15 years of success
Sunreef Yachts celebrated its 15th anniversary at the 2017 Cannes Yachting Festival. The shipyard, which specializes in very high-end catamarans, was created in 2002 in Poland by Francis Lapp from Alsace. The entrepreneur, who has been in the country since 1992, already owned several construction and electrical companies. He wanted to build a 4th catamaran for his charter fleet and launched Sunreef Yachts for this purpose. As he recalls: "The beginning was very difficult. At the first Monaco boat show, many visitors didn't even want to visit anymore when they learned that the boat was built in Poland." Fortunately for Sunreef Yachts, the situation has changed and the company now employs 500 people, including more than 50 in the design office in Gdansk.
2 new lines of catamarans
During the Cannes boat show, Sunreef Yachts launched a new range of catamarans. Presented as traditional, its main characteristics are reminiscent of those of the large production catamarans, as seen on the model of the 60-footer revealed at the show. There is a front cockpit accessible through a door in front of the roof as well as a large rear space, mixed between the exterior and interior. The shipyard nevertheless insists on the entirely custom character of its boats, from the hull materials to the layout.
A second range, about which the Sunreef team is maintaining the mystery, should see the light of day by the end of 2017, still around 60 to 80 feet.
A new factory in Dubai
While three 60-footers and two 80-footers from the new range have already been sold, the shipyard has a full order book. 18 boats were delivered in 2016-2017. The turnover is now 22 Meuros. "The goal is to reach 100 Meuros in 4 years," Francis Lapp explains to BoatIndustry.
Faced with the difficulty of recruiting staff in Poland and the sales prospects of the motor foil catamaran project launched in 2017, Sunreef Yachts is also considering opening a factory in Dubai, closer to clients in the yachting and military sectors. From Poland to the Middle East, Sunreef Yachts' ambitions are high.
