Shanghai plans to develop yacht industry
Shanghai intends to launch a yacht center project along a section of the Huangpu River located at the North Bund in Hongkou district to develop the yacht industry.
The project will include a yacht R&D center, a yacht club and a sailing school, Zhang Xiping, deputy director of the district government, said on Sunday.
The district set up a bonded warehouse in September as a key effort to support the project.
Hongkou has a 230-meter-long riverside section along the Huangpu River, which could provide mooring for more than 100 yachts.
"A yacht trading center will be also set up in the district," Zhang told a meeting on the new trend of yacht consumption held in Shanghai on Sunday.
Attending the meeting, which was co-sponsored by the China Yacht Club Coordination Alliance and the Shanghai Double Happiness Yacht Co Ltd, were more than 180 experts, scholars, entrepreneurs and government officials, who discussed a new concept of yacht ownership.
They spoke highly of a timeshare model to co-purchase yachts and share their use.
"This is because those who are inclined to purchase yachts are worried about their capability to afford and maintain a yacht with their independent financial strength," said Zheng Weihang, chairman of the alliance.
Many Chinese consumers don't know how to sail, manage or maintain yachts, although they are eager to enjoy them in their leisure time, Zheng said.
"Therefore, the consumption model of co-purchasing a yacht and sharing it is a good solution," he said.
A 48-foot-long deluxe yacht is expected, for example, to cost about 5 million yuan ($813,000), without considering the about 1 million yuan needed to pay the salaries of a skipper and crew member, dock charges and maintenance costs, said Zhou Juan, general manager of the Shanghai Double Happiness Yacht Co Ltd.
"It is quite often the case that a consumer will not risk the pastime, because he feels it impossible to spend the whole year on the yacht," Zhou said.
The company tried a timeshare model by selling shares of two yachts to 20 shareholders, who share ownership and days of use.
Use of the two yachts, managed by professional skippers and sailors, are allocated to users by a service platform provided by the company, she said.
"The practice has proved it is a good solution to both fully use the boat and reduce the financial burden on each purchaser," she added.
Zhou said the service platform can also help yacht owners transfer their shares.
Shanghai, a metropolis that has expended great effort building itself into an economic, financial and shipping center, lags far behind other coastal cities in the country in developing the yacht business, experts said.
Statistics show that the city had only about 50 registered yachts last year, a small portion of the country's more than 1,000.
"The city is studying ways of letting yachts cruise on the Huangpu River by setting up an approved sailing zone. It will be considered a key measure to push forward the local yacht business," said Bi Tao, director of the Shanghai Huangpu maritime affairs bureau.
The district set up a bonded warehouse in September as a key effort to support the project.
Hongkou has a 230-meter-long riverside section along the Huangpu River, which could provide mooring for more than 100 yachts.
"A yacht trading center will be also set up in the district," Zhang told a meeting on the new trend of yacht consumption held in Shanghai on Sunday.
Attending the meeting, which was co-sponsored by the China Yacht Club Coordination Alliance and the Shanghai Double Happiness Yacht Co Ltd, were more than 180 experts, scholars, entrepreneurs and government officials, who discussed a new concept of yacht ownership.
They spoke highly of a timeshare model to co-purchase yachts and share their use.
"This is because those who are inclined to purchase yachts are worried about their capability to afford and maintain a yacht with their independent financial strength," said Zheng Weihang, chairman of the alliance.
Many Chinese consumers don't know how to sail, manage or maintain yachts, although they are eager to enjoy them in their leisure time, Zheng said.
"Therefore, the consumption model of co-purchasing a yacht and sharing it is a good solution," he said.
A 48-foot-long deluxe yacht is expected, for example, to cost about 5 million yuan ($813,000), without considering the about 1 million yuan needed to pay the salaries of a skipper and crew member, dock charges and maintenance costs, said Zhou Juan, general manager of the Shanghai Double Happiness Yacht Co Ltd.
"It is quite often the case that a consumer will not risk the pastime, because he feels it impossible to spend the whole year on the yacht," Zhou said.
The company tried a timeshare model by selling shares of two yachts to 20 shareholders, who share ownership and days of use.
Use of the two yachts, managed by professional skippers and sailors, are allocated to users by a service platform provided by the company, she said.
"The practice has proved it is a good solution to both fully use the boat and reduce the financial burden on each purchaser," she added.
Zhou said the service platform can also help yacht owners transfer their shares.
Shanghai, a metropolis that has expended great effort building itself into an economic, financial and shipping center, lags far behind other coastal cities in the country in developing the yacht business, experts said.
Statistics show that the city had only about 50 registered yachts last year, a small portion of the country's more than 1,000.
"The city is studying ways of letting yachts cruise on the Huangpu River by setting up an approved sailing zone. It will be considered a key measure to push forward the local yacht business," said Bi Tao, director of the Shanghai Huangpu maritime affairs bureau.
