Riviera Australia goes under

Mustang Marine makes offer to buy Riviera

By IBI Magazine

According to local news reports, Mustang Marine has offered to buy the Riviera Group. Receivers were called in to manage Riviera on May 8, 2009.

According to goldcoast.co.au, Mustang is thought to be one of two bidders for Riviera's assets. Riviera is Australia's largest boat manufacturer, employing more than 500 people. The news site said that its debts amount to about AUS$320m.

"Our bank (the Standard of Asia) has registered interest in Riviera,'' Mustang CEO Chris Heaton told the website. "Losing your major competitor is never a good thing and losing the largest manufacturer in Australia is never a good thing. We want to be involved in the sale process so that the best comes out of the marine industry because it's pretty tough times out there at the moment."

Mustang was acquired by the Hong Kong-based Standard Bank of Asia at the end of 2007 after the National Australia Bank called in receivers. He said the Standard of Asia Bank was very supportive of the Gold Coast boat manufacturing industry. "They are knowledgeable about manufacturing and they do see opportunities for further expansion into the industry in Australia,'' he said.

Heaton said that Mustang has continued to rebuild its brand and dealer network. "We've had a tough 18 months, as it has been for the whole industry and we are certainly not hiding behind that. However, there has been incremental progress each month to the point that since November we have increased our staff levels by 30 per cent,'' said Heaton.

Heaton said even if the group was successful in buying Riviera, Mustang would still focus on entry level boats. Mustang is launching four boats from 28 to 50 feet at the Sanctuary Cove International Boat Show.

(21 May 2009)

http://www.goldcoast.com.au/article/2009/05/25/81921_gold-coast-news.html

Amazing what can happen even though the first day of the show was cancelled due to terrible weather, receivers are stripping the company and the economy is completely rooted.

Not that the $17m of sales or the fact that the 5800SY is now sold out until July 2010 will be of any consolation to the 30% of staff that were made redundant today!

Strange times indeed

hi all

Blarp, i would say (i could be wrong) that those customers have been lining up since day dot of the boat getting announced that it will be a new line. then (so i have been told) Riv tell the customer to come into the show and sign there (makes Riv look like there selling boats, and theres no better place then at the boatshow).

and some back door news, Riv paid for the docks (best location at the show) and all advertising etc (when they clearly knew there going down the drain), but have not paid the creditors. i have a connection with the winch company that supply Riv, there not happy with the figure they may not get back.

far

Who knows with all the smoke and mirrors. But as I am currently doing a refit in the yard next door I have notoced that the Riviera carpark has been full the last couple of days and it has not been so for the last 2 months.

I was on the boat every day of the show. I know for a fact that 5 of the 9 sales so far were new to the boat at the show because I personally gave them the cold tour and introduced them to the product. All of them had been looking at other boats of this size at the show that day.
However 4 clients already had deposits and were quite rightly waiting to see the boat before commiting.
So you are half right

Many subcontractors have been stuffed and it is a terrible situation for them and their families, the whole thing is just awful, on a global scale.

The company had a month long (April) shutdown of its production line to clear stock.
Those workers are now back at work.

Another news of Riviera:

Riviera to manufacture new range in Taiwan eek: )

What a difference a year makes! In May last year, the then Riviera CEO Wes Moxey stated that the company was 'not considering and would never consider manufacturing offshore'. A few days ago at Sanctuary Cove Boat Show, Australia's largest luxury boat builder, Riviera, now in receivership, announced a completely new range of massive boats which are to be built by a specialist yard in Taiwan under the name 'Riviera Motor Yachts'.

Ranging in size from 73 to 85 feet, the new models will be the epitome of luxury for a few discerning owners.

Riviera 73, 78 and 85 Motor Yachts extend the range of options for dedicated Riviera owners close to superyacht dimensions.

The new range will be built at a specialist yard in Taiwan under strict Riviera supervision. The yard's senior management, led by a naval architect, each has more than 25 years of experience in boat building. They have previously worked with such names as Marlow, Hargrave and Horizon Yachts and currently produce the range of New Ocean Yachts.

http://www.marinebusinessnews.com/index.cfm?nid=57036

Just my 2 cents worth is nothing but praise for the brand.
Have a few friends with new model 33's and a few with the
older Mariner 34 who have had no problems.

Have spent many hours on them including ocean trips to
Sydney from Lake macquarie.
Have never heard the owners complaining about
performance reliability or quality.

For many years attending the Sydney boat show as a
looker, Riviera was the only big brand that was happy to
have anyone enter there boats.
There wharf space was surrounded by neat lines of shoes
while the public was on board looking.
With the other imported brands they had there little signs
stating "by appointment only"

You certainly felt welcome with them and this was one
factor a friend bought a Riv 33 about 2 years ago.
He inquired about an appointment to look over another
brand and was told to come back tomorrow.
This might be one small reason they have done well here.

Taiwan gulped up an Australian legend...

Riviera was no Viking or Burger in the first place... more like a glorified Carver, so it's not that big of a loss in the annals of yachting history...

Hi,

All those brands are similar from what I see so maybe all their factories should relocate.

Who cares about jobs anyways...?

Name one Oriental motoryacht builder that builds with as much quality as Burger... (See: resale value)

Now, name one Oriental boat builder that has a SF in production that is as fast, sturdy, and popular as Viking.

You must think quality plays no part in boat building...

Hi,

Luxury Boat Building in Asia is much te same as Cars were years ago, they are on a learning curve that is going to result in many mass production units entering established markets and the local players will either have to change or disappear- Look at you Car Industry.

I am not sure that the Q word can really be used with the B or V Brand unless pre fixed with the word Poor

Local players will have to go cheaper or disappear is what your saying. My earlier point was that Asian boats are nowhere near the current quality of top domestic builders, and you proved my point for me.

There musn't have been a vibrant market for heavy hulled Sportfish production in Australia, as the light hulled Riviera couldn't even count on the strength of its own domestic market. It seems Americans obviously didn't like the lightweight boats that much either.

Here in the US, the people who buy new Hargrave, Broward, and Burger yachts wouldn't care if the Chinese came out with something similar for a couple mil cheaper. They will always pay the couple mil extra for a custom, overbuilt boat, rather than the faux luxury that Oriental manufacturers advertise because they will always be able to afford it. Bottom line, you will never get the same quality out of Asia as you do right now in our premium yards.

This exert is so loaded with misinformation that I must respond...

1. Hargrave's are built in Kaohsiung, Taiwan.

2. Buyers will NOT pay more for a Broward. That theory was put to the test and it failed.

Really? Have you ever been onboard a Horizon?

That was surely said by those in the Automotive and Consumer Electronics Industry in the USA a few years ago as well.

I do not understand how a US Domestic operation can ever hope to compete labour and other cost wise with an operation where the wages are counted in cents per hour not dollars and the cost of environmental/retirement/pensions/health care does not need to be considered as there isn't any.

Asian final product it is, but not necessarily due to Asian design, engineering and project management. A lot of Asian product is a summation of some fierce worldwide talent. Asian product at its best is world class, and getting better every year. Even after you take universal materials and equipment, established Euro / US designers, established Euro / US naval architects, established Euro / US marine engineers and project management etc out of the Asian product equation, you are still left with a highly skilled and lowly paid workforce, within an ever improving infrastructure. Their yacht building industry is only a track record and established re-sale reputation away from being a major global player. Some would say it already is, albeit fronted by some surprising 'names'.

Carl, forget the PNW, at this rate YF may need a satellite office in Taiwan.

Burger, for example, does not expand its production because it enjoys a healthy, multi-year backlog of orders. This allows it to focus on quality and the ability to charge clients premium. Apparently this premium does not cut down on its number of customers. It is hard to spot a new Burger less than 120' nowadays.

I don't care about what the latest fad with Horizon may be, or what the nouveau riche bandwagon is nowadays. Old money has always been attracted to boats like Burger, Broward, Hatteras, Crescent/Queenship etc. But what do I know? I'm just a boater who sees things...

I am what you might call a 'serious ameteur' in maritime history. One of the most annoying things I see in the boating industry is the never ending pursuit of bandwagons by boatmakers. They do this to make a quick buck. Things like 'bubble bows', low freeboards, large hull windows, lack of a decent rub rail, and 'underbuilding' drive me crazy.

Hi,

Burger should have a few letters added to their name to make it Burglar which if I wasn't bound by a confidentiality agreement I would be happy to expand upon.

Actually, Burger tried to expand production under the David Ross regime. This was the purpose of the new infrastructure he built during the run-up years, only to face the same challenges of the past... cash.

Actually, it's NEW money that's been funding Burger, especially as the dollar became weaker. Or should I say... the ruble became stronger. And while old money may be steeped in tradition, none of them were plunking down the kid's inheritance on a repeat Broward. That was a gross miscalculation.

I'll pass on the temptation to exploit your serious amateur status, but the attributes that drive you crazy, are the same elements that help drive sales. Consumers don't always know what's best, but they know what they want. Any builder NOT delivering the same, gets categorized as lame.

And what the hell is a 'bubble bow'?