“Why, after 40 years spent between the sea and shipyards, as a builder and owner, do I remain passionate about this world? Because of my love for the sea.” This is the answer from Maurizio Magri, born in Livorno in 1962. After developing, managing, and building not only megayachts but also military and commercial vessels and working for or managing shipyards such as CBI Navi, Mangusta, Wider, and Tecnomar, now, from a couple of years, with his Magrimar, with offices in Italy and the Principality of Monaco, which he defines as a ’boutique consultancy’, he has been putting all his experience and something more at the service of shipowners.
“First of all, I’m not a broker, even though I’ve been registered as a public shipping broker since 1985. The broker connects the client with the shipyard, and his commission comes from the shipyard. I, on the other hand, am the client’s consultant, his legal advisor, his accountant. I work only for the client, I wear his team uniform, I fight for him, and I’m paid by him, not the shipyard. And everything is much clearer and more straightforward in our relationships. I, as a broker, depend on the shipyard. In short, if there’s a problem in construction, a conflict of interest arises: do I protect my client or do I protect myself? My approach, that of Magrimar, is different. We negotiate, and the shipyard deducts my commission from the final price, which is paid to me by the client for each stage of the work, as happens with the shipyard. This way, the client feels truly protected.”
A step back. When was Magrimar founded?
“Actually, Magrimar is part of the Magri Marina Advisor group. A 40-year-old company that, so to speak, remained … sleeping for a while. After shipping (Magri has a degree in Maritime Business Administration from Texas A&M University, ed.), I worked in shipbuilding, being a shareholder in two shipyards and general manager of two others. I like construction. I love building. However, two years ago I dusted off the consulting firm to share with clients everything we’ve learned about contracts, legal issues, materials, and systems. In short, everything we know about yachts and things that sail. And these are things you don’t learn in the online course that prepares you for the licensing exam so you can then call yourself a shipbroker!”
If you come across his resume, you’ll find yourself faced with a long list of ships and yachts he’s built. The list includes six Panamax vessels with maximum dimensions for the Panama Canal, just under 300 meters in length, four tugs, 80 transport barges, three ocean-going support vessels, 25 fast patrol vessels, 61 motor yachts over 30 meters, and 28 motor yachts between 22 and 30 meters. What does it actually mean to bring this experience to a client?
“So. First of all, I’ve already made every conceivable mistake! So… More seriously, what we provide is a deep understanding of yacht construction. Which is quite complicated. Especially in yachting, unlike, say, a commercial vessel, human intervention on the client’s part is paramount. Not only do you have to have a great mastery of the technical side, but you also have to be ready for change. To meet their requests. You also have to be able to recognize their psychological profile when making the decision to build their yacht.”
So, do you have to be a bit of a psychologist to do your job?
“Quite a lot. I always say that the most important person to hire at a shipyard is a psychologist.”
Is there an aspect, or rather, what aspects, that shipowners tend to underestimate when deciding to build a yacht?
“I’d say there aren’t any particular aspects, also because the nautical industry has changed a lot over the past 30 years. It’s changed even more when it comes to custom megayachts, over 35 meters. Below that, we’re dealing with production boats where you change this, you change that, but the shell remains the same. When an owner approaches a 40-, 50-, or 60-meter vessel, it’s never his first boat. So he’s already had some experience, and he arrives with his own owner’s representative, his surveyor, he arrives with his team. The same goes for us. You could say that in the shipyard I act as a choreographer. I organize the show by bringing together our lawyer and the client’s, our engineer and the client’s, and so on. Because the technicians must speak the same language. And I’m the team leader.”
What else has changed in recent years?
“A premise. Contrary to popular belief, a yacht isn’t a toy for spoiled rich people. It’s an asset. Sure, there’s always the owner who buys a yacht as a status symbol, but today a yacht is a true asset because it allows you to spend quality time with family and friends. And today, time is the most important asset. And it’s not a toy because it requires a lot of commitment – for the owner, for us, and for everyone who works on it.”
Returning to your work as a liaison between clients and shipyards, how important are technical, legal, and production skills today compared to traditional sales capabilities?
“They’re crucial, especially given the sudden growth in the number of operators. There’s a lot of money in the large-scale yachting industry, and many have literally invented new things to take advantage of the situation. But then, at the first problem, it’s painful. I’m not a designer or a naval engineer. I attended the Nautical Institute and the Naval Academy, but my grandfather used to take me on his tugboat to the port of Livorno on weekends. My father had a shipping company and worked with ships. I’ve breathed salty air since I was little. And even though I’m not an engineer, certain notions, certain information, certain secrets are absorbed through everyday life.”
So it comes back to experience…
“Which gives you the ability to convey to the owner the confidence that you understand what they want in terms of quality and technology. Even in terms of lifestyle. And there’s no bluffing here: the client understands it immediately. And here we come back to the fact that I don’t work as a broker but as a client consultant. We go to the shipyard when the client can’t, we follow the construction step by step, and if your surveyor isn’t there, we’re there. That’s what the client needs.”
In the past, you’ve worked with or managed many important Italian shipyards. What are the strengths of our domestic shipbuilding industry?
“There are three. The Italian system. Sure, we’re a bit of a troublemaker, but… The design, the allure of an Italian product. Unsurpassed. Not only do we know how to design, we also know how to build, and well, too. And then, last but not least, we know how to manage clients. Our flexibility, our imagination, our creativity – that’s what clients are looking for.”
From your perspective, how has the global superyacht market changed compared to 10-15 years ago?
“A lot. There are a lot of people with huge financial resources. First there were the Russians. The Russians have disappeared, and now there are the Ukrainians. Money moves around. There was the United States, then the Chinese. It’s not true that there are no customers. No. If you don’t see them, you’re looking in the wrong place or you’re communicating in the wrong way. There’s a lot of money in circulation. Boats, as I was saying before, how have they changed? In recent years, especially post-Covid, people have understood that yachts aren’t luxury items to be shown off, that take you from A to B so you can then go ashore and live there. Maybe it’s the concept of those who charter. Today, the owner buys a boat to feel good, to make the people he loves feel good. What does this mean? If you look at boat design, the sterns today are beach resorts. Boats today are very much about wellness, longevity, and well-being. Until a few years ago, we didn’t talk about wellness; we talked about longevity, we talked about living rooms. Big, like a giant TV screen. Today, the concept is living well. It’s like, for those who can afford it, in the city where you go to the gym that offers a Kneipp path where you walk in water on rocks, or to that spa for its special treatments, or to that hotel because you know it has a spa. Everything that makes living well at home, the owner has transferred to his yacht.”
Let’s move on to the topic of environmental impact. What’s the situation?
“We strive to build responsible yachts, often at the request of our clients. For example, we’re building a 42-meter hybrid yacht in Turkey, which will be presented at the Monaco Yacht Show. Thanks to its battery pack and solar panels, it can run for up to 72 hours without the generators. We also pay great attention to the use of recyclable materials, low-impact paint, and insulation that allows for less powerful air conditioning systems. And then there’s the use of Artificial Intelligence, which enables systems capable of verifying and optimizing the boat’s condition at any time. These systems are very helpful, even in managing orders or, as happens in industrial yachting, optimizing production. However, when it comes to custom yachts, the human element is still paramount, even in terms of manpower.”
Last questions. What distinguishes a good yacht builder from a great yacht builder?
“A good builder knows how to build honest, solid, reliable boats, even if their finishes aren’t top-notch. He has the experience that comes from having built, say, ocean-going tugs. Boats that have to brave 15-meter waves. I would buy a boat from him – a solid, well-made one that can carry my loved ones safely. A great builder is one with a complete team. One with a strong sales department, one that cultivates customer relations, one with a technical department staffed by capable, well-trained, and skilled people, trained over the years to become the number one yacht builder. A production manager who can simply touch a fiberglass, steel, or aluminum panel to know what’s working and what’s not. And then a great yacht builder can count on a workforce capable of meeting production requirements.”
Telegraphic. The three essential elements for the success of a new custom project.
“Clear ideas from the client and equally clear ideas from the shipyard. When everything is clear, the project gets off to a good start. A schedule for the start of work and the planning of the ongoing work afterwards. This is fundamental. The third element: a lot of luck in having found a worthy client! More seriously, the third element is skill and dedication. People see the boats at the shows: beautiful, shiny. But to get there, we went from the cold of winter to the stifling heat of summer in the shipyard. We’ve gone from endless days of work to just as many sleepless nights because we never received a progress report. Ours, in the nautical industry, is a job like no other. It’s beautiful. It’s a job I love and hope to be able to do until the day before I leave, but it’s hard. Above all, it requires a lot of energy and dedication.”
Back to the first question. What is the driving force behind continuing on after 40 years, can you say at sea?
“Look, I’ll tell you something. Years ago in Greece, my daughter and I saw a boat I thought I recognized. We swam under it. It was one I’d built many years before. The captain and the owner’s son were there, and, thinking he was dealing with the usual nosy man, he asked me a couple of trick questions. But he immediately realized I knew the boat well. Some time later, the owner wrote to me. He’d bought the boat from its original owner, an Italian. I really like the boat, he wrote, but now it’s a bit small for our needs. But I’m so happy with it that I’ve postponed buying the new one. I really enjoy being on board. It’s true, it’s trivial, but it’s satisfying!”
