Pigi Loro Piana: "Italian shipbuilding continues, but quality is needed to maintain trust."
My Song returns to the race in four events, Masquenada sets off again for the Mediterranean after the round-the-world race: Pier Luigi Loro Piana takes stock of a challenging season and gives his opinion on the moment of reflection that is affecting the sector
Milan – Pier Luigi Loro Piana is one of the most active Italian owners in both offshore sailing and motor yachting. The king of cashmere was in the best seats at the presentation of the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda's sporting calendar, of which he is a member and where he will participate in some regattas with My Song, his ClubSwan 80.
In a conversation with SUPER YACHT 24, the Piedmontese entrepreneur also discussed the return to port of Masquenada, his 51-meter explorer yacht, built by Perini Navi in 2006 and refitted by Lusben, in just eight months between 2020 and 2021, a project that marked the history of Italian shipbuilding for its methods and short timeframe. The explorer superyacht returned to dock, but only briefly, after three years of circumnavigating the globe, during which the Loro Piana family managed to navigate the warmer seas before the international situation posed serious threats to navigation. Both vessels are now at the La Spezia shipyard for maintenance work before setting sail again.
Dr. Loro Piana, what is My Song's racing program for this season?
"We'll have four regattas, like last year. We'll start with Sorrento, then the Giraglia, the Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup in Sardinia in September, and we'll conclude with Les Voiles de Saint-Tropez at the end of September. A solid schedule, which will allow us to work effectively on the boat and the crew."
Will the crew be the same as last season? Will he be able to involve his children too?
"Yes, my children come when they can, and fortunately they've inherited the passion. They're also very good, I'd say better than me when I put them at the helm. It's a great satisfaction for me. On the technical front, it's more or less the same team as last year, with one exception: this year we're changing our tactician-strategist because Tommaso (Chieffi, historical tactician of My Song, ed.) He had other commitments. I won't reveal the name yet; we'll see each other on the water. Basically, though, I'll have the same team that manages the boat."
Let's talk about the engine. Your m/y Masquenada has returned from its round-the-world trip. How did it go?
“Fortunately, everything went well. Masquenada returned to La Spezia and is currently undergoing a refit: after three years of circumnavigation, it needs extraordinary maintenance. The most important thing is that we passed through the Red Sea before the situation got complicated. As early as December 1st, transiting through Suez was problematic. We were coming from the Seychelles and reached La Spezia on December 16th without any problems. A significant stroke of luck, given the timing.”
Where are you doing the work? Still at Lusben in Livorno, like for the pre-circumnavigation refit?
“No, not this time. For reasons of timing and logistics, I decided to take Masquenada to the same shipyard where My Song is located, the La Spezia Shipyard, near San Lorenzo. Having always kept sailboats there, it made sense to rationalize. The Lusben shipyard had done an excellent job during the pre-circumnavigation refit: in eight months they had made the boat fit for three years of global sailing; but this time it was more convenient for us to concentrate everything in one place.”
When do you plan to put the boats back in the water?
"My Song on April 20th, to start training immediately. Masquenada will be refitted by June 15th: repainting, routine and extraordinary maintenance, getting everything back to tip-top shape. Then we'll set off again on a lovely cruise in our Mediterranean Sea."
As an entrepreneur with a long-term vision, how do you interpret the current situation in the Italian shipbuilding industry?
There's been an extraordinary boom, with all the shipyards receiving incredible orders from all over the world. And we should be proud of that: building a yacht in Italy today is a guarantee of internationally recognized quality, from the workforce to the supply chain, to the specialized companies that have accumulated high-level expertise. Now there's a moment of reflection, it's inevitable. But medium- and long-term plans, the ones that drive yachts of a certain size, won't be halted by a downturn in the economy. You earn your reputation as a good shipyard by delivering products that last, and Italy has all the credentials to do so. The important thing is not to lose the trust we've earned over the years, and to maintain it, there's only one answer: quality. Both in new builds and refits.
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