Limitless horizons

Limitless ROYALE OCEANIC I PROFILE

HORIZONS

The superyacht industry is in the midst of an unprecedented boom that has seen demand skyrocketing for both new and used yachts. With this demand for yachts comes a whole bouquet of associated needs, including the need for crew, refits, chartering and various other services. That’s where Royale Oceanic steps in. Shelley Dowie, Head of Yacht Management at Royale Oceanic, spoke to Richard Hagan about the company’s comprehensive range of services.

With the Covid-19 pandemic continuing unabated, the world’s wealthiest people have increasingly seen superyachts as a means by which to escape the danger posed by crowded cities and other metropolitan areas. This, and perhaps other, more luxurious and illustrious factors, has led to them buying superyachts since early 2020 at a rate that the industry has never seen before.

Superyacht shipyards are enjoying new-build order books that are sold out years in advance, while the brokerage market for used yachts is reporting recordfast sales transactions on an almost weekly basis. Together, the superyacht industry is experiencing stratospheric revenue levels that show no sign of slowing down.

But superyachts are not islands, and running any superyacht – much like any commercial ship – requires a vast network of land-based support services. Royale Oceanic, based in Newcastle upon Tyne in the north of England, is one such provider of those services.

According to Shelley Dowie, Head of Yacht Management at Royale Oceanic, the company is not just any service provider, but one that is unique amongst its peers.

“We’re a multi-disciplinary maritime business providing a multitude of services to the yachting and wider maritime industry, including interior and exterior design, refits and new construction, project management, crew training, vessel valuations and legal services. All of the services we offer are provided by our own group of experts. The fact that we can provide all of these speciality services in-house sets us apart from our competitors.”

Establishment and facilities

Royale Oceanic was established in 2005 by its founder and current chairman, Barry Gilmour. However, Mr Gilmour’s pedigree within the industry goes much further back through his larger holding company, the Gilmour Group and Burness Corlett Three Quays, which has been active in the maritime industry – both yachting and in shipping – since 1952.

The Gilmour Group’s experience and knowledge in yachting and shipping, Ms Dowie remarked, have shaped Royale Oceanic today,

“Our 70-year history in both shipping and yachting sectors has given us the ability and knowledge to build a highly professional maritime company,” she said. “Our employees are our primary asset; their collective expertise, experience, knowledge and productivity allows us to attract new business and retain our existing clients, many of which we have had for many years. We place emphasis on employee contribution and engagement which helps us drive the company forward.”

Royale Oceanic employs between 30 and 50 staff members, whilst the wider groups employ several hundred. The company’s headquarters in the northern town of Newcastle upon Tyne might seem an unusual location when many similar firms are located along the country’s south coast, but according to Ms Dowie, the city provides the perfect context for the company.

“The North East is steeped in historic maritime and cultural heritage,” Ms Dowie remarked. “The shipbuilding and fishing industries were once major employers in the region and the lifeblood of many riverside and coastal communities. The River Tyne is the birthplace of the first purpose built lifeboats and the formation of what was later to become the RNLI. Consequently, there is still very good maritime infrastructure in Newcastle.”

The company has enjoyed consistent growth since its founding and has welcomed a steady stream of yachts into its management portfolio. In order to meet the refit and servicing needs of its yacht clients, Royale Oceanic’s strategy is to set up temporary offices wherever refits or other significant maintenance projects are being undertaken on its managed fleet.

“We tend to set up satellite bases as required for projects,” confirmed Ms Dowie. “For example, right now we’re about to undertake a significant refit of a 140m superyacht in Europe and for that

ROYALE OCEANIC I PROFILE

project, we’ll set up a satellite office in that country, near the refit yard, for the next two to three years.”

Covid and superyachts

Catering to the demands of the wealthy for superyachts during the pandemic has become a lucrative but challenging undertaking for the company, explained Ms Dowie.

“A lot of the shipyards had to shut during the initial covid lockdowns, yet they already had extremely full order books. That pushed many buyers into the used market where they weren’t required to wait several years to spend quality time on their yacht. Other people looked to the superyacht charter market for their perfect ‘Covid safe’ getaway.”

In catering to yacht buyers who are in the market for a custom-built yacht, Royale Oceanic has vast in-house expertise specially geared towards assisting these clients with finding the right shipyard and team for the project.

Royale Oceanics’ extensive range of disciplines kept the business in good stead during the pandemic.

“If the pandemic taught us one thing, it was that we are robust and adaptable” said Ms Dowie. “When travel was limited, we had to adjust to a new way of working with our clients and suppliers. We also used the opportunity to promote our yacht valuations, expert witness and legal advice services which has expanded our client base and kept us busy with new and exciting projects”.

WANDERLUST GLOBAL SERVICES

Wanderlust Global Services supplies any items, contractors and services a yacht may need. We are proud to have collaborated with many companies over the years, including Royal Oceanic.

The entire team at Wanderlust Global Services thanks Royal Oceanic for their ongoing custom, and we look forward to this relationship continuing for many years to come.

Changing demographics

The global boom in technology entrepreneurs, social media millionaires and other categories involving younger wealthy people has, unsurprisingly, made its way into the superyachting world. There’s a growing shift towards younger buyers and Royale Oceanic is ready with packages and services to appeal directly to them.

“We’ve seen an increase in the younger demographic,” remarked Ms Dowie. “The younger owner brings a new demographic of yacht buyers with a completely different set of needs; most are taking a step away from the vision of opulence, and are wanting more engagement and consideration with the environment around them.”

For the next generation of owners, yachting represents excitement and adventure whilst maintaining a high level of comfort. Gyms, spas, outdoor and water activities, and open multifunctional spaces have become more prevalent in design, reducing restraints on guests and owners giving the freedom reflected by the explorer yacht boom.

“Younger yacht owners and guests don’t want to be tied to one place, they

ROYALE OCEANIC I PROFILE

want a new experience, to go somewhere they haven’t before, creating a need for yachts with a high range but still all the size and capabilities of a luxury cruising yacht. This also brings the need to improve the efficiency of yachts and reduce their negative impact on the environment,” explained Ms Dowie.

The fact that Royale Oceanic is today equipped to cater to the demands of younger, more adventurous clientele is a testament to its ongoing commitment to stay at the cutting-edge of what its clients are really looking for.

On that note, Ms Dowie shared a story about one particularly memorable demand the company once had to accommodate.

“I once had to organise a private jet to bring some courgettes to a remote Pacific Island because the yacht owner wanted them for dinner. Clients have the same high expectations wherever they may be in the world, and it is our job to ensure their needs are met despite the logistical challenges.”

Comprehensive services in-house

Royale Oceanic prides itself on the comprehensive suite of in-house services it is able to provide to its superyacht clients. Its staff complement includes people with vast experience and expertise drawn from across the maritime industry. Ms Dowie recalled a client who initially approached the company with a request to review a refit specification for the owner’s yacht.

“When the owner came to understand the comprehensive services we offered, our technical team was engaged to carry out a full condition survey; our valuations team carried out a full market valuation and our Royale Design company was engaged to complete design renders for a new beach club for the yacht’s refit as well as doing a complete interior design proposal.”

On the strength of the variety and quality of all of the services the company was able to provide the owner, Royale Oceanic was awarded full management of the yacht, including the management of the refit.

“This was a huge success for us given that the relationship began with a request to provide professional advice to the client, which evolved into providing our full range of services from start to finish, culminating with us winning full management and a major refit contract,” Ms Dowie underlined.

Social responsibility

The company maintains a strong social responsibility program, headed up by Ms Dowie’s involvement in an industry mentorship program called LEGASEA.

“The LEGASEA program is one of the ways in which we give back to the industry. The platform creates the space for yachting professionals to connect and share their knowledge while cultivating the next generation of industry leaders, both ashore and at sea. The concept is to create a robust talent pool focusing on retention and progression and ensuring talent is flowing from sea to shore. It ensures that people are hired based on their knowledge and capabilities and that they’re the right fit for a given yacht,” she concluded.

As for Royale Oceanic, having recently expanded its Newcastle team, the company is proving, time and time again, that it is most certainly the right fit for an increasing number of yacht related services. And long may that continue. n