An entity affiliated with Dalian Wanda Group has reportedly agreed to sell the boatbuilder Sunseeker International to Lionheart Capital.

Last month, rumours began circulating around the marine industry that Sunseeker might be bought by a new entity as its current owners sold off existing assets.

The Poole-based luxury boatbuilder, which announced a £40m investment in new product development in 2023, has been owned by the Wanda Group since 2013. But, in early December 2023, media reported the Wanda Group, a major Chinese conglomerate and the country’s largest shopping mall operator, was selling off core businesses, including its commercial facility management and movie divisions, to avoid bankruptcy.

In January this year, South China Morning Post claimed the current ‘cash starved’ owners of Sunseeker had been selling assets, including the 193-room Shanghai Wanda Reign luxury hotel, located in Shanghai’s famed Bund, for an undisclosed sum. Media reports said the transaction took place at a price of between 1.44 billion and 1.66 billion yuan (US$204 million to US$234 million).

This morning (11 April 2024), Bloomberg and South China Morning Post both published a report stating the Chinese conglomerate and Miami-based Lionheart have signed a sale and purchase agreement, citing unnamed sources, who have asked not to be identified while discussing confidential information.

Bloomberg reports the transaction, which is subject to British regulatory approval, is poised to close as soon as next month.

Wanda was said to have paid £320 million for almost 92 per cent of Sunseeker in 2013. At the time, the company said Sunseeker would maintain its existing production bases and current workforce, and founder Robert Braithwaite (who passed away in 2019) would continue his involvement. Management was to hold the remaining 8 per cent stake in the business.

In 2023, Sunseeker’s chief executive officer, Andrea Frabetti, revealed the company has a retail forward order value of £625m (€730m), representing a continued bounce back following a downturn in 2020 brought on by the pandemic.

The Sunseeker story began in 1969 when entrepreneurial brothers Robert and John Braithwaite pursued their boat-building passion. Breaking boundaries in early boat design, Robert revolutionised the motor boat space with his early designs tailored to a handful of customers.

In the early seventies, there were simply no significant builders of boats for the sports and leisure markets in the UK. The first craft to launch was the Sovereign 17 in 1971, closely followed by the Sovereign 20. By 1972, Sunseeker was exhibiting its boats at the Southampton Boat Show and keen to meet new customers.

Marine Industry News has pursued numerous routes for confirmation. Sunseeker has chosen to issue no comment so far.

Read about Sunseeker’s latest news and its ongoing journey in MIN‘s Sunseeker archive.

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