Sad news - Palmer Johnson Yachts in Sturgeon Bay to close

While there are always some builds missing from their report as they are dependent on what's reported to them (and a couple of builders occasionally have been known to puff up their numbers), they do give an excellent overview of what is going on in the industry.

Very sad and surprised to see. I have done a number of aerial photo shoots of their yachts and it was my favorite type of photography. Not being able to photograph these yachts any longer is minimal compared to the people losing their jobs etc.

Below is a link if you would like to see the photos.

http://www.brianholberg.com/p214496410

What, if anything, will PJ do in Georgia?

I doubt that ...

All the news releases state that they have signed for a location there.

I have not seen these news releases. Possibly the good name Palmer Johnson, and little else, has been acquired.

Or even just Palmer Johnson.

They've purchased a yard. They were already building the sports versions in Europe, in Norway actually.

Approx 5 yrs ago they were also building a 81m Yacht called PJ801 at a yard in Norway that might still be looking for an Owner.

I said building....not selling...lol. Well, the one there now they say they're going to move to the Netherlands. Must not be any great hurry on it either.

Who knows what they're really going to do. My prediction is somewhere between very little and nothing. It doesn't matter what country your facility is in if you have no orders. It becomes "where are we not going to build boats now?"

I still think "moving to the Netherlands" contains a lot of smoke. This in the name of a smooth transition of whatever the deal really is. Like preserving the good name PJ; maybe as a carbon line or sport yacht line or ?

Who is moving? Three or four senior people and just for a while.


What machinery and materials would be moved. Close to zip? What else? I'm back to the name, what ever its value, what little production in process and maybe some intellectual property. Will Timur Mohammed continue as owner and partner up with someone bringing new money. We will see.

Oh the things men do to try to get their boats built. And the shenanigans pulled by bankrupt companies. The last two buyers purchased as they had boats built. I guess that plan wouldn't work this time since there was no one with a boat being built.

I think in the old article the important piece referred to was the name.

I think there may be reasons beyond the ordinary for closing the Sturgeon Bay facility completely, but we have no way to know. I know the talk out of PJ less than a year ago about their order book didn't appear to turn out to be true, nor do I believe the optimistic statements about orders on the sports series in the Netherlands. I thought the one under construction in Norway had been on hold a long time. Their most recent reporting to the Superyachts on Order listing showed it on hold but showed four orders for boats in the US. What happened to those?

If there were overfunded pension funds then they would be recoverable by PJ. I really doubt there were any greatly overfunded but let me give one scenario. Funding requirements are based on assumptions of employees becoming vested. If they're no longer employed that path to vesting ends.

The entire buying the Georgia facility and buying the name for $1 million right before the bankruptcy left a sour taste in my mouth as it did the court at that time. They rescinded the sale of the name.

Time will tell what happens. All I know is I'm not making a down payment and ordering a PJ.

For a bit of ancient history, my ex built a PJ76 ketch back in the early eighties (we got married while it was under construction.) Mike Sr. was having a rough time in his private life and the 3 boats under construction suffered for it. Our boat, at a cost of $1m, had numerous unresolvable problems. After winning a lawsuit and subsequent $300,000 judgement, we were offered the company. My nay vote won and after one year of boat problems, exorbitant expenses, and disappointments, we sold. On the new owner's maiden voyage out of NY, she sank. Maybe this is one that should have sank at launching. I know the disappointment of custom building and having dreams turn into nightmares. PJ was my first yacht gone wrong experience.

Judy