Chief Reporter Xue Huiqing

In April 1996, the first China (Shanghai) International Boat and Technology Equipment Exhibition was held in a basement of Shanghai Mall. The dozen boats on display were mostly ship models. After more than ten years of development, the Shanghai Yacht Show, which opened yesterday, is no longer what it used to be. Whether in terms of the number of exhibitors, the scale of exhibitions or the level of exhibitions, it has long been among the international professional yacht exhibitions.

The exhibition site was active. The first imported catamaran yacht in China, represented by Shanghai Hengtai Yacht, was sold at a price of 12 million yuan, and the Majesty 88-foot yacht of Bafushi was sold at a price of 36.8 million yuan. Just like the Shanghai Auto Show, which was still unknown more than ten years ago, the process of the Shanghai Yacht Show from cold to hot reflects that the development of China's yacht industry is gradually entering its golden period.

Domestic and foreign companies compete for the market

Professional exhibitions have always been the "barometer" of industry development. The Shanghai Yacht Show, which is currently being held, has become the largest exhibition area in history with 38,000 square meters, an increase of 31% year-on-year. It is worth noting that as a long-term partner of major European yacht shows, the Florida exhibition group of the United States chose the Shanghai Yacht Show as its first choice to enter the Asian market; the exhibition area of the Italian and Australian national exhibition groups has "steadily increased"; the Japanese and Spanish national exhibition groups have also received government support to participate in the exhibition... Under the situation of the cold international yacht market, the development and prospects of the Chinese market have attracted much attention from the industry.

At the same time, many domestic giants are also unwilling to be lonely. The new yachts of Shanghai Yihong, Charles, and Jiahao have specially chosen this exhibition for their debut. Shanghai Hongshuangxi Yacht, Sunbird (300123, Stock Bar) Yacht, Zhejiang Shengshi Yacht, Xingrui Yacht and other companies have participated in the exhibition on a large scale, hoping to get a share of the emerging yacht market.

"The wealthy people have realized that health comes from exercise, and water sports are a good way." Yang Xinfa, chairman of the Boat Branch of the China Shipbuilding Industry Association, vice president and secretary general of the Shanghai Shipbuilding Industry Association, pointed out that yachts are no longer the patent of individual rich people. At the Shanghai Yacht Show, people can not only see luxury yachts worth millions of dollars, but also see non-powered sailboats priced at tens of thousands of yuan. In the future, leisure water sports will be the carrier of fitness and leisure for the middle class. After housing and cars, yachts have every reason to become China's next consumer hotspot.

In fact, yachts have long been moored on the banks of the Huangpu River. Ye Rongrong, executive director of exhibitor Yihong Yacht, said that there are currently three yacht clubs on the banks of the Huangpu River, namely, Ya Ting, Bund Yacht Club and Xishi Club, each with different positioning, and most of them are operated in a membership system. At present, citizens who like sea life can already learn yacht driving through clubs, and after obtaining a driver's license, they can be used throughout the country. "In fact, in European and American countries, yachts are enjoyed by many families," said Ye Rongrong. Yachts themselves are a lifestyle, but in China they are still a business and social platform.

The yacht economy "surfaces"

[Reporter's observation] Yachts have long become a huge industry internationally, known as "business opportunities floating on the golden waterway." In the past two years, China's yacht industry has developed rapidly from south to north. According to the 2010-2011 China Yacht Industry Report, there are 99 yacht clubs in China, with a total of 1,200 to 1,500 yachts. The yacht industry has developed in coastal and inland provinces and cities with rich water tourism resources and relatively developed economies, such as Liaoning, Hebei, Shandong, Jiangsu, Shanghai, Zhejiang, Fujian, Guangdong, and Hainan, among which Shenzhen, Shanghai, and Qingdao have developed rapidly.

Industry insiders generally believe that China's yacht industry has great development potential and is entering its best development period ever. The National Tourism Administration regards yachts as an important carrier for the development of water tourism in the "12th Five-Year Plan" development plan, and the catalogue of industries encouraged to develop issued by the National Development and Reform Commission also includes the yacht industry. Due to the loosening of policies, China's yacht industry will maintain or even exceed a compound growth rate of more than 30% in the next few years. Under a series of favorable policies, the "yacht fever" is spreading rapidly across the country.

However, the development of the yacht industry still faces many bottlenecks. For example, in terms of infrastructure construction, including the development and construction of docks, water resources, and water entertainment projects, there is still a clear lack of progress; and the reporting and ship inspection procedures of relevant maritime departments are time-consuming and cumbersome. "If a 50-60-foot yacht is moored in the Huangpu River, including berth fees and custody fees (excluding fuel costs), the annual cost is 500,000 or 600,000 yuan," industry insiders admit that yacht consumption is still a high-end niche consumption. It will take some time for the yacht economy to really "swim".