Note 1: For Part 1 of the online article, click here
Note 2: The original magazine feature appears in YACHT STYLE Issue 76
XO IN ALUMINIUM
XO’s new all-aluminium DFNDR A8
Sakari Mattila’s boating bloodline started with the creation of Aquador (1994) and Paragon (2003), which were sold to Nimbus Group in 2000 and 2007 respectively. In 2006, Mattila teamed up with Erkki Talvela to create XO Boats, which produces hardy aluminium boats that more than hint at the exterior lines and styling later evident in both Axopar and Saxdor, his fourth and fifth companies.
Tall hull sides, a deep-V aluminum hull, vertical bow, rugged superstructure and dark colours give XO boats the robust, functional look and feel of a military or patrol vessel.
Talvela, who returned to XO Boats as CEO in 2018, says: “Aluminum is a superior material used in every challenging condition in aviation and the car industry. Compared to other builders, the biggest difference is the boat handling in rough seas and the robustness of the aluminum hull, like militaries and governments use.
“XO boats are a result of rethinking boat design. They are versatile boats for the needs of a fisherman, a commuter, a sports boat and a weekender that performs all those tasks. We designed ultramodern styling with sporty, high-performance handling and ride. The result is welded into a seriously fun boat for all activities.”
XO’s aluminium-hulled DFNDR 9
Headquartered in Helsinki, XO builds its DFNDR and EXPLR series of boats in both Finland (Ähtäri) and Poland (Suwalki and Augustow). Last year, it produced about 200 units, a figure it hopes to increase to about 250 this year. Its dealers in Asia include Island Wake in Hong Kong, Princess Yachts Budai International Marina in Taiwan and Yamaha Fujita in Japan.
Both the sub-30ft DFNDR 9 and DFNDR 8 have recently won awards or been nominated in adventure boat and other categories. The newest addition to the fleet is DFNDR A8, the company’s first full-aluminum boat, which debuted at the Cannes Yachting Festival last September.
Talvela describes DFNDR as the brand’s ultimate adventure series, but is also excited about its brand-new flagship EXPLR 44, which he says “has a super-robust aluminum hull and the look of a superyacht, so will fulfil many adventurers’ biggest wishes”.
AROUND FINLAND
Only founded in December 2021, Quarken is one of an emerging number of brands in the sector and again hails from Finland but is notable for not being started by Sakari Mattila!
Designer Osmo Roukala, renowned for his work on Finnmaster, Grandezza and Husky models, has three decades of history in the boating industry. Roukala co-founded Quarken with CEO Antero Sundberg, a former Yamaha executive, and Jussi Hurskainen, cofounder and CEO of Valamis since 2003. The trio have since been joined by three further investors.
The Quarken 27 Cabin helped establish the new brand
Using the English name for Kvarken, separating the Gulf of Bothnia from Bothnia Bay, Quarken has had a fast start. Its 27 in Open, T-Top and Cabin versions quickly earned plaudits and production rose to 60 units last year, with the figure expected to increase to 80 in 2024. Quarken started this year by debuting the 35 Cabin at Boot Dusseldorf.
In contrast to its competitors, Quarken produces its boats in Finland, between the west-coast city of Kokkola – where it has its headquarters – and Savonlinna in the southeast. Furthermore, its designs are also different, being asymmetric as opposed to centre console, while unlike most of its competitors, Quarken boats are fitted with Yamaha engines, due to Sundberg’s background.
Even at this early stage of its growth, it has already secured dealerships in Japan (Haunts Boat & Service), Korea (Mega Boats) and Taiwan (Yacht Pinan). With air-conditioning available and the T-Top editions available with sun shades, Sundberg expects the models to be suitable for Hong Kong and Southeast Asia.
Finnmaster, founded in 1990, is not a pure adventure boat brand, but its Pilot series of cabin boats fits the category. The shipyard entered the Middle East market with the appointment of Viya Marine, which is based at Dubai Creek Marina, and was an exhibitor at this year’s Dubai International Boat Show.
The Pilot 8 is the largest model in Finnmaster’s series of cabin boats
Founded by Niilo Seliö, father of Finnish F1 Powerboat world champion Sami Seliö, Finnmaster is now owned by Terra Patris Group, headed by Jari Löfroos. With about 200 staff, Finnmaster produced in the region of 2,000 boats ranging from 18-33ft in the last fiscal year.
Aside from the Pilot 6, 7 and 8, models include the R5 and R6 bowriders, aluminium Husky models (R5, R6, R7, R8), S5 and S6 console boats, day cruisers (T6, T7, T8, T9) and the F11 weekender. Of the 2,000 built last year, the T8 was the most popular due to its “best-in-class combination of affordability, driveability, comfort and top-notch Finnish finish”, according to Finnmaster.
While Finnmaster has over three decades of history, other leading Nordic motor boat builders have almost six. They include Finland’s own Sargo, the ‘OG’ of adventure boat builders. Built in Kokkola, these boats don’t just look tough – Sargo builds for the police and rescue authorities, and you believe it when you see them.
Founded by Edy Sarin in 1967 as Minor and now headed by his sons, the family-owned company rebranded as Sargo in 2014 and today has just over 70 staff.
The Sargo 45 is the flagship of the Kokkola shipyard founded by Edy Sarin in 1967 and now managed by his sons
The company currently offers the Sargo and Explorer versions of the 28, 31, 33, 36 and flagship 45, all certified CE A (Ocean) or B (Offshore). Sargo produces about 60 units a year, with the two largest models among the most popular, although its presence in Asia is limited to Japanese dealer Okazaki Yachts.
CEO Thomas Sarin says: “Our boats are manufactured in Finland’s west coast where the climate and weather are tough most of the year. Sargo boats are made for owners who love to drive their boat and are very seaworthy because they’re designed to be used in all conditions. In our boats, function comes before form.
“As well as being seaworthy, all Sargo boats are very practical, with the walkaround design and side doors meaning owners can use the boat safely all year round. A large outdoor space and functional cabins offer a wide range of uses. You can go diving on a hot summer day or look at polar bears on acold winter day. Sargo boats work for everything.”
NORDIC NEIGHBOURS
A year after Sargo was founded as Minor, Nimbus was founded in neighbouring Sweden in 1968, while the publicly-listed Nimbus Group has grown to include Alukin, Aquador, Bella, EdgeWater, Falcon, Flipper and Paragon.
Available with inboard or outboard engines, the Nimbus C11 shares the same platform as the T11 and new W11
Headquartered in Gothenburg, the multi-brand company has about 450 employees and is delivering over 400 boats a year from operations in Sweden, Finland, Poland, UK, Norway and the USA. The Nimbus brand of boats is responsible for about 40 per cent of the group’s turnover and its main markets are the US, the Nordic countries and the rest of Europe.
Nimbus created its first walkaround design with the Nova series in 1992 and introduced the stepped hull in 2000. Traditionally a builder of premium day boats, the brand was focused on inboard coupe models until responding to the recent popularity of outboard models by creating a new series that could be categorised as adventure boats.
Today, the brand’s most popular series are the Tender (open), Weekender and Commuter (enclosed), which all share common platforms starting with the 8, 9 and 11. With these models, Nimbus has made steady inroads into Hong Kong and especially Singapore and Thailand since appointing Asiamarine as a dealer in late 2021.
Globally, the outboard option has been selected for about 60-65 per cent of C11 orders, a figure that rises to nearly 95 per cent on the T11. Also featuring an overall length of almost 41ft, the W11 is the newest of the trio, having had its world premiere at last year’s Cannes Yachting Festival.
Nimbus debuted the W11 in 2023
Jonas Gothberg, Nimbus Group’s Commercial Director and Brand Manager at Nimbus Boats, says: “When we did our new T/W/C series, we saw outboard engines were a solid trend, and including these as an option made us much more international. Adventure boating is our heritage and legacy, and this categorisation works for all our models as we have roof racks and the likes. We’re well known in this segment.”
Windy is another historic Nordic brand, founded in Norway in 1966 and now owned by Periscopus. The company has a head office and a production facility for its bigger boats in Västervik, while all sub 40ft models are built in Poland, in Ostroda and Słupsk, with all sites producing a total of about 130 140 boats last year.
Windy boats don’t typically fit the adventure boats mould, but the brand – which doesn’t have any dealers in Asia – looks set to enter the sector this year with the SR38, which sits between the SR28 and SR44 in the Sports line.
Featuring an exterior by superyacht designer Espen Oeino and an interior by Design Unlimited, a longtime Sunseeker collaborator, the SR38 has the option of inboard or outboard engines and features dropdown sides, an aft sunpad that folds up to reveal storage for water toys, and a roof rack for kayaks, surf boards and paddleboards.
The upcoming SR38 is Windy’s response to adventure boats
“SR38 took shape from SR44, but needed to be a little bit smaller. We’d been listening to requests from clients including for fold-down sides and there are a lot of options now such as an opening roof or a hard top with solar panels, storage for boards and bikes, and so on,” says Johanes Hertel, Windy’s International Sales & Marketing Manager.
“With this model, we’re going in that direction like other boat brands. We want to offer that to clients, so they can bring their paddleboards and kayaks, go fishing and do other activities. It’s a model that fits into the category of ‘build your boat’.”
GLOBAL REACH
However, it’s the arrival of two of the world’s two biggest boatbuilding groups in the adventure boats sector that underlines the belief that the genre holds a strong future. Owned by Groupe Beneteau since 2014, Wellcraft has been producing boats since 1955 and is primarily known for offshore fishing boats, building between 500- 1,000 units a year.
However, the American brand switched direction when it debuted the 355 in 2022 and flagship 435 in 2023, as it attacked the adventure boat sector in the same way that fellow Groupe Beneteau builder Jeanneau entered the luxury day boat sector with the DB/43 and DB/37. In fact, it even used the same designers: American Michael Peters for the hull and Italian Camillo Garroni for the concept and styling.
Groupe Beneteau entered the adventure boat sector with Wellcraft’s 355 (above) and flagship 435
Wellcraft describes its enclosed models as ‘commuters’, taking inspiration from the Nordic region but also the US, referencing the 1920s commuters between Connecticut and Manhattan.
“Groupe Beneteau wanted to be a player in this modern version of the commuter,” says Nick Harvey, Wellcraft’s Brand Director.
“In the last 10 years, Wellcraft has built centre-console boats, and we feel certain boaters are now looking for a more protected boat. We wanted to do it our way, the American way, so we called the best running surface designer of today, Michael Peters, to design a superfast boat and asked Garroni Design to do the concept.”
With head offices split between the US and France, and production across both countries as well as Poland, Wellcraft has a strong transatlantic profile and UAE-based SF Yachts as a dealer in the Gulf, but no dealers in Asia, despite Groupe Beneteau’s strong history and presence in the region.
“People are amazed at how powerful, rugged and safe our boats are at sea, responding to the greatest demands and challenges,” Harvey says. “Wellcraft offers an upscale version of the commuter, bringing creature comforts when others are very basic. You pay more but you get a lot more.”
A new Brunswick brand, Navan debuted its first models, the C30 (above) and S30, at the 2023 Cannes Yachting Festival
Meanwhile, Brunswick Group has entered the sector with a new brand, Navan, which debuted the C30 and S30 at last year’s Cannes Yachting Festival. Both models have since exhibited at Boot Dusseldorf and the Miami International Boat Show this year.
The boats are built on the same twin-step hull and are offered with single or twin Mercury Verado outboard engines, with the C30 designed as an enclosed commuter and the S30 focused on the day boat market with an open design with hard top.
“After extensive consumer research and product development, Navan by Quicksilver ushers in the next era of performance and luxury,” said Benoit Verley, President of Venture Boat Group, which includes several other Brunswick brands. “Boating enthusiasts come to see the future of recreational boating, and that is exactly what Navan delivers.”
Adventure boats and brands emerging around the world include British company Arksen, founded by Jasper Smith in 2017, with production in Poland and southern England. The company’s Adventure Series includes the Arksen 28 and 30 models, with the company expecting to build 28 units this year.
The Arksen 30 is part of the British brand’s Adventure Series
“The Arksen 30 stands out as an exceptional all-rounder, offering superb handling and predictability across a diverse range of conditions,” says Smith, who’s also Arksen’s Chairman and CEO. “As well as remarkable fuel efficiency and impressive speed, it’s very versatile, featuring internal dining for up to five people, external dining for six, and from two to six berths.”
The company’s boat offerings extend beyond the Adventure Series. Last year, it kicked off its aluminium-hulled Explorer series with the launch of the first Arksen 85 at Wight Shipyard in East Cowes, while this year it’s kick-starting its Discovery Series of adventure RIBs with the Arksen 8.
“Arksen was established with the purpose of transforming adventurous aspirations into tangible experiences. The Explorer Series empowers individuals to expand the horizons of their exploration, providing access to remote locations. On the other hand, the Adventure Series caters to those sharing similar dreams but with time constraints or a preference for quicker journeys.”
An Arksen 28 in Seattle, Washington
And there are more, whether it’s Dromeas Yachts in Turkey or Protagon Yachts in Greece or electric boat manufacturers entering the sector, such as Denmark’s Rand with its Roamer 29 (‘Ultimate 29ft Adventure Boat’), Sweden’s X Shore with its 26ft Pro or US-owned Navier with its foiling N30.
Within its 10 years, Axopar may have led and labelled the ‘adventure boat’ sector, but its styling and design influences reflect a strong Nordic heritage that dates back decades. And although it remains the genre’s leading light and most recognisable name, it now faces increasing competition from a fast growing range of companies, brands and ranges targeting the sector, a challenge Viitala welcomes.
“We more or less created the genre of adventure boats, but competition is always good because it keeps everyone focused on bettering their own products,” he says.
“To me, the new Axopar 29 is the perfect example of what competition does. And who’s the winner in a competitive landscape? The consumer. If we’re all striving to get better at what we’re doing, the customer always benefits from this ‘battle’.”
www.xoboats.com
www.quarken.com
www.finnmaster.fi
www.sargoboats.fi
www.nimbus.se
www.windyboats.com
www.wellcraft.com
www.navan-boats.com
www.arksen.com
