Meros Yachtsharing has unveiled the itineraries of two of its co-ownership yachts for 2024 and beyond. The Sunseeker 95s High Energy and Blue Infinity One sit at the heart of what the company describes as an ‘exciting and highly innovative Flexshare ownership programme’. Shares start at €1.25 million for a 28-metre Meros Signature 95. And there’s space for more co-owners to come onboard.

There has been controversy online since its launch about the price of the scheme and its nature – shared ownership versus timeshare – but MD Georg Oehme bats this away saying that ‘breaking the mould’ of perceptions are the first challenge the company has had to overcome. He acknowledges that the time share idea has been frowned upon for many years, and having a concept that has similar roots means the company has to prove its value. “I guess this for us currently is a challenge but one that time and experience has fully in hand.”

A share gives access to the Meros fleet with six weeks per year that can be spread across the different yachts in their different locations. The fleet’s itineraries mean there are opportunities to get onboard in the Mediterranean and the Middle East. Each boat has a maximum of eight owners.

“We currently have three yachts running with one yacht fully owned by just five clients. The second is almost full with four different owners with shares, and a new yacht with active offers,” says Oehme – he is the only current share owner who has ties to the company.

He expects the fleet and locations to expand year on year and, therefore, the reach for potential owners will also increase.

People enjoying sunshine on a boat

“With year five we wish to have ten yachts within the network, and owners from all over the world,” says Oehme. Currently, the nationality of owners is predominantly UK and central Europe (especially German and Switzerland) with the numbers from the US on the rise.

Seemingly, share owners can leave the programme whenever they like. The yachts’ cycle is three years but an owner can leave in year one, two or three.

“There is a buy back guarantee from Meros in the first two years. The third year the exit is harder as we have to find a buyer. Hence why we will always have an open discussion with clients. Year three is a transition to the next cycle. Owners have full transparency and they love the freedom. The cycle begins again, your investment is transferred to the new yacht and once again you have the opportunity to leave when you like.”

Oehme, an entrepreneur, has owned yachts since 1985 and was also part of a co-ownership plan. He says while he lived the best of both worlds, he felt there wasn’t a co-ownership option that was representing the entire yachting experience. He wanted co-owning to run at a certain level where compromise wasn’t apparent. Therefore he created his own structure, and purchased yachts upfront to allow clients to simply step onboard.

Spiralling stairs down into the depths of a boat

With shares starting at €1.25 million for a 28-metre Meros Signature 95 from Sunseeker, the company says co-owners in Flexshare not only get access to a spectacular yacht but also to the peace of mind that comes with a professional, dedicated crew, and full management of the yacht, crew, maintenance and other elements by the highly experienced Meros Yachtsharing team.

And, co-owners can also leverage their weeks if they aren’t able to attend.

“The yachts are commercial so this gives the opportunity to trade and sell their week. We have many ways to assure there’s no love or time lost in situations like this.”

Meros facilitates swapping with other co-owners or even selling extra weeks to them.

“If we cannot find a solution internally we can look to offer to the charter market. The value paid by the owner will be returned to the owner via charter income. They can then either take the funds or use that to purchase another week later in the year, either one that’s open or off another owner. In addition they can also utilise other yachts within the system so there’s much opportunity and this is all managed in house for the clients. If it’s very last minute like the day before, we cannot charter, swap etc then the week is lost but this situation is almost always avoidable even with a week’s notice – unless there is a serious issue in which case I’m sure this would not be our client’s priority.”

Toys at the back of a boat platform

The Sunseeker 95 High Energy will offer opportunities to enjoy primarily the Adriatic and the Emirates, with the 2024-25 schedule taking in the South of France for the early part of the 2024 summer season before moving to the Balearics from July to October. Abu Dhabi and Dubai provide the winter location before returning to Croatia in April 2025.

Blue Infinity One will focus on the popular destinations of the western Mediterranean, beginning in the Balearics before moving to the South of France from May to July 2024, then heading back to Ibiza, Mallorca and Menorca for the rest of the summer, or to Corsica and Sardinia for July and August before heading back to the Balearics for September.

The company says it also offers lifestyle benefits, for example, one of the Meros Flexshare yachts is berthed annually trackside at the iconic Monaco Grand Prix in May, with all Flexshare co-owners invited.

“We really believe Meros Yachtsharing’s approach to fractional ownership whether through our more traditional quarter share model or our progressive and forward thinking Flexshare model offers something special for owners who want the best without the hassle,” says Oehme.

“We are currently the only company in Europe to enable co-ownership of new Sunseeker superyachts managed by seasoned crews, and our expertise extends well beyond mere asset management. We are even committed to delivering an element of environmental consciousness for our co-owners, with increasing capacity to use HVO-100 renewable diesel across our fleet.”

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