The 54th edition of the Southampton International Boat Show, scheduled to run Sept. 15-24, is shaping up for a return to normalcy following several years of challenges related to the pandemic in 2020 and 2021, and the national day of mourning that closed the show in 2022 after the death of Queen Elizabeth II. “We have over 600 exhibiting stands and berths right now, which is actually stronger than last year,” Lesley Robinson, CEO of British Marine, which organizes the Southampton boat show, told Soundings Trade Only in late July. “It is by far the U.K.’s biggest boating festival. We do have the biggest purpose-built show marina in Europe that we build every year.”
Attendance in 2022 was 83,000, she says, a dip from the prepandemic norm of more than 100,000 showgoers. Heading into early August, projected attendance for this autumn was tracking ahead of 2022.
Last year saw 167 U.K.-debut and other new launches at the show. Robinson says it was too soon to tell how many builders would have debuts this year, but she was pleased to see models such as the Dufour 41 and Dufour 37 on that list, along with the Princess S72, Arcona 50, Candela C-8 and Fairline Squadron 58.
Princess Yachts, which is based in Plymouth, U.K., is expected to have one of the largest displays. In addition to the new S72 that made its world debut earlier this year in Düsseldorf, the builder is scheduled to showcase the flybridge models F65, F50 and F45; the V40 and V50; and the builder’s second S-Class model, the S62.
“We are delighted to have such a strong lineup once again at the Southampton Boat Show, especially the new S72, which will be making her show debut,” Princess marketing director Simon Clare says. “We know this exciting addition to our S Class range will be a significant draw at the show for both our U.K. and international clients alike.”
Robinson says the Southampton show is also expecting the return of more RIB builders this year. Numerous RIB makers have had manufacturing challenges since the war began in Ukraine, where well-known companies such as BRIG have endured bombing by Russian forces, but “manufacturers have made other arrangements now, so we’re seeing those boats coming in,” she says.
RIB manufacturers expected to have displays at the Southampton show this year include U.K.-based Cobra RIBs, Ribeye and Williams Jet Tenders; Italy’s Joker Boat and Zar Formenti; U.S.-based Gemini Marine, Highfield Boats and Ribcraft; and Ukraine-based Grand Boats.
Also returning this year will be the Quayside Club VIP Experience that debuted in 2022, but with some changes that last year’s participants requested. “We’ve listened to feedback and made some tweaks,” Robinson says.
For starters, instead of having three pricing tiers, the VIP experience will be offered at one price point of about $200. “You get exclusive access to the waterfront lounge overlooking the Sunseekers and so forth, complimentary drinks, a premium buffet lunch, and then you can upgrade for VIP parking right next to the Quayside, and we can put you out on some special boats,” she says. “We have a cruise on a 47-meter [154-foot] tall ship as the sun goes down with a glass of sparkling.”
Also new this year will be a section of the Southampton show called Watersports Lake, Robinson says. “This is a large lake-pool where visitors can try canoeing, paddleboarding, kayaking, model boating, that sort of thing,” she says. “We wanted to give people even more opportunity to get out on the water.”
And, she says, show organizers are making an additional effort to bring in more general-event experiences, such as a shipyard food court and music stage. The idea is to encourage participation in the show among all kinds of people who may not be boaters today but could become boaters tomorrow if they can be enticed to attend the show and learn more about the sport.
“We’ve dedicated an area of the show to a festival-feel vibe with a DJ and street food stalls,” Robinson says. “There’s a lineup of music acts that we’ll have on in the afternoon and into the early evening.”
Similarly, the show is bringing back a component in the skies for the first time in about seven years, Robinson says. The Royal Air Force’s aerobatic team, the Red Arrows, will make an appearance, along with Hurricane and Spitfire planes from World War II. “It attracts a slightly different kind of audience,” she says. “We love people who come to look at the boats and the equipment, but the newer audience is more family-oriented, and they’re coming for a new experience, and we want that, as well.”
The show charity this year is the local Seagrass Restoration Project, which works to repair and restore damaged seagrass as a way to capture carbon and mitigate climate change. There also will be a charity swim around the marina before the show starts. Robinson says she expects about 150 swimmers to participate, almost double the 80 who signed up for last year’s swim.
And when the day’s activities are done, the show is bringing back the Guinness Bar in the heart of Mayflower Park. It’s a spot where attendees can relax with a pint or a soft drink, as well as a snack. “It’s all black and white with all the branding, and this year, we’ve even got one of those machines where you can print your face on the froth of the pint,” she says. “Just for a bit of fun.”
This article was originally published in the September 2023 issue.
