“We are very much focused on giving people memorable experiences,” said Roberto Martinoli, CEO at Silversea Cruises, being interviewed one-on-one by Cruise Industry News. “Also one of the things we do best is the way our crew approaches our guests. It is a very personable service and a smaller, more intimate environment. We have a special culture onboard and there is something magical in how the crew interacts with our guests.
“In the end it is about memories and experiences rather than material things you can just buy with money.”
April will see the introduction of the company’s ninth ship, the 40,000-ton, 596-passenger Silver Muse.
Silversea has options to build two more sister ships with Fincantieri, the first of which must be exercised by May, and the second by February of next year.
What are his plans? “If the market conditions remain as strong as they are, we will definitely go for it (two more ships),” Martinoli answered.
Meanwhile, to bolster the company’s finances, Silversea recently completed a $550 million bond offering. The proceeds will be used, among other things, to refinance or replace certain existing debt of the company and its subsidiaries, including the financing of the Silver Muse and to fund other capital expenditure requirements.
Also underway is the conversion of the Silver Cloud into an expedition ship; she will go back into service in the fall.
Since taking over the helm at Silversea in September, Martinoli said: “We initiated some company changes at the board level and with Manfredi (LeFebvre, executive chairman) a couple of years ago and have been continuing to implement those changes, which include revenue management and sales activities.”
He said the brand strategy is also being reviewed for possible updates, and he expects to be able to make further announcements on that in the coming weeks. “It comes down to what we are, what we want to be, and what the differentiators are between us and the others,” he explained.
Martinoli said that Silversea’s expansion into expedition cruising was driven by the strong market demand in the segment. “We understand and manage this market very well,” he added. “We were the first (of the luxury brands) to go into expedition cruising in 2008 and I would like to say today that we ‘own’ the luxury segment of the expedition market.”
When the Cloud enters the expedition market in the fall, Silversea will have four luxury expedition ships and five classical luxury ships for a total of some 2,844 berths. Martinoli said that for 2018 the annual passenger capacity, including the Muse being introduced this April, will be about 90,000, of which one-third will be for expedition cruises.
“We have a lot on our plate, but we are quite happy with the way things are coming together. We cannot complain about the state of the business today. For the past few months we have seen strong bookings, stronger than we have seen in some time,” Martinoli said.
Excerpt from Cruise Industry News Quarterly Magazine: Spring 2017
