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Yachting faces up to safety and social media challenges

Cluster Yachting Monaco
Winter Pop-Up

The Cluster Yachting Monaco held its annual Winter Pop-Up, a landmark event that brought together professionals from across the industry and a fleet of yachts moored in the YCM Marina presented by companies including Ocean Independence, Fraser Yachts and Althaus Yachting. Yachting stakeholders and visitors were able to visit the boats on display before discussing the thorny issue of ‘Charting safety, responsibility and media influence’. “The event is held under the aegis of our collective ‘Monaco, Capital of Advanced Yachting’ initiative. It provides a communication platform that is essential to progress discussions and better analyse the sector, which is undergoing profound changes,” began Bernard d’Alessandri, President of the Cluster Yachting Monaco.

Réseaux sociaux : un enjeu stratégique pour le secteur

Social media: a strategic challenge

Chaired by naval architect and Cluster Yachting Monaco Vice-President, Espen Oeino, the first session focused on the growing influence of social media in the yachting industry. Katia Damborsky, editor of Boat International, opened the debate by highlighting the paradoxical tension between the confidentiality sought by owners and the total transparency engendered by social media. “Too often yachting is perceived as being reserved for an elite,” commented consultant Matthijs Rhee, “On social media it is essential to present an authentic image of the sector but showing not just the luxury element but also the knowhow and ingenuity that underpin it. We need to educate the public on what yachting really entails by highlighting its sustainable innovative aspects”.

All agreed a balanced approach was required to avoid adding to the growing disinformation online.

David Seal, creator of the YouTube Yachts for Sale channel, a broker at Northrop & Johnson – Fraser Yachts, stressed the rapid evolution of the yachting industry given the domination of digital platforms like YouTube and Instagram. “Authenticity is key on social media. Real life videos of yacht construction for example engage viewers much more than polished images”. He believes YouTube remains the central platform for marketing, capable of generating good quality leads. According to Steve Bailet, Global Marketing Director at IYC, “we are seeing a shift in consumers towards a younger clientele who have an appetite for social media. Investing in digital helps us understand this audience”. It is not uncommon for over 60% of a marketing budget being allocated to digital due its ability to target customers more accurately and measure the impact of campaigns.

What’s next?

Speakers went on to discuss future prospects of social media, a consensus being that YouTube will continue to dominate due to its integration with Google and role as a visual search engine. “Perhaps we will see the emergence of industry-dedicated social platforms where we can maintain a certain exclusivity while remaining connected,” said Katia Damborsky. Professionals need to stay vigilant about the image they project and any collaborations with influencers.

The second session focused on safety and regulatory complexities, highlighting several critical aspects including the need to develop a safety culture at all levels, from yacht design to crew management.

Safety challenges

Eduard Henny, representing the Cayman Islands Registry and who is an surveyor, opened the discussion stressing the importance of taking proactive measures to improve safety on board. “Sometimes, it takes an incident before safety measures are taken seriously, but we must always strive to anticipate the risks”. He compared the yachting sector to other industries like aviation and shipping which have much stricter safety standards thanks to transparent feedback on experience. It is a must today to insist on fostering “a safety culture on yachts” as technical yacht consultant at Leube & Ro, Philipp Leube, pointed out: “It must be introduced in the design phase and build. Too often, aesthetic priorities prevail over safety requirements”. He believes lack of experience of some designers or owners’ desire to prioritise appearance over functionality can pose real problems in terms of safety.

Regulatory challenges

Regarding regulations, Giorgio Gallo, Area Manager for the Western Mediterranean for yachting at RINA, highlighted that the growing number of yachts is leading to a shortage of skilled labour which increases the risk of accidents, and stressed the importance of training crew well: “The lack of skills of young crews in the face of dangerous situations such as fires and shipwreck is worrying”.

Edouard Mousny, Cluster Yachting Monaco Vice-President and maritime lawyer at Gordon Blair, provided a legal perspective explaining that despite the bigger fleet of yachts he has not seen any regulatory pressure from authorities: “There are no big concerns regards safety regulations, but we anticipate more changes linked to sustainability and the environment”. He noted however that yacht owners often prefer to voluntarily comply with commercial vessel standards to ensure a better resale value and maximum safety.

Managing new technologies and risks

Michelle van der Merwe, accounts manager for yacht insurance at Pantaenius discussed insurance trends, in particular the impact of new technologies like lithium-ion batteries, often the cause of fires on board. Insurers are starting to impose stricter clauses to manage new risks: “New technologies on yachts like lithium-ion batteries, require crews to have more training to avoid accidents”. The possibility of insurance policies becoming more rigid if risks are not controlled is another issue the sector will have to take into consideration. Managing Director of SMIT Salvage, Richard Janssen, made an important contribution to the debate. With his experience in managing complex high risk maritime salvage operations, Richard Janssen shared his extensive knowledge of maritime safety, based on several examples of notable incidents such as the rescue of Modern Express (164m) which was drifting dangerously close to the French coast in 2016, and the famous blockage of the Suez Canal by Ever Given. “When a problem occurs, time is of the essence. Being prepared to manage a situation before it escalates can significantly reduce the damage”.

The Winter Pop-Up, that followed the 10-year celebrations of the Cluster Yachting Monaco earlier this year, confirms Monaco’s commitment to promoting sustainable innovative yachting.

About Cluster Yachting Monaco

Established a decade ago the Cluster Yachting Monaco unites nearly 90 member companies in different yacht-related fields. As a focal hub, it encourages synergies to foster innovation and sustainable growth. In 2022, the yachting industry in Monaco represented a turnover of €567.1 million, 3% of total revenue in the Principality, 411 companies and generated 1,429 jobs on land.

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