*Expansion throughout region planned
A new company, Camper & Nicholsons Asia Holdings, has been launched in Hong Kong by its 50% shareholder Lai Sun Development Co Ltd. Lai Sun bought its 50% stake in Camper & Nicholsons International (CNI) in 2016 and Fincantieri increased its holding to become the other 50% shareholder in CNI.
The new Asian holding company is a 50/50 joint venture between CNI and Lai Sun Development and according to accompany statement “it will seamlessly integrate into Camper & Nicholsons’ network of global operations.”
Since becoming a CNI shareholder, Lai Sun is said to have “moved aggressively to strengthen every facet of the C&N business”.
“Lai Sun’s partnership in our expansion into Asia provides a major strategic advantage to our business. It is of paramount importance to work with prominent local partners to achieve success in Asia. Lai Sun brings a tremendous network of UHNW Asian clientele, extensive existing operations throughout the region, and stabilising long-term investment,” says Paolo Casani, chief executive officer of CNI.
The Camper & Nicholsons Asia legal entity will operate under the established CNI brand, with exclusive rights to open offices in the Asia territory and offer yacht brokerage, charter and management services. The new venture will be led by Carmen Lau in her position as managing director. Ms Lau is native Chinese and educated in Toronto, Canada. She brings extensive experience in the superyacht industry, including roles with Benetti and work with numerous shipyards throughout Europe and Asia as owner’s representative overseeing new-build projects.
Peter Lam, chairman of the Lai Sun Group, added: «We are excited by the strategic direction being taken by CNI and view this expansion into Asia as a great opportunity. We look forward to supporting the C&N team to fully realise the full potential of the Camper & Nicholsons brand.”
As reported by Camper & Nicholsons’ strategic partner Wealth-X in their Billionaire Census 2017, one-third of the top 30 billionaire cities are in Asia-Pacific. There are more billionaires and collective billionaire wealth in Asia-Pacific (632 billionaires and $1.6tr) than the Middle East, Latin America and Africa combined. As Chinese billionaires are generally younger than the global mean, with one-third aged under 50, and are predominantly self-made, the view is that these individuals are well placed to help accelerate an active interest in yachting in the region.
The potential of the Asian market is therefore significant to the future of the yachting sector. Through this joint venture and opportunity to leverage such a prominent local Asia partner, Camper & Nicholsons looks to strength its brand globally – reinforcing its standing as the world’s leading yachting company.
Lai Sun is a major player in luxury services throughout Asia, with a portfolio that includes several Michelin star restaurants, luxury residential and commercial developments in Hong Kong and China, and luxury hotel developments in China, Vietnam and Hong Kong. It is regarded as the most diversified leading Chinese-language entertainment provider in Asia.
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