Escapade is the last sailboat Fitzroy Yachts

June 28, 20183min read

In early February 2014, a new Zealand company, Fitzroy Yachts, specializing in the construction of sailing super yachts, has announced that, in view of financial insolvency, will soon be forced to cease to exist. Speaking at a specially convened press conference, the Executive Director of Fitzroy Yachts Rodney Martin (Rodney Martin) promised that the company will fulfill all its contractual obligations and, in particular, will complete in time the construction of a 37.5-foot sloop FY17 project, which will be her last.

Martin announced that with the completion of work on the sailboat Builder will be forced to begin the process of elimination. The first step is the reduction of total staff, the number of which is about 120 employees. The Executive Director described this situation as the end of an era for the company that began its journey 15 years ago and managed during this period to gain a proper reputation. He assured that the highest priority at this time for the leadership of Fitzroy Yachts will be every assistance in the employment of its former employees.

The reasons that led such famous yacht brand to decay, was called the financial crisis of 2008 and the fall in the NZ dollar, caused irreparable damage and still have a significant impact on the new Zealand market. Martin acknowledged that, despite the huge efforts over the last few years Fitzroy Yachts has not received a sufficient number of orders; a rare large-scale projects – such as a sloop FY17 – only for a short time was able to ensure normal functioning.

The next day after the press conference about the situation around the shipyard said all the Newspapers and TV channels of New Zealand. Special attention was paid to created on the facebook page “Supporting Fitzroy Yachts workers”. The author – Louise Godfrey, a mother of two children, whose husband Calvin worked as a fitter-welder at Fitzroy Yachts and received the status of unemployed. Page United the 120 shipyard workers, their families and other caring people.

Later, with the support of new Zealand’s news channel OneNews was created a special website www.weneedwork.co.nz where free was posted information about each employee of the number “one hundred and twenty,” his experience and contacts. This level of attention for a couple of months, new jobs have found 75 people. 45 – professional welders, engineers, artists and designers – keep looking.

In such a tense situation on the night of April 12, 2014 at the shipyard Fitzroy Yachts has come, the deadline is the last sailing yacht was finished. Under the photograph enclosure a 37.5-foot sloop, leaving your hangar working on his page in facebook Louise Godfrey left a comment: “Here she comes… the final journey from Fitzroy Yachts…”. For the first time employees of Fitzroy Yachts accompanied his creation with such a complicated mixed feeling of joy and pride – for having finished another amazing and technologically complex project, which received a beautiful name “Escapade” (“Gamble”), an immense sadness because along with the sloop the walls of Fitzroy Yachts leaving the team with an amazing 15-year history.

Developer latest sailboat Fitzroy Yachts has become known for the new Zealand team of Dubois Naval Architects, who commented on the launch of the vessel: “…With great sadness, we launched a 37-foot sailing yacht Escapade – ninth and last of a number designed by Dubois for this talented shipyard”.

“Escapade” has a length of 37.5 meters LOA, maximum width of 8.49 meters and draft when fully loaded of 4 meters. Displacement of the vessel is 180 000 kg mast Height equal to 50.5 meters from the waterline. On Board the yacht and features a master cabin and 3 guest cabins – 8 berths for passengers. The crew is 3 people, located in three cabins, including a separate cabin for the captain. The author of the interior to “Escapade” was organized by Design Unlimited.

On 13 April, the sloop was taken in the port of Taranaki, where he was greeted by the owner, a Swiss businessman Christophe Albin (Albin Christophe). In the near future “Escapade” is awaiting the installation of the mast and sailing arms, and then the last sailboat Fitzroy Yachts will pass sea trials and begin their own story.

Best Fitzroy Yachts sailboats: