SNAPSHOT

The Manager: Dimitar Vlaskovski
The job: Manager at Yachting BG, the official representative in Bulgaria of yacht manufacturers Azimut, Atlantis, Bavaria, Chaparral and Frauscher.
The company:  Established three years ago, today Yachting BG is among the leaders in the Bulgarian market. The company, owned by Momchil Nikolov and Petko Bachiiski, opened its showroom in Bourgas on the Black Sea this May. Yachting BG offers a full range of services related to purchasing and servicing yachts in Bulgaria.

Yachting BG, owned by Momchil Nikolov and Petko Bachiiski, is one of the leaders in the yacht market in Bulgaria, which became so fashionable over the summer. Almost out of nowhere the media in Bulgaria started publishing stories this summer about the high interest shown by Bulgarians for brand-new yachts. Headlines such as “1000 per cent market growth” surprised many, not to mention the fact there was such a “luxury” market in Bulgaria.

“Indeed such headlines caused a lot of sensation this summer,” Vlaskovski says, smiling. “To some extent they are true because if in 2006 you had one boat that was sold and in 2007 you have sold 10 boats, you can rightfully say that you have a 1000 per cent growth,” he says, smiling again.

However, if one distance himself from those eye-catching headlines, Vlaskovski has some real facts to share about the yacht market in Bulgaria. “Indeed the year 2007 marked the boom of the market, don’t get me wrong. The market already existed, it was just the interest of the clients that made the boom happen. This is an interest that was provoked by companies such as Yachting BG and the year 2007 was the moment when clients started to realise what it means to have a boat.”

The story of Yachting BG serves as an example of how the market had developed. The company was established three years ago with the prime focus of selling motorised yachts in Bulgaria. It is the official representative of some of the most famous world manufacturers of such boats: Azimut, Atlantis, Bavaria, Chaparral and Frauscher. “We have tried to cover the entire segment of the market, offering boats for everyone, from the upper class of Azimut to the less expensive Chaparral models.” Less expensive in this case means boats at prices starting from 23 000 euro.

The real start for Yachting BG was the opening of its showroom, which took place this May in Bourgas on the Black Sea and of which Vlaskovski is very proud. “I am sure that everybody who has travelled to Bourgas has seen it when entering the town from Sofia.”

Orientated to the sea, the company has offices in Varna and Sofia as well. “It was a good summer for us, although it was very busy and it took us great effort to cope with the clients’ interest and personal demands. Frankly, we simply did not expect such a high interest.”

The company has managed to sell more than 50 boats this summer, which is a considerable success bearing in mind that it is an expensive market, Vlaskovski says. “If you visit our website you will see that almost all the boats advertised there have already been sold, and this is not a marketing ploy,” he smiles again.

“You must know that it takes between six and eight months for a boat to be delivered and in some cases it takes more than one year.” So plan well, if you want to sail on the open sea next year. “Normally people start thinking about owning a boat in early spring, which is logical. This is when we usually sell yachts from the lower classes. For the bigger luxury models people usually order in the winter months. We rarely have boats in stock because every customer has his own preferences and wants the boat to be unique.”

Just three years ago, Vlaskovski says, the companies selling yachts in Bulgaria could be counted on the fingers of one hand. “This has changed today and I expect the competition to grow stronger. What I am observing is that some people are counting on fast profits by selling one or three boats, which must seems easy enough to them. For me it is not enough just to sell the boat to the customer. The after service is equally, if not more important, and this is what makes us one of the leaders on the market.” Indeed selling yachts is just a part of what Yachting BG does.

Transport of yachts to marinas and stock ground, accommodation berth for winter season, guarantee and out of guarantee maintenance, distribution and communication services, reservation of moorage at seaports, annual season maintenance, breakdown service, yacht charter, the list is almost never-ending.

“We are talking about people who in most cases are business people who want to go out on the sea for a weekend and not to worry about anything else but their spare time.” Such people usually lack very thorough knowledge of how to operate a 30m yacht for example. “We provide the service called ‘renting a crew’, in most cases this means a captain that operates the boat. Very seldom a boat will need a crew of two (a captain and a technician).”

Owning a yacht is not a cheap exercise, Vlaskovski agrees. So with the record-high sales this summer some might say that the market in Bulgaria has reached its limit.

“I know that there are not many rich people in Bulgaria yet, but I think there is still a strong potential in the market and expect that next year the growth will continue. Of course I expect that after two or three years things will calm down but with the numbers of orders we have things are looking good in short term.”

For Vlaskovski it is all up to the clients’ perceptions. “A year ago the idea of having a yacht in Bulgaria seemed rather unreal and distant. This year people saw that this is something real and can be done.”

Sailing, one might say, is a male thing and Vlaskovski agrees to some extent. “It is true that it is the man who buys a yacht but it is always the woman who has the final word. Whenever there is some kind of doubt about a model, it is always the woman who makes the choice,” he says with his usual, knowing smile.

The profile of Yachting BG’s clients in most cases is a businessman who knows nothing about boats. “We try to educate our clients over the course of several meeting. From the moment he has decided that he wants a boat things start going very easily. The client is hooked, in a way,” Vlaskovski says. “Having a yacht is kind of an addiction, in a positive way. It completely absorbs you and you want to learn more and more about it.”

Vlaskovski gives his own experience as an example. Born in Lovech, central Bulgaria, he had little experience with the sea. “I graduated from the DA Tsenov Academy of Economics in Svishtov and at the beginning of my professional career I was part of the official representative of Mercedes-Benz for Bulgaria. It was by accident that I joined Yachting BG this February and since then I’ve become so involved in yachts and the sea that I can no longer imagine doing anything else.”

He has been out on the sea several times on a yacht. “Driving a motor yacht is not something that is difficult in itself but frankly having the skills to actually guide it and navigate it in the harbours is something else,” he smiles. “The sea is not to be underestimated.”

Unlike motor vehicles, yachts do not need roads, but they definitely need somewhere to “park”.

“It is true that the development of sea infrastructure is lagging behind the development of the market. Bulgaria needs to develop its Black Sea ports so that the country can become part of the international yacht tours. The Mediterranean is jammed with ports and boats and people are looking for new destinations and Bulgaria could become one.” At present the best places to visit with a yacht in Bulgaria are the marinas of Sozopol, Nessebar, Sveti Vlas, Zlatni Pyasutsi (Golden Sands) and Balchik. “Balchik will become one of the most popular places for people with yachts. Fortunately there are plans for further development in this area so I think things will change in a positive way.”

“It all depends on the maintenance,” Vlaskovski says when asked whether yachts are a good investment. “You are not buying a car that, after five years, will be worth half the original price, or less. If it is maintained well the price of a yacht will remain unchanged through the years. The only risk for the client when buying a boat is that he will invest quite a lot of money in it,” he smiles. “This is the only risk. After that we take care of everything else: insurance company, registration than in some cases might take several months depending on the size of the yacht.”

Winter in Bulgaria is tougher than in Italy or southern France. “What we offer is wrapping the boats for the winter and storing them in dry docks. In fact we are representatives of a company that deals exactly with this kind of services and some of the wrapped boats can be seen in Sozopol, Varna or Zlatni Pyasutsi.”

Yachting BG will sell you brand new boats that come with a brand new price. “I know that the second-hand market will continue to exists as it is with motor vehicles.” Turkey and Greece have always been the leaders in this market. “However in this case you will get a boat of which you will have to take care yourself, which takes a lot of resources.”

The hit of the season this year were small motor boats. “We sell mainly to Bulgarians with a few exceptions from Russia.” Because of the big money involved in the purchase of yachts, Yachting BG has been selling to companies rather than individuals, using leasing services.

“As distributors we cannot affect the prices of the yachts we are selling. Every manufacturer has a catalogue with its price. Our profit comes from the agreements and relations we have with manufacturers.”

With what happened in Genoa this October, it seems that Yachting BG will continue to enjoy its good relations with manufacturers. At the Yacht-Fierra yacht exhibition the Bulgarian dealer of Atlantis received two awards: first place for progressive development and for best selling and first place for selling high-category Atlantis yachts over the year.

Yachting BG has the rights to sell Azimut and Chaparral in Romania as well, but the company’s plans for the present are concentrated on Bulgaria. “It is simply extremely difficult to enter a new market because it takes a lot of resources, both financial and personal. It is not an easy thing to find a qualified working force in Bulgaria although we provide training and additional qualification especially for our technical staff who we are trained by the manufacturers.” For Vlaskovski the market in Bulgaria is still developing and thereis still lots to be done. “That is why I see myself working for Yachting BG because it is a niche that provides plenty of opportunities.”