Mauro Terrevazzi, 74, has passed away in Monaco after illness. He was most recently deputy chairman of Silversea Cruises of which he was also one of the founders and chairman until 1997. He is survived by his wife Mercedes, and one son and one daughter.
Terrevazzi may be best known for his role at V.Ships, where he served as chairman until 2003, and helped found the company in 1984. He was also founder and chairman of Sitmar Cruises until the line was sold to Princess in 1988, and is credited with getting Fincantieri involved in industry by ordering ships for Sitmar, which later became Princess vessels.
Commented Roberto Giorgi, president of V.Ships: “Mauro was my mentor and coach; he developed me as a business person. I was inspired by his devotion and determination. He was the driver behind the success of V.Ships.”
Terrevazzi was born in Lainate, Milan, April 14, 1935, and joined Sitmar in its Milan office in 1952. The company was 100 percent owned by the Vlasov Group. At the time, the Milan office was operating four passenger ships from Italy to Central and South America and to Australia.
He later moved to Sitmar’s Genoa office, working for various departments, but always dealing with passenger ships. He also worked in London and New York, before eventually settling in Monaco, but continued to travel the world.
Since 1970, Terrevazzi has been a senior executive officer with a wide range of responsibilities for the Vlasov Group, including the establishment of Sitmar Cruises in the U.S. and introducing its first ships in 1971.
In 1991, Terrevazzi helped create Silversea – a new brand in the luxury market, and in 1997, he formed a joint venture between V.Ships and the Carlson Group of Minneapolis to develop Radisson Seven Seas Cruises.
In 1984, together with 12 other members of the Vlasov management, Terrevazzi was one of the founding members of V.Ships. The management group purchased 50 percent of the shares from Vlasov, and Terrevazzi became a major shareholder and chairman of V.Ships.
Over the years, V.Ships has evolved to become the largest ship management company in the world, with 50 offices in various countries.
V.Ships Leisure was created within V.Ships to provide full management services to the cruise industry and today manages 130 vessels, including cruise ships, ferries and yachts.
The keys to success in the cruise business are to have good quality vessels, well-trained and motivated sea-going and shore-based staff, Terrevazzi told Cruise Industry News in an interview in Monaco in 1999. And a genuine understanding of what the customers want and also what they are likely to want in the future, he added.
Did he have a favorite ship? “If I had to select a favorite vessel, it will have to be one of the smaller ships in which I have had some small influence in the design, namely the Silver Cloud, Silver Wind, Minerva or the Seven Seas Navigator,” Terrevazzi answered.
