Sunseeker On Show hosts VIP visitors, new yachts

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Located on West Quay Road, Sunseeker On Show includes hardstand space for five yachts

Sunseeker has opened its Sunseeker Showcase indoor suite and Sunseeker On Show display for 11 yachts, offering visitors a year-round opportunity to view and compare many of the British builder’s newest models.

The Poole shipyard has converted its former head office at its original shipyard in West Quay Road – close to the current Sunseeker House headquarters – into a permanent VIP visitor experience.

Sunseeker has been partnering with various luxury car brands at the new facility

The Sunseeker Showcase is a VIP suite for clients and prospects, and features a hospitality lounge, dining area and Robert’s Bar, named in tribute to Sunseeker founder Robert Braithwaite.

It also has a VIP cinema room with a 100-inch screen, a meeting room and the Selections Lounge, which displays samples of the brand’s fabrics, woods and colours, and allows clients to specify their boat with Sunseeker’s interior design team.

The Sunseeker Showcase is a conversion of the brand’s former head office

Sunseeker On Show, the outdoor display, comprises five yachts in front of the Showcase and another six or more in the water, with the models regularly updated. After guided tours of the yachts on the hard, visitors can be taken on electric golf carts through the shipyard to the pontoons, where they can see more new yachts on display and be taken on a cruise or sea trial.

Sean Robertson, the company’s Sales Director, said: “The team has created a one-of-a-kind destination nestled in the heart of the original Sunseeker shipyard. Sunseeker On Show and the Sunseeker Showcase are truly exciting developments in how we can give our clients a real Sunseeker experience, a chance for us to provide our legendary hospitality year-round.

The Sunseeker Showcase welcomes clients and prospects from around the world

“We have already been very busy and continue to welcome clients from across Asia, many of whom have visited previously. The display is open seven days a week and visitors are requested to make an appointment to visit through their local dealer.”

Robertson started working at Sunseeker in 1986, so remembers when the building was the company’s headquarters. “Back in the 1960s, 1970s and through to the mid/late 1980s, the West Quay Road site was the main production facility and the building was the main office,” Robertson said.

“Now, we’re using the site to provide an all-in VIP visitor experience for clients and prospects that includes an overview of the history of this amazing, historic brand while enjoying some local south-coast delicacies with the Sunseeker family.”

Robert’s Bar is named in tribute to Sunseeker founder Robert Braithwaite

Andrea Frabetti, CEO since mid-2019, says the new facility provides an uplifting occasion after a difficult year that will always be remembered for the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic.

“We are trying to minimise the delay in showcasing the new models, so Sunseeker On Show and the Sunseeker Showcase help with this,” Frabetti said. “We welcome visitors to see the new models privately even before the models’ official show debuts.”

Sunseeker plans to debut the Manhattan 55, Predator 55 EVO, 65 Sport Yacht, 88 Yacht and revolutionary 90 Ocean at Boot Dusseldorf in January, and visitors to the shipyard have the chance to see the models before their international debut.

The 90 Ocean is the largest of Sunseeker’s five new models set to show at Boot Dusseldorf in January

The 90 Ocean has already had a very positive impact, with strong sales before the yacht has even been launched.

“We’ve sold out production slots for the 90 Ocean for all of this year and most of 2021,” Frabetti says. “It’s beamier, bigger and a lot roomier than comparative models. For example, it has 20-25 per cent more volume than the 88 Yacht, a traditional fast motor yacht.”

Sunseeker’s new X-TEND sunbeds can be used on the swim platform or in the cockpit

The model is the first to feature Sunseeker’s new X-TEND sunbeds, which were developed in-house and can be raised to main-deck level to face forward to other cockpit furniture, or opened downwards to face the 6m by 4m beach area, which includes a submersible platform.

“The beach area is unbelievable. It’s a huge entertainment area with barbecue, Seabobs, other toys, X-TEND beds, a submersible swim platform and much more. Everyone who has seen it in build has been amazed at the size. It has to be seen to be believed,” says Frabetti, who also highlights the yacht’s efficiency at low cruising speeds.

The Predator 55 EVO follows the 60 EVO launched last year

“The yacht can reach 26 knots, but the best feature is its efficiency at low speeds. The hull lines are designed to maintain a trim and keep the boat horizontal up to 14 knots, so this helps reduce consumption a lot. Most customers like two cruising speeds, which this has at 12-14 knots and 24-25 knots.”