The shipping forecast
As CEO of d’Amico Società di Navigazione, Cesare d’Amico grew up up immersed in the world of liquid and dry bulk shipping. The international company operates some 90 vessels and reported a turnover in 2010 in excess of euro 700 million. When we visited the shipping executive at his headquarters in Rome, he was eagerly awaiting the launch of a 45m displacement motoryacht in build at Rossi Navi in Viareggio – his fourth yacht in conjunction with designer Tommaso Spadolini.…
As CEO of d’Amico Società di Navigazione, Cesare d’Amico grew up up immersed in the world of liquid and dry bulk shipping. The international company operates some 90 vessels and reported a turnover in 2010 in excess of euro 700 million. When SYO visited the shipping executive at his headquarters in Rome, he was eagerly awaiting the launch of a 45m displacement motoryacht in build at Rossi Navi in Viareggio—his fourth yacht in conjunction with designer Tommaso Spadolini.
The head office of d’Amico Società di Navigazione is everything you would expect of a shipping company that can trace its family roots back four generations. On the outside, the statuesque building is typical of Rome’s elegant architecture, while on the inside it is an imposing blend of marble floors and polished wood doors. The first part of the conversation with Cesare d’Amico and Tommaso Spadolini, took place in the conference room surrounded by models of bulk carriers under glass cases and oil paintings of commercial ships in heavy gilt frames. Like most owners of his generation, Cesare d’Amico grew up with a series of modest family yachts and his own boats, starting with a high-powered Wellcraft Scarab 27, reflect a gradual evolution in terms of size. They also share a common heritage, having all been built by Italian yards in and around Tuscany.
His father, who co-founded d’Amico Società di Navigazione with two brothers in 1952, owned a 10m Giglio and 14m Giannutri, both classic series built by Picchiotti, the historic Italian shipyard (now owned by Perini Navi) founded in the 1600s on the Arno River just outside Florence. Perhaps because of this childhood influence, as an adult looking to build his own cabin cruiser, d’Amico looked no further than the region’s boatbuilders and Florence-based designer Tomasso Spadolini, whose father, Pierluigi Spadolini, is often credited with pioneering the Italian flair for yacht design. The first yacht they designed together was a 19m Alalunga from Cantieri Navali Spertini, followed by a 24m and a 32m, both built by Giovanni Castagnola of Costruzioni Navali Tigullio, a yard synonymous with wood construction using marine mahogany and laminated iroko.
Aslec 4 (named after the first name initials of d’Amico’s wife and three sons, ending with his own), the new 45m in the final stages of fitting out at Rossi Navi, is something of a departure for its owner. Not only is it his first steel and aluminium yacht, it is also his first displacement hull that is a full 13 metres longer than his previous boat offering exponential volume.
“It was quite a big decision for me and, to be frank, we still have see if I’ve made the right choice,” admits d’Amico ruefully. “A displacement hull has certain disadvantages in terms of speed, but it offers greater comfort than a planing or semi-displacement hull. Slower transfers can be offset with a suitable tender, but I also realised that we weren’t really making extended voyages with my previous boat; once we’d found a place we wanted to be, we tended to stay there. Whereas some owners like to be on the move all the time, when I’m on holiday I don’t want that added stress.”
Cesare d’Amico is a fairly typical Mediterranean owner, using his boat at weekends and for summer holidays, perhaps spending up to six weeks on board during the course of the year (”Not enough by any means,” he laments). His style of cruising is also a casual and intensely private affair in the company of family and close friends. He may occasionally use his yacht for corporate entertainment, but has never chartered and does not intend to start with Aslec 4, although Spadolini points out the RINA Charter class yacht has been designed also for commercial use with resale in mind. During the course of our conversation, it quickly emerged that what d’Amico really enjoys are the deliberations behind the initial design of the yacht and the build process itself.
“It becomes something of a passion,” he agrees. “It’s amazing to see a yacht start from nothing and gradually take form. Moreover, in those shipyards that allow it, it’s stimulating to be able to introduce changes as the design progresses—not fundamental changes, but improvements that present themselves along the way. This can be a source of huge satisfaction; to participate with professional builders and together produce innovative ideas is the most gratifying experience. It means you’re also co-responsible for the final result.”
In those shipyards that allow it… this qualifying clause is a fundamental reason why d’Amico has chosen to build in Italy, beyond a natural desire to promote the yacht building industry in his own country rather than abroad—“Why build overseas when I can do the same thing here in Italy?” Although other Italian shipyards were approached when the 45m project went out for tender, he was especially impressed by the flexibility and family heritage that characterises Rossi Navi, combined with its technical know-how and long experience building for yards such as Benetti and Codecasa (although as an astute businessman, he was mindful to meet Mario Sbarro, the owner of 70m Numptia, then in build, to glean from his experience with the shipyard). Of course, by choosing to go with a lesser known brand, be it Costruzioni Navali Tigullio or indeed Rossi Navi, d’Amico admits he was also chasing value for money—that delicate equation between quality and price which is the Holy Grail for any owner looking to invest in a new superyacht.
“No one wants to throw money away,” he confirms. “You might argue that I could build in Turkey and save 30 per cent or more, but then you have to consider the reliability and resale value of the yacht in a few years’ time. Over a certain size, you could also argue that Holland or Germany provide added brand value. These are choices that we, as owners, have to make and live with.”
Read the full interview with Cesare d’Amico, covering the Italian yacht industry, interior design decisions and crew considerations in the forthcoming Issue 2 of The Superyacht Owner magazine.
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