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With a fortune made in Chinese finance, Li Wang already has six cars, including a Bentley and a Porsche, and now has his eye on his next multimillionaires' toy: a boat. And not just any boat.
"I know only a little about yachts at the moment," says the chubby 27-year-old, strolling in golden sunglasses among the sailboats, catamarans and motor cruisers lining the jetties at a boat show in Dalian, Liaoning.
"It's not a big deal. Buying a yacht is on my schedule."
Li epitomises the Chinese buyers being targeted by the world's yacht builders, whose vessels can cost as much as US$100 million before taxes.
Despite its long coastline and a population of 1.35 billion - including thousands of multimillionaires - the mainland has only about 3,000 pleasure boats, and yachting remains a niche pastime.
By contrast, the US is said to have one watercraft, although small boats are included, for every 15 inhabitants.
Traugott Kaminski, head of China operations for Italian yacht-maker Sanlorenzo, brought two yachts to the mainland in 2003. "There were no regulations, no port, no yachting culture," he says. Even now the firm still has to "educate" first-time buyers.
But others are "sophisticated customers who know what they want".
"Think about the car industry 10 or 15 years ago. Nobody expected China would become the biggest market worldwide, and the same thing will happen to the yachting industry," Kaminski says.
In another parallel with the global vehicle business, two major European yacht builders - Sunseeker of Britain and Italy's Ferretti - have been bought by Chinese firms in recent years: Wanda, a property and entertainment conglomerate, took over Sunseeker last year, and Ferretti went to Shandong Heavy Industry Group, a state-controlled enterprise, in 2012.
Several thousand visitors attended the event in Dalian, on the shores of the East China Sea, and despite the constraints of 43 per cent import taxes, limits on infrastructure and bitter northern winters, organisers say "on-site sales occurred".
Chinese buyers have different requirements to Westerners, says Kaminski.
"In Europe you will use the boat for a two- or three-week cruise," he says. "In China, you are using it for a day cruise, so you don't need so many cabins. You need a big spa; you need entertainment space."
In the West, the captain and crew are often seen as part of the family. Not so in China, where the wheelhouse and kitchen need to be separate. Chinese clients also want a round table to eat at, a karaoke machine, a mahjong table and more shade.
There are other contrasts.
"The market is really working in reverse," says Paul Blanc, Asia-Pacific director for boat builder Jeanneau, which is targeting the mainland's upper-middle class, with boats from five to 25 metres, starting from 1.5 million yuan (HK$1.9 million).
Almost all of the superyachts are kept in private clubs, where memberships cost from 700,000 yuan to one million yuan.
It's these customers Jona Kan, sales director for Silver Yachts, wants. His company specialises in aluminium-hulled vessels at least 70 metres long.
His firm has only ever sold three ships - two to Middle Eastern buyers and one in the US - and now he is looking for an Asian customer.
"Our yachts will be bought by modern Chinese who have already been to all the best hotels in the world," he says. "Now they want something special to go to places where nobody has been, and with their own accommodation."
Agence France-Presse


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LIFE

Superyachts the latest prestige purchase for China's mega-rich

Li Wang, who already owns six cars including a Bentley and a Porsche, is now in the market for a luxury yacht. Photo: AFP

Lifestyle

Travel & Leisure

With a fortune made in Chinese finance, Li Wang already has six cars, including a Bentley and a Porsche, and now has his eye on his next multimillionaires' toy: a boat. And not just any boat.
