iscovery Yachts Group, builders
of the Discovery and Southerly
ranges, raised about £2.3m
in under two weeks after launching
a crowdfunding initiative in January.
The original aim was £750,00 but the
offering was so popular that, by its close,
investors were still clamouring to buy a
part of Southampton-based company.
Just under 500 investors put in
money to buy 20 per cent equity, some
contributing as little as £10 but others
putting in six-figure sums – the largest
was £750,000. Depending on the level of
contribution, investors also got a range of
short-term incentives, such as tickets to
a boat show, a shipyard tour, a sailing day
or even a charter.
To raise the funding, Discovery
used UK-based Crowdcube, an equity
crowdfunding platform. This is the first
time that crowdfunding has been utilised
in the yacht building market; it became
popular through kickstarting small tech
and creative enterprises that couldn’t
to get bank loans or preferred another
avenue for funding.
Discovery will use the funds to develop
a new line of yachts, the Britannia range,
starting with a new modern classic
74-footer designed by Laurent Giles. This
will use the existing Discovery 68 moulds.
Part of the plan is a scheme for fractional
ownership. The company recently also
launched the new Southerly 480 and
other yachts in development include the
Southerly 380 and 540, Discovery 54 and
48, and the Bluewater 60.
The idea of an internet-based means
of financing had already been successful
for Discovery. Managing director Sean
Langdon led a management buyout from
founder John Charnley last April after
raising money though a peer-to-peer
crowdfunding loan. In the year since, the
company has grown from 35 employees
to 110, and there are nine yachts currently
in build with 15 on order. Future plans are
to scale up considerably and move from
the base in Marchwood to a new site with
facilities for bespoke production.Speaking of the crowdfunding, Sean
Langdon explained: “From the outset,
we wanted to have diverse ownership
of shares and for owners to participate.
When you take into account the 450,
people the Crowdcube gives, that was as
much an opportunity for us.”
He added that they had strong interest
from yacht owners. “I met a guy at
Düsseldorf, had a half-hour conversation
with him and within an hour he had put
in £250,000. We got phone notifications
[of all the investments] and it was pinging
all day long for three weeks: £10, £750,
£10,000, £100,000. Our website hits
tripled and enquiries went up 30 per cent.
And all of these investors, including the
small ones, are our ambassadors.”
Discovery’s crowdfunding coincidedwith the troubles at Oyster, giving
Discovery immediate access to a local
pool of skilled labour, and they have since
taken on over 25 new builders.
The success also emboldened
Discovery to consider a bid for Oyster
Yachts itself, and should it be successful
the build of new Oysters would remain in
the UK.
“A big part of the reason we’d go for it
is to protect the industry. People are very
nervous. But would be an easy step for us
to move over and get the business going
again,” said Langdon.The power of the sea
can make a 66ft yacht
look pretty insignificant,
even on a calm day. This
dramatic drone shot
was taken off the Cape
of Good Hope during
our recent two-day test
of the first Kraken 66 in
February. It was unusually
calm as we approached
the cape, so we took the
opportunity to take a
close look at the scene
at Bellows Rock, lying
two miles offshore.
Atlantic rollers were
breaking ferociously, the
gnarly faces sucking up
water and exposing the
rock below. How many
ships has this unmarked
hazard claimed over the
centuries?
The following day we
were treated to proper
South African sailing
conditions, when 50
knots blew over False
Bay. Where better a place
to trial a go-anywhere
cruising yacht? Our
full report will be in the
next issue.D
Crowdfunding will support the
development of a new model rangeSoudée and Monique seem relaxed in the Furious Fifties
Crowdfunding raises £2.3m
investment for Discovery