4 JUNE–JULY 2019 | International Boat Industry ibinews.com
HEADLINES International Marine News
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(^1)
Sunseeker names new CEO
ibinews.com June 11
(^2)
Lewmar Marine to be
acquired by Lippert
Components for £33m
ibinews.com June 12
(^3)
Princess MD steps down
ibinews.com June 11
(^4)
US bans private boating
to Cuba
ibinews.com June 5
(^5)
Obituary: Jan Boone
Ibinews.com June 7
(^6)
Marquis looks to “fill hole”
left by Sea Ray
Ibinews.com June 3
(^7)
Princess Yachts reports
record year
Ibinews.com May 31
(^8)
US powerboat sales
up in 2018
Ibinews.com May 31
(^9)
New owners for Marathon
Boat Group
Ibinews.com May 24
(^10)
UK marina operators merge
Ibinews.com May 31
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Lewmar to be acquired by Lippert
UK The board of directors of
Lewmar Marine have agreed to
the terms of a cash offer from
US-based Lippert Components,
a subsidiary of LCI Industries,
which produces a range of
engineered components
for recreational vehicles
(RVs), boats and commercial
transportation vehicles.
LCI has received pledges
from Lewmar shareholders
representing nearly 81% of
existing shares to vote in
favour of the acquisition,
pursuant to final approval by
the company’s shareholders and
the Scottish Court. LCI’s initial
cash offer is approximately
£33.286m, or about £1.44 per
share, and allows for additional
consideration up to £2.5m, or
approximately 10.8p per share.
“The marine industry has
been a continued target of
growth for LCI, and with the
acquisition of Lewmar, we are
expanding this strategy to a
global level,” said Jason Lippert,
CEO and president of LCI.
“This is our sixth acquisition
within the global leisure
marine market, as well as our
sixth acquisition in Europe,”
continued Lippert. “All of
this points to our strategy to
be a significant player in the
global marine, rail, and caravan
markets domestically and in
Europe.”
LCI operates across more
than 65 manufacturing and
distribution facilities located
in the US, Canada, Italy,
Ireland and the UK, with
2018 annual sales of $2.5bn
(£1.9bn). It purchased the
Taylor Made Group in January
2018 for $90.4m (£70m) and
furniture-making assets from
US boatbuilder Smoker Craft in
November for $28.1 m (£22m).
Lippert is actively moving
to diversify the company’s
business away from the RV
OEM segment where 66%
of consolidated sales are
generated, down to a target of
40% by 2022.
Once the company’s
latest acquisition is finalised,
Lewmar’s managing director
Peter Tierney will continue to
head up the business.
UK The appointment of new
CEO Andrea Frabetti heralds
a new era for Sunseeker, as the
UK builder becomes laser-
focused on speeding up both
its strategic and manufacturing
processes to ensure its first to
market with innovation.
Frabetti will spearhead a
new Strategic Committee along
with chief financial officer Mike
McMillan and chief operations
officer Michael Straughan and
work closely with its executive
committee to focus on further
developing the strategic
framework for the business
and driving the Sunseeker
brand forward. Central to
that framework, Frabetti told
IBI, was the expansion of its
product portfolio. Sunseeker
currently has 11/12 product
offerings across its Yacht, Sport
Yacht, Predator, Manhattan and
Hawk ranges.
According to Frabetti,
Sunseeker has been given the
go-ahead by its shareholders to
double that offering within the
next four years. “It’s a strong
plan, and a challenging one,
given the competition in the
marketplace,” Frabetti told IBI
on the day he was named CEO,
adding that the expansion
would include a move into
new product segments as
well as a push to improve the
differentiation between its
various lines.
Frabetti made it clear that
investments, described as being
in the “multiple millions”,
had already been earmarked
to ensure a feasible and
sustainable product growth
plan based on its current
manufacturing footprint in
Poole, Dorset. He also hinted
at a potential cooperation
with another builder, details of
which would be revealed soon,
along with more specifics on
product.
“To create the best value we
have to make quick decisions
to ensure our innovations are
fastest to the market – to do
that in a management company
you have to be lean and work
closely together.”
On the announcement of
his new role, Frabetti addressed
the Sunseeker workforce, telling
them that every manager and
team member had to have the
“Robert Braithwaite mentality
- to always think about the
customer and to instill a lot
of love and passion into what
they are doing.” Frabetti also
reassured them that the British
heritage of Sunseeker would be
cherished and built upon.
New Sunseeker CEO outlines growth plans
Lewmar CEO Peter Tierney