Tenants, not owners

“Personally, I don’t like the word ‘owner’ and prefer the French word armateur or the old word ‘tenant’, especially in reference to the classics,” says Gérard Naigeon, the French owner of the 32m sailing yacht Marama when we speak to him. Gérard has been a tenant of three superyachts over the years: co-owner of the 31m 1904 yawl-turned-gaff cutter, Moonbeam of Fife, co-owner of the 1914 Marconi cutter Moonbeam VI and now sole armateur of Marama.

Marama marks a radical departure from his first two perfectly restored classics. Her aluminium hull was from the abandoned sister ship of Apache and Gérard worked with naval architect Dominique Presles to industriously take the unfinished hull and transform it into a seaworthy racer. Launched in 2009 and taking her name from the Maori word for ‘moonbeam’, she is an unpolished, no-frills yacht, entirely focused on function not fashion: Gérard even describes her as “a little rough…like me”.



For the owner of such a simple, unassuming yacht, one that clearly puts function above stylistic concerns, Gérard is very clear that he believes one of the motivating factors for anyone buying a superyacht is ego. “There is no rationale behind the decision to build or own a superyacht,” he tells us. “The only motivating factors are one’s feelings, a certain madness and a very big ego.” For him, superyachts are intrinsically tied to the notion of ego, whether it is the owner’s own ego or the ego of competition and the desire to win.

Gérard will muse further on ownership in Issue 6 of The Superyacht Owner, out in February. To become a member, click here.

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