Princess Yachts Powerboats

Princess

Princess Yachts is a British manufacturer of luxury motor yachts and is majority French-owned. In the powerboat scene, Princess yachts are regarded as the epitome of sophisticated, functional and elegantly styled luxury yachts.

Princess Yachts are exceptional in every respect – even within the luxury segment, which is famously full of surprises. The same applies to Princess Yachts: anyone with the necessary funds can stand out from the mainstream in a thoroughly positive way.

The shipyard was founded in 1965 as Marine Projects in Plymouth. The projects soon turned into concrete orders and business flourished, although not yet in the luxury segment. Glamour arrived at the yard when South African businessman Beck sold the 75 percent stake in the shipyard he had acquired in 1981 for 200 million euros to the investment group of Frenchman Bernard Arnault. That group was and still is known as a true treasure trove of luxury brands: Louis Vuitton, Christian Dior, Fendi, De Beers, Moët & Chandon, Veuve Clicquot and Krug are all part of it.

Glitz and glamour

Princess Yachts operates in 119 countries and employs more than 3,000 people worldwide, while its shipyards together cover an area of over 1.1 million square meters.

As of 2020, Princess Yachts produces boats in seven categories. From the 35-foot full carbon fiber speedster to the 131-foot M-Class superyacht, almost the entire luxury segment is covered.

In early 2018, Princess Yachts caused quite a stir in the water sports scene with an exciting PR coup. A technical partnership with BAR Technologies was announced for a new yacht in the Princess R-Class. At that point, the BAR team had already been attracting attention for some time with its (more or less) successful participation in the America's Cup (sailing). The BAR team is led by one of the most gifted regatta sailors in the world: Ben Ainslie. The Briton has won several Olympic gold medals and various world championship titles. His America's Cup campaign for the British ("we're bringing the cup back to England"), however, met with rather modest success.

On stilts with Pininfarina

Ainslie and the BAR team brought a foil version successfully tested in the America's Cup to the powerboat market. Based on these foils – the boats rise above the water surface on their "stilts", reducing hydrodynamic drag and reaching fascinating speeds – the technicians, engineers and designers at Princess Yachts and BAR Technologies developed the Active Foil semi-foil system. Here, "only" a large part of the hull is lifted, yet the speeds are no less impressive.
To give the look an "Italian flair" and to significantly improve the aerodynamics of this R-Class, the shipyard also collaborated with the legendary Italian design studio Pininfarina.