Peter Eastman, the owner of Eastman Boats and Howard Boats, acquired Alerion Yachts, according to Scuttlebutt News. Terms were not disclosed.
Eastman bought the Alerion brand, which builds sailboats from 20 to 33 feet, from Peter Johnstone.
“I have loved Alerion Yachts since their inception in 1986,” Eastman told Scuttlebutt. “It is the pre-eminent daysailer brand worldwide. At the October U.S. Sailboat Show in Annapolis, I could not take my eyes off of the most recent models.” Eastman said he plans to introduce new models and grow the size range.
“Peter Eastman has a 20-plus-year track record of producing the beautiful Howard Boats sailboat range on Cape Cod,” Johnstone said. “I have known Peter since we were rivals in prep school sailing in the early 1980s. Later we were college sailing teammates. We became lifelong friends.”
Johnstone said Eastman expressed interest in Alerion after he recently accepted the chief executive position at MJM Yachts.
“Alerion deserves the full-time attention of an industry pro, so I agreed to sell Alerion to Peter,” Johnstone said. “Alerion will always be a favorite brand of mine. I’ve been privileged to play a role in Alerion’s turnaround and subsequent growth in the past two years. Peter and Alerion will thrive together. I plan to buy a new boat from them in the coming year.”
Eastman said the quality of the latest Alerions is the best he has seen. “We will continue with the current builder Randy Borges,” he said. “His quality is unmatched under 42 feet. The assembled build team has 15 to 20 years of experience with Alerion and represents the best of American boatbuilding talent. I will be further investing in Alerion’s future.”
Alerion plans to display at the Newport International Boat Show and the U.S. Sailboat Show in 2020.
