Today the Monaco Boat Show is a landmark event in the megayacht world. From the shipyard's stands one can judge which ones play a leading role in the sector, from the presented concepts one can follow the trends of superyacht design and naval architecture. However, in 1991, when the Monaco Yacht Show first opened its doors, shipyards largely ignored the event and lived off the brokerage firms.
Behind the creation of the Monaco Yacht Show was Maurice Cohen, head of Media Plus and «father» of several other shows. Early press releases said the show specialized in yachts from 20 meters. At that time it was possible to reach the top 100 from 47 meters.
In 1994, a French businessman sold the rights to the show to the event management company IIR, which at that time owned the competing Superyacht de Nice. With the advent of MYS, the show in Nice was not a good time.
In 1996, two years after the purchase of IIR, the Monaco Yacht Show was on the verge of failure: the show was fiercely competitive with the Super Yacht North West in Kirkland and suffered from the extension of the charter season to September. The new owners finally decided to split the competencies of MYS and Superyacht de Nice by converting the latter to a trade show.
By 2002, the Monaco Yacht Show had grown to 65 exhibitors. The 62-meter Lady Lola was the headliner of the show that year. 300 exhibition pavilions were opened on the shore, occupying 4,500 square meters and attracting almost 15 thousand visitors. After overcoming a phase of uncertainty, the Monaco Yacht Show proved to be the premier event for the superyacht industry. Competitors noticed this and in 2005 IIR Holdings, the owner of MYS, was bought by Informa for $1.4 billion.
Since then, the Monaco Yacht Show has continued to grow. By 2016, the number of megayachts exhibited at Hercule port doubled to 125. The number of visitors has also doubled to 32,000. The show has become one of Informa's most valuable assets. Its revenue is in the millions of euros.
Over the past three years, the fleet of MYS megayachts has fallen slightly, from 110 in 2015 to 107 in 2017. The average age of yachts exhibited between 2015 and 2017 is 7 years and the average length is 48.78 meters. Most yachts are Italian (124 hulls in three years). The second place among the most popular superyacht producing countries is Holland (84 hulls), the third place is occupied by Turkey (21 hulls). The USA and Great Britain share the fourth place with 16 hulls.
The largest representation at MYS is at Feadship, Heesen and Benetti, who have brought 20 yachts each to the show in three years. Sanlorenzo and Amels share the second line (14 yachts each). Lurssen is in third place with 11 boats.
This year the total cost of all the yachts on display is estimated at 2,627,224,100 euros, while the average cost per yacht is 24,553,496 euros. Compared to previous years, the fleet is younger: of the 125 mega yachts, 50 are world premieres, five more were launched in 2017 and 10 were launched in 2016. It turns out that 50% of all exhibited megayachts are no older than two years!
There was a separate area for tenders and water toys. A total of 40 different exhibits were on display there, including submarines and helicopters.
The organizers have launched a new program called Sapphire Experience, which is aimed at those who attend the boat show for the first time. The program includes concierge services and special VIP events, including visits to mega yachts and a summit with industry leaders held the day before the opening of the show.
