Merijn de Waard sat down with Lars Windhorst, owner and Founder of the Tennor Group that owns Flensburger Schiffbau-Gesellschaft (FSG), and which has recently acquired the German shipyard Nobiskrug. The pair discussed the motivations for the purchase, the plans for the legendary shipyard and how Windhorst plans to position the shipyard to continue to push innovation and build world-renowned superyachts. 
In April 2021 the news was released that Nobiskrug had filed for insolvency, citing “critical developments” on yacht construction, consequences on investment and profitability as some of the causes for the proceedings. In August it was announced that Lars Windhorst had come to the rescue of the shipyard and in Monaco the yard once again had its own stand positioned in front of the Yacht Club de Monaco, in a show of strength for the new management.
So my first question is, why did you buy Nobiskrug, and what is your idea and your plan behind this acquisition?
About a year ago we hired Philipp Maracke as CEO of FSG and that action solidified our commitment to make the shipyard a sustainable success, no matter the resources in terms of capital commitment. While the heritage of the shipyard and the increasing prospects in the market were a major part of this decision, this was also fuelled by the fact that we got the right management team into the company. Philipp brought in people who he trusted to make the venture a success and I trusted him to see that end.
When he came onboard in October 2020 I had the feeling that we had the right person in the role. He had the motivation, the passion and the commitment to do it and I said “OK, I will support you all the way and if you find something which makes sense, is lucrative and will help us grow and fulfill our vision to build something bigger, more sustainable and profitable, we will do it.”
In addition, this is probably one of the first times in the last 20-30 years that a well-established, high-end brand with a strong track record came on the market, which in itself is a rare event. In my opinion, Nobiskrug is one of the very few shipyards in the world that has the skill and capability to build large fully customised superyachts. It has the infrastructure and the reputation and almost everyone knows the name and in addition most of the staff have remained with the shipyard which has retained their level of expertise. I believe we were the only bidder to offer to take over all the employees, except the steel building department which we don’t need because we have that trade at FSG.
We see this as a forward looking investment, where we will grow rather than consolidate. We need the know-how and the resources of those employees to facilitate the growth that we want to enjoy over the next few years. So that's why it was a rather easy decision to jump and move into this sector. The company is 100 percent owned by me and between Philipp and myself it was a very unbureaucratic and quick decision process. We are very pleased that we were able to win the auction and buy Nobiskrug.
It was on our radar and FSG was already involved with the industry in a few ways. If, for example, you look at the Abeking & Rasmussen 98.4-metre superyacht Aviva, we built the entire hull because they did not have the capability in-house to do so.
Due to the expertise of FSG in large scale steel construction it is known worldwide and so yes, we were thinking about it but it is hard to break into the industry without a brand.
That is another reason why Nobiskrug is perfect for us, because there is a real synergy between the two companies and we can build on the Nobiskrug brand. We currently have two world famous yachts out there, one is Sailing Yacht A and the other is Artefact but we know we have another one or two orders coming in for truly innovative vessels. We will build on the reputation and show in the coming years that there is much more to come. There is more that Nobiskrug will bring to the market, with high end, super high quality and very individually complex, technologically advanced yachts. 
We would not say no per se but we will start at around 60 metres and go right up to the largest sizes, with the capability to build vessels even toward 170 metres.
How about the existing projects? Are they all going to be completed by Nobiskrug? Or is that still ongoing conversations with clients?
At this time these are still ongoing conversations. We know that some will stay and others are yet to be decided, but we also have a pipeline of new projects which will soon be announced.
I do not think it is necessary to build on speculation with the current flow of the market and it is certainly not our current strategy. Over the next few months we will come into a situation where we have to select what we can do or decide to increase capacity because while we still have some capacity at this time, I see that quickly filling up. If we only do a small percentage of our current pipeline we will be fully loaded very soon.
And coming in now as a shipyard owner, what in your view can still be done better in the industry, where is there room for improvement?
I cannot pretend that I am the inside advisor for Nobiskrug, but what I know personally from my own experience as a charterer and customer is that style and technology are hugely important. These will be the cornerstones of our philosophy for Nobiskrug and we want to retain the super high end German mark of top quality engineering inside and out. 
Absolutely, and the good thing is that if I talk to fellow entrepreneurs or billionaire friends who are keen to buy yachts it is a very natural and pleasant conversation. The topic is enjoyable and it does not cause me or my companions pain or stress to discuss, it is an exciting topic. I will continue to do this through my vast and very extensive global network and we have already started to harvest the fruits of these very valuable conversations.
Do you expect younger people to begin to get involved in yachting, especially with younger tech-based businesses emerging?
I spend about a third of my time in the US and we are very well connected in Silicon Valley, probably more so than anyone else. I did a talk last week with 40 or so tech entrepreneurs and introduced them to Nobiskrug and the reaction was very positive, with many of them looking to visit the shipyard. The world is also opening up, allowing people to travel even more.
I do believe that young tech entrepreneurs who made a lot of money in the last two years are definitely a key target group of ours and we are extremely well equipped to serve them. Artefact is a fantastic example of that, she is a complex, technology focused and innovative yacht that is environmentally conscious, quiet and low emission – exactly the type of vessel young people are looking for. 
As I said I am not an aficionado of this industry, but as far as I know there is no other yacht in the fleet today which can compare to Artefact when it comes to environmental-friendliness. This yacht has been built to the highest environmental standards and is an example of how we will continue to build yachts. This is a showcase for us of what we are able to do and what we will continue to do from an environmental standpoint.
- Attention to detail: Inside the 80m Artefact
- Nobiskrug superyacht Artefact in Camogli
- Nobiskrug superyacht Artefact in Camogli
- Lars Windhorst completes Nobiskrug takeover
Do you see Nobiskrug as a long term investment for you?
I certainly do. The good thing is that it is not the only business we have, overall it makes up five, maybe 10 percent of what we do, meaning that it is not such a huge investment with a lot of pressure to make money immediately. It is a business that we want to hold onto for the long term, to invest in and grow.
It also has more than just monetary value to us, it is a great asset to own, a fantastic brand but also a nice topic to talk about within our network. I will be able to help friends obtain the right yacht and I aim to hold the company for the very long term, grow it and ultimately position it at the top of the market.
And in that sense is your investment partly passion driven as well? Because shipyards aren’t the easiest industry to make money out of…
There is a passion there for sure, but it is really something which we want to build in a commercially viable way. Business can only be sustainable if it makes money and Nobiskrug will make money. If you don’t have the commitment and aspiration to make money, it doesn’t make sense and it would become an unhealthy asset.
We always have our eyes open, we are optimistic in that sense, but no there is nothing in particular that we are looking for.
And finally, are you going to be building your own yachts at Nobiskrug?
Of course! There is no other way and nowhere else I would build them!