her wildest dreams. The asking price is not necessarily what the potential buyers are willing to pay. I do not wish to pretend that I know what I'm talking about (especially not this late in the evening ) but I dare to guess that quite a few of the amazingly high asking prices that we recently have seen in yachting magazines etc will come down a bit before someone signs a contract.

No doubt there is a strong market, though. If I remember correctly Mr Chambers was quoted in an article, a year or so ago, saying that he expected to make a 50% profit when selling his 57meter Excellence III.

Modified by mattias at 1:29 AM 4/22/2008

In the case of brand new, spec builds from the top yacht constructors I do think the interest nowadays especially from Russians is such as the very limited number of available objects will interest a sufficiant number of potential buyers and that the price is not really the most decisive factor. But I'm not a broker so this is just my thought based on my (limited) insight. I'm most interested in hearing other opinions on this matter especially from those inside the market.

I remember vaguely a rumour about the series being ordered by one individual (company or person) as a speculative venture, so it might have turned out to be a pretty good deal.

Together "The Three Swedish Musketeers" (that would make Designo d'Artagnan , right? ) have now listed a number of reasons explaining why the price of new construction might be higher today then a few years ago. Still, according to my humble opinion there must be a lot of "air" in the most outrageous asking prices.
Andy Lindy is of course right about there being number of individuals in the world for whom 50 or 60 or 70 million EURO doesn't make much difference. At the same time, isn't there also quite a few out there who mutually benefit from creating an impression of higher prices than what actually is the case? I'm thinking about present owners who appreciate being perceived as richer then they might actually be and who like the thought of making a nice little profit when selling their yachts, the whole broker industry who is paid with a percentage of the purchase prices (higher price - bigger pay check) and the yards who hope to get away with better margins. We also know that newspapers and magazines (maybe also "yacht enthusiasts" ) are excited about what's outrageous and gladly spread more or less official rumors.

To answer your question Johan, I personally (with my limited knowledge) believe that a few daring people are indeed making big bucks by ordering spec yachts. When the market sooner or later turns around the same individuals might end up with their own little fleets of unsold yachts. That's no different from real estate speculation on dry land.

As Andy Lindy pointed out it would be very interesting if someone with a bit of inside knowledge would like to share their experiences. For the above mentioned reasons I however doubt that we will hear anything...

Modified by mattias at 4:12 AM 12/18/2007

Quote, originally posted by mattias »

Together "The Three Swedish Musketeers" (that would make Designo d'Artagnan , right? ) have now listed a number of reasons explaining why the price of new construction might be higher today then a few years ago. Still, according to my humble opinion there must be a lot of "air" in the most outrageous asking prices.

Thanks for not naming me Cardinal de Richelieu You are right in that there is a lot of air in some of the price tags, and even more in the designs. I is not often I see a yacht I would like to have myself, or recommend to a client.

This said, several shipyards were building too cheap for many years when the demand was low and with higher costs they are today more realistic in their pricing. But as you, I guess the real profit is going to people who dare to build on speculation...

http://flickr.com/photos/wolfi...33498/