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Global Maritime Recruitment

Yacht building

Superyacht building:
2019 was another good year for superyacht building. In 2019, superyacht builders in the Netherlands generated a turnover of € 1.33 billion. In 2018 this was € 1.16 billion. In 2019, 75 projects were planned in the Netherlands, which is good for second place worldwide. Employment in the sector has grown to 3,310 employed persons. An increase compared to 2018 (3,210). this figure concerns direct employment at the shipyards. Employment at suppliers is allocated to the maritime suppliers sector. A continuing trend is the scaling up of superyachts. This places increasingly higher demands on the facilities (and waterways) of the yards where these yachts are built. A growth segment in this industry are the extensive refits. 64 superyachts were refitted between 2017 and 2019.

Small yachts and watersports industry:
The sector’s turnover (excluding super yacht building) amounted to € 4.4 billion in 2019. This is almost the same as an increase of almost € 300 million compared to 2018. The added value of the small yacht building / water sports industry sector decreased slightly, in 2018 it was still € 1,040 million in 2019, this had decreased to € 1,020 million. In addition, employment in the sector rose slightly to 13,000 employed persons (in 2018 still 12,900 employed persons).

Impact COVID-19 on Yacht Building Industry:
According to market experts, it seems to mainly affect the middle segment. Buyers in the market for (second-hand) yachts in the largest category, yachts over 60 meters, generally remain in a position to buy a yacht. In addition, the refit market can absorb part of the lost turnover.