Quick fire questions
With Erik Stromberg
With so many years in the boating industry, where does your passion lie and why? Also, Sail or Power?
I have done some sailboat racing, but my passion is cruising. Spending time onboard, away from the day-to-day and sharing that time with friends and family. In this way, sailboats and motor yachts are similar. Both provide the feeling of a “private island” in harmony with nature and free of the daily constraints.
Is boating in your blood? Have you been on and around boats since an early age?
I have always been around boats, mainly sailboats, from the age of 5 weeks. Grew up sailing on my family’s Camper Nicholson 345 (IOR 3Ž4 tonner). As for my career in the marine industry, I started at 15 years old making extra money by washing boats. I graduated to varnish, plumbing and electrical work to pay for my schooling. Ran a ship chandlery for a couple of winters and did some delivery work between the US and the Caribbean.
I joined Jeanneau in the late 90s as an after-sales manager in our US offices in Annapolis, MD. I very quickly started to interface with the design department to provide us with boats that were better suited to the US market and I moved to France in 2005 to head up Sailboat Design and Development. Last year, I moved into the role of overseeing the Prestige programme.
Erik Stromberg
Director of Product Marketing
Prestige Motor Yachts
It seems there are exciting new concepts coming from the Prestige design room. In your view, what is the future for the brand, how do you keep the product current?
Prestige is a relatively young brand. The brand evolved out of a long-standing range of Jeanneau only in the past 10 years. In this short time we have become the world-wide leader of flybridge motor yachts in the 40-60’ category. The future for Prestige is to continue to be in step with the trends in the market. The trends that we see today include ease of use, increased interior and exterior comfort, and a look and feel that is ever more luxurious. It is by working with talented designers, like our long-running relationship with the Garroni design studio, that we stay current while always on the lookout for the next trend in
the market.
What exciting new projects are you working on?
We work 3 to 5 years out on a strategic level and refine our product plan and ideas as conditions evolve. Today, we see an expanding market that is looking for innovation. Innovation involving the way to spend time onboard and in the types of concepts that are coming to the market. I can honestly say that we are working on half a dozen projects that touch at every part of our range from 42 to 75’…we are even working on some new concepts that will revolutionise the way we live onboard.
From the current Prestige range, which model would you personally own?
Personally, I love a boat like the Prestige 460S. It has a sporty look, it is fun to drive and has a level of comfort that places it squarely in the motor yacht world. Obviously, there is a luxurious feel of the larger yachts, but 46’ is a “human” size that would be perfect for my family and I.
What do you think motor yacht design will look like in the next ten years?
Very interesting question. I always think that someone should be paid to come up with the answer to this one…and then I realize that it is my job!
For me, the path forward is clear. Many of the technologies and trends around us will define our motor yachts of the future. More “intelligence” will be carried onboard to help spot obstacles at night, to assist in docking, communicate maintenance and service issues directly with our service network. These technologies are already present in our homes and cars.
As for design, it is only the translation of how people want to live onboard. The trends today are towards more comfort, larger living and entertaining spaces, lower average speeds to enhance cruising comfort and consumption. These trends will be compatible with the arrival of hybrid yachts that glide silently into a harbour or anchorage while having the battery power to spend the night without using the generator. When cruising, efficient combustion engines will power the boat and recharge
the systems.
The future for Prestige is bright, we have consistently delivered value to our customers while remaining contemporary and up-to-date in elements of design and innovation. Our plan is to continue to power forward surrounded and accompanied by our dealers and customers.
Erik Stromberg
Director of Product Marketing
Prestige Motor Yachts