Top-end luxury yachts are sailing into tap the super rich in India. Forget Bentley’s and business jets—Princess Yacht is here. These exclusive hand- made boats are 50-ft beauties. For the uninitiated, the price list is of great interest: they start from $500,000 for a 35-foot boat and go up to $7 million for a P95, a boat which is almost 100 feet tip to tip.
Says the 32-year-old Delhi-based entrepreneur, Vishal Choudhry of Aquamarine, the company that will sell Princess Yachts in India, “There is no experience like being on the high seas in a yacht. The endless ocean, the well-appointed private space in the yacht is the ultimate in luxury. We see a definite market in India and plan to sell three to five boats each year. We have already four enquiries for the P42, the first boat that comes this November. The rest will follow over the next one year.”
The bigger market is not in just stand-alone purchases of these yachts but in fractional ownership. Analysts see these boats as a great entertainment and event opportunities, and the market for fractional ownership is believed to be worth over Rs15 crore annually.
Says Olympian sailor Ashim Mongia, who now runs a yacht consultancy in West Cast Marine in Mumbai, “Fractional ownership has a huge market potential in India. We need better handling and many more marinas to tap into this potential. Currently most boats anchor off Bombay or Goa. However places like Cochin and Pondicherry need to be developed.”
Princess is offering the entry-level P42 in the fractional ownership mode. For Rs 30 lakh, this will give you access to the boat for four weeks. You can sail from Mumbai to Phuket or drop anchor and have fun just off-shore. Options include full crew, food and beverages and maintenance for an extra charge.”
That India may be seriously lacking in infrastructure has not prevented other top yacht makers from entering here. Waiting to drop anchor are two other top brands — Sunseeker of Britain and Fereddi. Sunseeker sold a massive 105-foot boat reportedly for $15 million to an undisclosed buyer in Goa recently and Fereddi has done a deal for 55-footer with another underscored Indian buyer.
Says the 32-year-old Delhi-based entrepreneur, Vishal Choudhry of Aquamarine, the company that will sell Princess Yachts in India, “There is no experience like being on the high seas in a yacht. The endless ocean, the well-appointed private space in the yacht is the ultimate in luxury. We see a definite market in India and plan to sell three to five boats each year. We have already four enquiries for the P42, the first boat that comes this November. The rest will follow over the next one year.”
The bigger market is not in just stand-alone purchases of these yachts but in fractional ownership. Analysts see these boats as a great entertainment and event opportunities, and the market for fractional ownership is believed to be worth over Rs15 crore annually.
Says Olympian sailor Ashim Mongia, who now runs a yacht consultancy in West Cast Marine in Mumbai, “Fractional ownership has a huge market potential in India. We need better handling and many more marinas to tap into this potential. Currently most boats anchor off Bombay or Goa. However places like Cochin and Pondicherry need to be developed.”
Princess is offering the entry-level P42 in the fractional ownership mode. For Rs 30 lakh, this will give you access to the boat for four weeks. You can sail from Mumbai to Phuket or drop anchor and have fun just off-shore. Options include full crew, food and beverages and maintenance for an extra charge.”
That India may be seriously lacking in infrastructure has not prevented other top yacht makers from entering here. Waiting to drop anchor are two other top brands — Sunseeker of Britain and Fereddi. Sunseeker sold a massive 105-foot boat reportedly for $15 million to an undisclosed buyer in Goa recently and Fereddi has done a deal for 55-footer with another underscored Indian buyer.
No comments:
Post a Comment