How the yards are run
The reading across the 40 builders.
Seven ways to run a yacht builder
The 37 builders fall into seven organisation models. Family in every seat (Codecasa, Hakvoort, Rossinavi, Amer, Antonini, Mulder): the owner sells, a relative runs the floor, and the senior layer is project managers. Family owner with an outside CEO (Tankoa, Baglietto under Gavio, Mangusta's second generation with a sales director): the owner keeps the chair and hires the commercial and operating seats. Listed and corporate (Sanlorenzo, Ferretti, Azimut|Benetti): a C-suite with a chief sales officer, a chief operating officer and division general managers under a group CEO. Investor-owned with a professional CEO (Heesen, Royal Huisman, Oceanco, Wider, Vanquish, ICON, Next): the model closest to a greenfield company with a hired general manager. Brand inside a group (CRN, Custom Line, Riva, Columbus, Benetti, Damen Yachting): a general manager or brand head, sales and finance held at group level. Owner plus engineer (Vitters, Moonen, Van der Valk until 2026): the owner sells, an engineer runs the yard. Two-person model under an owner (Van der Valk since 2026, Balk): a commercial director beside a technical or operational director.
Who holds the commercial seat
At the top Italian yards the commercial seat is a C-level officer: Sanlorenzo's chief sales officer, Ferretti's chief commercial officer with separate directors for serial and custom sales, Benetti's sales director under a general manager, Baglietto's chief commercial officer. At the Dutch yards it is usually a commercial director reporting to the CEO, and twice it is split by territory: Heesen now has a Commercial Director in Oss, a Commercial Director America in Florida and a Sales Director in Monaco; Feadship sells through a commercial director on each side and a Feadship sales director. The smallest yards have no commercial seat at all: Hakvoort, Codecasa, Rossinavi, Amer and Lynx sell through the owner. A general manager who is expected to sell personally is the norm below about 100 people; above that the yards hire a seller and keep the general manager on the P&L.
How long the top seats last
The long tenures are at the family and corporate yards: Jan-Bart Verkuyl at Royal Van Lent since 2016, Marcel Onkenhout at Oceanco since 2010, Massimo Perotti at Sanlorenzo since 2005, Klaas Hakvoort since 1991. The short tenures are where owners changed: Heesen had three CEOs between 2023 and 2025 and replaced its CCO twice; Next Yacht Group's CEO lasted four months; Balk and Van der Valk swapped a CEO between them in 2026; Cantieri di Pisa's owner removed its managing director in September 2026. The pattern for a new owner is a technical or finance insider first, then an industrial outsider once the owner knows the yard.
Where the people move between yards
The Dutch yards form one labour market: Royal Huisman engineers move to Vitters across the IJssel, Feadship commercial directors moved to Heesen in 2026, Oceanco and Royal Van Lent project directors move to Damen Yachting and the dredger builders, and the hull plants (Mercury, Slob) are led by people from Royal IHC and Heerema. The Italian market moves along the coast from Viareggio to La Spezia and Genoa: Benetti engineers to Lusben and Tankoa, CRN engineers to Cantiere delle Marche, Perini and TISG production directors to the smaller Viareggio yards. Movement between Italy and the Netherlands is rare and runs through the engine supplier and the classification societies, not between yards.
The Turkish connections already in these teams
Several people on this map have built in Türkiye or for Turkish yards: Heesen's former COO ran RMK Marine's yacht division to 2014; TISG's former operations chief ran its Turkish hull operation to 2025; Damen Yachting's engineering manager is Turkish and led engineering at Royal Van Lent; a former Royal Van Lent technology head now works as chief development officer for ALIA Yachts in Antalya; and commercial leaders at Oceanco, Turquoise and Sirena have sold Turkish-built yachts to the international market. Damen Yachting builds its explorer and support lines in Antalya, TISG built its hulls in Türkiye, and Next Yacht Group opened an Istanbul dealer in 2026.
What this means for a greenfield yard
Three models fit a yard that will commission in 2027 with a commercial mandate. The investor-owned model with a professional general manager (Heesen, Royal Huisman) is the direct template, and it shows that the general manager's first year is spent hiring the senior layer. The two-person model (Van der Valk, Balk, Huisfit) is the lean alternative: a commercial general manager beside a technical or operations director, which matches the brief's own alternative. The brand-inside-a-group model (Benetti, Damen Yachting) shows the ceiling of a general manager who does not own sales and finance. The candidates are grouped by pool accordingly: commercially driven general managers, hybrid commercial-technical leaders, and operations directors who would pair with a commercial general manager.
Italy21 builder entries
| Builder | Organisation | Top seat on LinkedIn | Staff read | Candidates |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Baglietto La Spezia · A+ | Industrial-group owner; outside CEO since 2020 with a CCO and a head of operations | Diego Michele Deprati, Amministratore Delegato (CEO) | 79 | 7 |
| Benetti Viareggio · A+ | Group brand; a general manager from Technogym and Ferrari over a sales director | Marco Valle, Group CEO of Azimut-Benetti; Benetti's own general manager is not on the LinkedIn roster (the press names Massimiliano Casoni) | 12 | 5 |
| Sanlorenzo Ameglia (La Spezia) · A+ | Listed, founder-controlled; corporate C-suite over yard presidents | Massimo Perotti, Executive Chairman (controlling shareholder; not on the LinkedIn roster) | 63 | 19 |
| Cantiere delle Marche Ancona · A+ | Founder-managers with a family-office majority shareholder | Gianluca Ciniero, Managing Director, Cantiere delle Marche | 1 | 1 |
| Tankoa Yachts Genoa · A+ | Family owner; outside CEO (ex-Benetti) with a co-CEO and a sales manager | Edoardo RATTO, Direttore Generale; Eva Orsi, President; Vincenzo Poerio, Joint CEO | 75 | 3 |
| CRN Ancona · A+ | Brand inside Ferretti; no own CEO, custom sales held at group level | No brand head on the LinkedIn roster; CRN is run inside Ferretti Group's custom business (CCO and CTOO at group level) | 51 | 2 |
| Ferretti Group Forlì · A+ | Listed, contested control; new outside CEO, CCO with serial and custom sales directors | Morgan XU 徐新玉, Executive President (Weichai Power); Stassi Anastassov, Chief Executive Officer | 58 | 17 |
| Overmarine Group · Mangusta Viareggio · A+ | Second-generation family CEO with a sales director | Maurizio Balducci, CEO (owning family; not on the LinkedIn roster) | 72 | 2 |
| Rossinavi Viareggio · A+ | Family owner; son as COO, no CEO title, no sales director | Claudia Rossi, General Manager | 67 | 1 |
| Palumbo Superyachts · ISA Ancona and Naples · A | Family group; sole director, brand general managers | Francesco Carbone, General Manager, ISA Yachts and Palumbo Superyachts; Primiano Protano, Direttore generale, Palumbo Superyachts | 36 | 5 |
| Columbus Yachts Savona · A | Brand general manager inside Palumbo | — | 4 | 0 |
| Wider Yachts Fano · A | Investor-owned; industry-veteran president, hired CEO, new Dubai shareholder | Fabio Fraternale, CEO, Wider; Marcello Maggi, President | 23 | 2 |
| Next Yacht Group · Maiora Viareggio · A | Investor-owned; chairman and chief sales officer, CEO seat empty since 2025 | Giorgio Mattei, Deputy Chairman | 91 | 2 |
| Antonini Navi La Spezia · A | Family managing director; sales partner as shareholder | Walter Antonini, General Manager, Antonini Navi; CEO Energy Division, Gruppo Antonini | 8 | 2 |
| The Italian Sea Group · Admiral Marina di Carrara · A | Founder-controlled, in restructuring; founder CEO again under court administrators | Giovanni Costantino, Chairman and CEO (founder; not on the LinkedIn roster) | 29 | 8 |
| Codecasa Viareggio · B+ | Family in every seat; no outside executive | The Codecasa family (not on the LinkedIn roster beyond an intern) | 11 | 0 |
| Custom Line Ancona · B+ | Brand inside Ferretti; sold by the group's custom sales director | — | 0 | 0 |
| Azimut Yachts Avigliana (Turin) · B | Family group; division general manager from Ferrari under the group CEO | Federico Ferrante, President, Azimut Benetti Americas; Andrea Antichi, General Manager, Azimut Yachts | 28 | 12 |
| Riva Sarnico · B | Brand inside Ferretti; serial-business sales | — | 0 | 0 |
| Amer Yachts · Permare Sanremo · B | Family CEO and a family head of sales; an operations manager hired from Sanlorenzo in 2025 | Barbara Amerio, CEO | 24 | 1 |
| Cantieri di Pisa Pisa · B | Owner as sole director since 2026; MD left | Owner Enrico Gennasio took over after the managing director left in Sep 2026 | 12 | 0 |
The Netherlands19 builder entries
| Builder | Organisation | Top seat on LinkedIn | Staff read | Candidates |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heesen Yachts Oss · A+ | New owner; outside CEO rebuilt the top team; commercial split by territory | Jeroen van der Meer, Chief Executive Officer | 16 | 6 |
| Damen Yachting · Amels Vlissingen · A+ | Family group division; family managing director with a commercial director | Rose Damen, Managing Director | 19 | 7 |
| Moonen Yachts 's-Hertogenbosch · A+ | Owner couple abroad; technical director promoted to managing director | Matthew Baxter, Chairperson, Moonen (owner); Nicky van Zon, Managing Director | 20 | 1 |
| Feadship Hoofddorp · A+ | Two yards, one brand; no group CEO, two Feadship Directors | Jan Bart Verkuyl, CEO, Royal Van Lent; Director, Feadship | 20 | 6 |
| Feadship · Koninklijke De Vries Aalsmeer · A+ | Family; next generation as CEO, projects officer and CCO | Roderick De Vries, CEO | 13 | 4 |
| Feadship · De Vries Scheepsbouw Makkum Makkum · A+ | Family yard director; works-engineering department | Marc Niederer, Director, Koninklijke De Vries Aalsmeer / Feadship; Sijbrand De Vries, Director, De Vries Makkum | 13 | 1 |
| Feadship · Royal Van Lent Kaag and Amsterdam · A+ | LVMH-owned; long-tenured chairman and CEO over operations and engineering directors | — | 11 | 3 |
| Van der Valk Shipyard Waalwijk · A+ | Management buyout; commercial CEO over technical and commercial directors | Evan Kortmann, Chief Executive Officer | 33 | 3 |
| Royal Hakvoort Shipyard Monnickendam · A | Owner sells, project managers deliver | Klaas Hakvoort, Owner and Managing Director | 37 | 0 |
| Oceanco Alblasserdam · A | New private owner; CEO since 2010 with group companies for hulls, superstructures, systems | Marcel Onkenhout, Chief Executive Officer | 21 | 6 |
| ICON Yachts Harlingen · A | Owner in Monaco; CEO over heads of projects, estimating and business development | Tony Gale, Chief Executive Officer | 28 | 2 |
| Mulder Shipyard Zoeterwoude · A | Family seller as managing director; first CFO in 2026 | Nick Mulder, Managing Director | 34 | 1 |
| Royal Huisman Vollenhove · B+ | Investor-owned; commercial director promoted to CEO | Peter Naeyé, CEO (per the press, Nov 2025; not on the LinkedIn roster) | 9 | 3 |
| Vitters Shipyard Zwartsluis · B+ | Owner above an engineer managing director | Louis Hamming, Owner; Maarten van Marle, Managing Director / CEO | 68 | 2 |
| Lynx Yachts Nijkerk · B | Founder with contractors | Founder Slim Bouricha (not on the LinkedIn roster) | 1 | 0 |
| Vanquish Yachts Marknesse · B | PE-backed; new CEO, product owners per model | Frank Spikker, CEO | 85 | 2 |
| Balk Shipyard Urk · B | Owner-director with an operational director and a sales director | Allard Borleffs, Managing director, Balk Shipyard | 10 | 2 |
| Mercury Yacht Construction Zwijndrecht · B | Hull plant: general manager, operations, production, engineering | Hans de Lang, General Manager | 37 | 1 |
| Huisfit Zaandam · B | Three-seat business unit: commercial, operations, finance | Part of Royal Huisman; no separate top seat on the roster | 13 | 0 |
Changes at the top, 2023 to 2026
| When | Builder | What happened |
|---|---|---|
| 2026-10 | The Italian Sea Group · Admiral | New board reappoints founder Giovanni Costantino as CEO under court administrators; five bids for the yards. |
| 2026-09 | Cantieri di Pisa | Owner Enrico Gennasio replaces managing director Marco Massabo as sole director. |
| 2026-09 | Heesen Yachts | Three new commercial leaders: Commercial Director, Commercial Director America, Sales Director Monaco. |
| 2026-08 | Vitters Shipyard | Maarten van Marle, from Royal Van Lent engineering, starts as managing director under the owner. |
| 2026-07 | Van der Valk Shipyard | Evan Kortmann, CEO of Balk, becomes CEO; Enrico Theuns leaves after a three-year transition. |
| 2026-07 | The Italian Sea Group · Admiral | Founder Giovanni Costantino resigns as chairman and CEO; court-supervised restructuring begins. |
| 2026-07 | Balk Shipyard | CEO leaves for Van der Valk; a new owner-director and a sales director take over. |
| 2026-06 | Sanlorenzo | Gianguido Girotti, ex-Beneteau deputy CEO, becomes CEO of Nautor Swan and Bluegame. |
| 2026-05 | Ferretti Group | Weichai's slate wins the AGM; Stassi Anastassov replaces Alberto Galassi as CEO after 12 years. |
| 2026-04 | Feadship · Koninklijke De Vries | Henk and Tom de Vries step back; Roderick de Vries CEO, Rob de Vries projects officer, Bas Nederpelt CCO. |
| 2026-04 | Cantiere delle Marche | CLP2 (Cagnoli and Loro Piana families) completes its majority takeover; founders stay as managers. |
| 2026-02 | Mulder Shipyard | First CFO hired from KPMG. |
| 2025-11 | Royal Huisman | Peter Naeyé, commercial director since 2020, is CEO; Jan Timmerman (CEO since 2018) moves to the supervisory board. |
| 2025-09 | Ferretti Group | Giordano Pellacani named CCO; sales split into serial and custom directors. |
| 2025-09 | Tankoa Yachts | Tankoa takes over the OTAM yard and brand in Genoa. |
| 2025-08 | Heesen Yachts | Jeroen van der Meer, an industrial outsider, named CEO; Niels Vaessen leaves after 13 years. |
| 2025-08 | Oceanco | Gabe Newell buys Oceanco; the Barwani family exits; management unchanged. |
| 2025-08 | Next Yacht Group · Maiora | CEO Sebastiano Fanizza leaves after four months; the seat is still open. |
| 2025-05 | Azimut Yachts | Andrea Antichi, from Ferrari, becomes general manager of the Azimut division. |
| 2025-04 | Heesen Yachts | Laurens Last buys Heesen through TSAL Holding. |
| 2025-03 | Balk Shipyard | Zhongying International sells Balk to a Dutch owner. |
| 2025-02 | Vanquish Yachts | Frank Spikker appointed CEO; the interim CEO moves to the advisory board. |
| 2025 | Moonen Yachts | Technical director Nicky van Zon becomes managing director. |
| 2024-12 | Sanlorenzo | New structure: Tommaso Vincenzi heads the yacht and superyacht units; Vincenzo Soria chief sales officer. |
| 2024-09 | Royal Huisman | O2 Capital Partners buys Royal Huisman Group from Doeksen and Parcom. |
| 2024-08 | Heesen Yachts | Ruud van der Stroom named CCO, replacing Mark Cavendish after 16 years. |
| 2024-06 | Overmarine Group · Mangusta | Founder Giuseppe Balducci dies; his children Maurizio and Katia lead the group. |
| 2024-04 | Van der Valk Shipyard | Founder Wim van der Valk retires; management buyout backed by a yacht-owning family. |
| 2023-11 | Heesen Yachts | Niels Vaessen, CFO, becomes CEO after Arthur Brouwer. |
| 2023-09 | Benetti | Massimiliano Casoni, ex-Technogym COO, named Benetti general manager. |
| 2023-07 | Balk Shipyard | CCO Evan Kortmann becomes CEO; Daan Balk steps back. |
Movement between the builderspeople read on one builder's page who earlier worked at another, by pair
The Dutch yards form one labour market; the Italian market moves along the coast from Viareggio to La Spezia and Genoa; movement between the two countries is rare.