Alberto Galassi has taken the helm at the Ferretti Group, with a focus on promoting the company’s “Made in Italy” credentials and growing its brands globally.
Alberto Galassi took over the helm at Ferretti Group in May 2014, replacing Ferruccio Rossi as Ferretti’s new Chief Executive Officer.
His appointment marks the company’s renewed focus on pushing its “Made in Italy” credentials to grow its brands in world markets, made possible by the sustained investment from the Weichai Group, the majority shareholder in the Ferretti Group since 2012.
Galassi is an attorney specialising in international law and speaks to Ocean about his short and long term goals for the group.
[av_gallery ids=’5193,5194,5195,5196,5192′ style=’big_thumb’ preview_size=’portfolio’ crop_big_preview_thumbnail=’avia-gallery-big-crop-thumb’ thumb_size=’portfolio’ columns=’5′ imagelink=’lightbox’ lazyload=’avia_lazyload’ custom_class=”]Since joining the company, what have been your major initiatives towards developing new international markets?
My goals for Ferretti Group in the medium term could be summarised into three points: simplify the organisation; focus more on sales; and go back to the product, invest into, improving and increasing our product range. The time of finance is over, now it’s the time of industry and our aim will be to bring back our focus on our core business, relying on the widening of our product range with new models able to anticipate the market.
What new products have you been involved in?
Ferretti Group has an ambitious development plan which foresees the launch of new products with a high innovation content. Thanks to its long-standing expertise and the constant support of its main shareholder, Weichai Group, Ferretti Group has the chance to further enhance its product range with new models. The first brand that will experience this new plan is Riva which announced the creation of its new full custom line in steel, which, starting off with a first 50-metre long project, followed by a second 68-metre yacht, will develop further over the next few years to include a range of crafts up to 100-metres in length.
Are you still in a role at Piaggio Aero Industries?
Yes, I’m still Chairman of Piaggio Aerospace, a company which gave me a lot in terms of working experience and which still today I’d like to achieve always greater results.
How has that background informed your approach at Ferretti Group?
My previous experience is for sure very important for my new role but what will make the difference is my love for boating. Now I have the great opportunity to match my professional skills with my passion for the maritime lifestyle. I couldn’t ask for more! An unmatched passion for yachts and yachting lifestyle is what makes Ferretti Group so unique.
Has there been any client feedback about Chinese ownership and investment in what is a proudly Italian company?
Weichai decided to sign this important agreement with Ferretti Group because we are an example of Made-in-Italy production all around the world. Therefore clients will always rely on the same top-level quality. Yacht Owners are pursuing excellence and Ferretti Group, with a wide range of extraordinary brands, is totally able to satisfy and positively surprise them, which is the company’s main goal.
Today Ferretti Group, thanks to Weichai’s financial support, can keep on putting all the necessary efforts to improve its products with a painstaking care for details to keep on doing what its brands have done for years better than anyone: to design, produce and sell the most beautiful boats of the world.
Where are you focused on increasing your presence in emerging markets – Asia, South America etc?
In general, Ferretti Group is bringing on its global growth, intercepting new demand coming from East Europe, Russia, Turkey, and also Africa. Moreover, the Group is focused on a further growth in the Asia Pacific area, which has become central in the strategy of our commercial expansion. Thanks to their peculiar deep nautical culture, America and Europe still continue to represent very important markets for the Group.
Therefore we hope that European countries can restart growing, while the Americas is still an attractive market, with a steadily growing demand, even if with differences between the North-American market, more constant but less dynamic, and the Centre-South one, registering an exponential growth in richness in some areas.
What are the hallmarks of the Ferretti Group and its brands?
Over the years, the Group has built a brand value which is easily recognised on the international market, through a careful, coherent placement of its brand portfolio and their yachts. Indeed, the Ferretti Group portfolio comprises a range of internationally prestigious brands (Ferretti, Pershing, Itama, Bertram, Riva, Mochi Craft and CRN) distinguished by their tradition and exclusiveness which in the luxury nautical world symbolise renowned ‘Made-in-Italy’ quality.
Today the Group can offer a vast range of boats for almost all tastes, including fly bridges, runabouts, opens, coupés, lobster boats, fisherman boats and maxi and mega-yachts.
What innovations or major launches can we expect in 2015?
In August Weichai Group carried out an 80 million euro capital increase in favour of Ferretti Group. Some 50 million euros will be invested as part of a new, three-year industrial plan focused on the rollout of new models. As anticipated, the very next launch will be a new fully custom line Riva in steel of almost 50-metres that will be built in our plant in Ancona.
The new model will preserve the unique style typical of all Riva yachts while offering the huge and comfortable spaces of a mega yacht conceived for long, pleasant cruises.
Article by Ocean Magazine