01 Nov Sanlorenzo: The Italian Yacht Builder That Made Design Its Business

Sanlorenzo: The Italian Yacht Builder That Made Design Its Business

Sanlorenzo is an Italian builder of made-to-measure yachts and superyachts, founded in 1958 in Limite sull’Arno near Florence, and as of December 2025 it ranked second in the world by total length on order, according to BOAT International. This is how a small Tuscan yard became a listed group with an art programme and a Fort Lauderdale headquarters, as of November 1, 2026.

Facts come from Sanlorenzo’s own website and stock-exchange filings, BOAT International’s Global Order Book, Italian and international trade and design press, award organisers’ results reported by the trade, and a brokerage market report. Figures are as reported on the dates shown and may change.

Second in the World, by the Numbers

Sanlorenzo describes itself in three words: “Unique by design.” Its homepage puts the promise plainly: “From 24 to 74 metres, we design just one yacht. Yours.” (Sanlorenzo homepage, undated).

The outside numbers back up the scale. BOAT International’s Global Order Book 2026, published in December 2025, ranks Sanlorenzo second among the world’s builders, with 130 projects and 4,698 metres (about 15,413 ft) of yachts of 24 metres and over on order. BOAT notes that the figure includes Nautor Swan, in which Sanlorenzo holds a 60% majority stake, and splits it into 4,398 metres of motor yachts and 300 metres of Swan sailing yachts. Only Azimut-Benetti ranks higher. BOAT leaves the Ferretti Group out of its builder tables.

Sales have continued in 2026. Through September 2026, Sanlorenzo led all builders with 37 sales of yachts 24 metres and over, up from 27 at the same point in 2025, according to Denison Yacht Sales, citing BOATPro data (October 20, 2026).

What It Takes to Build a Sanlorenzo

Sanlorenzo’s filings and the design press describe what sits behind the finish:

• Four yards close together. The company runs four main shipyards, in La Spezia, Ameglia, Viareggio and Massa, which it says are “within a 50-kilometre radius” of each other (Sanlorenzo, first-half 2026 results, September 3, 2026).
• People and suppliers. The same filing counts more than 1,650 employees and “a network of thousands of qualified artisan companies.”
• Two materials families. The Yacht Division builds composite motor yachts of 24 to 41 metres. The Superyacht Division builds aluminium and steel yachts of 44 to 74 metres (same filing).
• Time. A single Sanlorenzo takes about two years to build, Domus reported in February 2019.
• Training. The company founded the Sanlorenzo Academy in 2018, according to Wikipedia. IFDM (January 2019) said it was set up to train young people for professional roles.

The order book shows how far ahead the yards are planned. At the end of 2025 Sanlorenzo reported a backlog of €1.96 billion, 88% of it already sold to final clients (Marine Industry News, March 10, 2026).

Origins: A Tuscan Riverside Yard, 1958

Sanlorenzo was established in 1958 in Limite sull’Arno, in the province of Florence, according to the company’s own filings (September 2026). Wikipedia and the Power Yacht Blog name the founders as Gianfranco Cecchi and Giuliano Pecchia. Domus (February 2019) spells the second name Pecchi.

The next chapter began in 1972. Giovanni Jannetti, born in 1930, took over Sanlorenzo in 1972, according to the Power Yacht Blog (February 2018), YachtBuyer and Wikipedia. Wikipedia says he opened the Viareggio yard. The blog says he ran it as a build-to-order yard, making about 10 to 20 yachts a year. It calls him “a yachting entrepreneur of the old style.” Two industry sources, the superyacht builders’ association SYBAss (2019) and Simpson Marine (July 2025), describe Jannetti as the founder. The earlier sources above do not.

On April 14, 2005, Jannetti sold Sanlorenzo to Massimo Perotti, the Power Yacht Blog reports. Domus says Perotti acquired the majority share. Perotti was born in Turin in 1960 and had spent about two decades at Azimut-Benetti, where he served as CEO, according to Simpson Marine, Sanlorenzo’s majority-owned Asia dealer (July 2025). The same article says Jannetti mentored him for a year after the sale.

How It Grew: Decade by Decade

1980s and 1990s: fibreglass and the first big yachts

In 1985 the yard launched the SL57, which Wikipedia calls its first fibreglass yacht; YachtBuyer also dates the SL57 to 1985. Sources differ on when it entered the superyacht class. The Power Yacht Blog dates it to the first 80-foot model in 1988. Wikipedia and YachtBuyer date it to the SL100 in 1995. In 1999 the company moved its operations to Ameglia, near La Spezia (Wikipedia; Power Yacht Blog).

2000s: new owner, new yards

Revenue was €42 million in 2004, the year before Perotti arrived, according to Simpson Marine (July 2025). A Viareggio yard for fibreglass yachts over 30 metres opened in 2007, according to Wikipedia. YachtBuyer dates the aluminium 40Alloy to 2008.

2010s: steel, design and the stock market

The 46Steel arrived in 2010, and in 2011 the company ranked third worldwide among builders of yachts over 24 metres for the first time, according to Wikipedia. Explorer yachts followed in 2015. In 2016 Sanlorenzo bought a production site in La Spezia and opened a research centre in Massa (Wikipedia). In 2018 it brought in the Bluegame brand and founded the Academy (Wikipedia), and appointed Piero Lissoni as art director (Simpson Marine, October 2018).

In 2013 the Chinese group Sundiro Holding bought 23% of the company. Perotti later bought that stake back, making the company “once again fully Italian,” IFDM reported in January 2019. In December 2019 the shares were listed on the STAR segment of Borsa Italiana at €16 each, giving a market value of €552 million (Pressmare, December 6, 2019; Superyacht Investor, December 12, 2019).

2020s: more brands and a new fuel

After BOAT’s Global Order Book 2021, which counted 86 Sanlorenzo projects totalling 3,089 metres, Simpson Marine called Sanlorenzo the “world’s leading single-brand shipyard” (December 17, 2020). In May 2024 it launched the first 50Steel, which SuperyachtNews (May 20, 2024) called the first yacht to incorporate a green methanol reformer fuel cell system, developed with Siemens Energy. The system turns methanol into hydrogen and then electricity for the yacht’s hotel load, and no hydrogen is stored on board.

Net revenue from new yachts reached €960.4 million in 2025, up 3.2%, according to Marine Industry News (March 10, 2026).

The Art: Designers, Galleries and Venice

Design is central to the brand’s story. Perotti told Domus (July 2020) that he learned “the quality, details, study of simple and timeless style.” He chose to bring designers from architecture and furniture into yacht interiors. Each name below is confirmed by a dated source:

• Piero Lissoni: appointed art director in 2018 (Simpson Marine, October 22, 2018; Dezeen, January 2019). His first Sanlorenzo project was the interior of the SX76, and he later designed the SX88, Dezeen reported. “We try to make them very clean, very pure,” he told Dezeen.
• Patricia Urquiola: interiors of the SD96, presented at the 2019 Cannes Yachting Festival. Perotti said he chose her to add “a more feminine touch to the interiors” (Pressmare, September 2019).
• Antonio Citterio and Patricia Viel: the SD112 was the first yacht project by their studio, Citterio Viel, according to itboat (undated). Domus named both among Sanlorenzo’s designers in 2019.
• Rodolfo Dordoni: named among the brand’s designers by Domus (February 2019 and July 2020).
• John Pawson: designed the interiors of one of the yard’s metal superyachts, shown in a 2022 Venice exhibition he curated for Sanlorenzo (Pressmare, April 15, 2022).

The art programme reaches well beyond the boats. Sanlorenzo Arts began with the company’s first appearance at Art Basel Miami Beach in 2016, and Sanlorenzo was a global host partner of Art Basel from 2018 to 2023, Finestre sull’Arte reported (February 25, 2026). In Venice, Casa Sanlorenzo, a villa restored by Lissoni’s studio, opened in June 2025 as a permanent cultural venue, the same report says. The company also sponsored the Italian Pavilion at the 2022 Biennale Arte (Pressmare, April 2022). In the Finestre sull’Arte report, Perotti describes Sanlorenzo Arts as the cultural compass of the company.

The Business: A Listed Company With Four Brands

Massimo Perotti leads the company. Its April 2026 filing calls him executive chairman, and its September 2026 results call him chairman and chief executive officer. Tommaso Vincenzi leads the Yacht and Superyacht units. In April 2026 the company named Gianguido Girotti, then deputy CEO of the Beneteau Group, to become CEO of Nautor Swan and Bluegame, in a handover planned to start in June 2026 (Sanlorenzo, April 1, 2026).

The group has grown by buying brands:

• Bluegame (2018): a builder of what Wikipedia calls sport utility yachts, founded by Luca Santella, a former Olympic sailing champion, according to YachtBuyer. Its boats now run from 13 to 26 metres (Sanlorenzo, September 2026).
• Simpson Marine (2023): Sanlorenzo agreed to buy 95% of this Hong Kong–founded Asia-Pacific dealer, which had represented it since 2015 (Superyacht24, December 11, 2023).
• Nautor Swan (2024): Sanlorenzo agreed on August 1, 2024 to buy the whole Nautor Swan Group from Leonardo Ferragamo’s company Sawa, at an equity value of €80.9 million. The first 60% closed the next day, and the remaining 40% is due by April 30, 2028 (Giornale della Vela, August 1, 2024; Pressmare, August 2, 2024).

Not every bid succeeded. In 2021 Sanlorenzo and the Ferretti Group formed a joint venture to bid for the bankrupt Perini Navi (BOAT International, February 15, 2021). The Italian Sea Group won the auction instead, for €80 million (Superyacht Investor, January 25, 2022). Sanlorenzo does not own Perini Navi. In 2026, with The Italian Sea Group in court-supervised restructuring, a company jointly owned by Sanlorenzo made a binding offer for its La Spezia yard. As of October 30, 2026, no deal had been agreed, and a court hearing was set for November 11 (Pressmare, October 30, 2026; YachtBuyer, October 20, 2026; Pressmare, July 28, 2026).

Measure	Figure	Source (date)
Global Order Book rank (24 m and over, by total length)	No. 2: 130 projects, 4,698 m, including Nautor Swan	BOAT International GOB 2026 (Dec 2025)
Listing	Borsa Italiana, STAR segment, since December 2019; IPO price €16	Pressmare (Dec 6, 2019)
Revenue from new yachts, 2025	€960.4 million, up 3.2%	Marine Industry News (Mar 10, 2026)
EBITDA and net profit, 2025	€180.6 million (18.8% margin); €107.4 million	Marine Industry News (Mar 10, 2026)
Revenue from new yachts, first half 2026	€471.3 million, up 3.8%	Sanlorenzo (Sep 3, 2026)
Order intake, first half 2026	€496.4 million, up 18.3%	Sanlorenzo (Sep 3, 2026)
Order backlog, June 30, 2026	€1,498.9 million	Sanlorenzo (Sep 3, 2026)
Full-year 2026 guidance	€980–1,020 million revenue from new yachts	Sanlorenzo (Sep 3, 2026)

The year-end 2025 backlog (€1.96 billion) and the mid-2026 figure come from different dates and are not directly comparable.

Awards and Recognition

Sanlorenzo’s models have won at several award programmes. Recent wins, by year:

• 2021: the SX112 won at the World Superyacht Awards, in Semi-Displacement or Planing Motor Yachts, 30m to 39.9m. At the World Yachts Trophies, the SL120A won Best Layout and the SL90A Best Innovation (Simpson Marine, September 15, 2021).
• 2022: a 44.5-metre aluminium yacht of the Alloy line won at the World Superyacht Awards (Pressmare, May 22, 2022).
• 2024: the SX100 won Motor Yacht 30–40m at the Yacht Style Awards (YachtBuyer awards list).
• 2025: the 50Steel won Superyachts 40–60m at the Yacht Style Awards (YachtBuyer). At the Design Innovation Awards in Genoa, set up by Confindustria Nautica, the SL110A won the superyacht category and the Bluegame BGF45 won the multihull category (Simpson Marine, September 2025).
• 2026: the SX120 won Superyacht 30–40 Metres at the Yacht Style Awards, alongside wins for a Bluegame and a Swan model (Simpson Marine, May 8, 2026).

Sanlorenzo and South Florida

The Americas are a growing part of Sanlorenzo’s business. In the first half of 2026 they produced €129.0 million of new-yacht revenue, up 35.4%, or 27.4% of the total, compared with 21.0% a year earlier (Sanlorenzo, September 3, 2026).

The base for that business is Fort Lauderdale. Sanlorenzo of the Americas opened a new headquarters at Pier Sixty-Six in late October 2025. Superyacht24 had reported that it would open on October 30, timed to the start of the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show (October 22, 2025), and reported the opening on October 31, 2025. The space was designed by Lissoni. Superyacht24 described it, in its own words, as Sanlorenzo’s most important investment in the American market. The company’s own page calls it “a significant step in its growth across the region.” Superyacht24 later reported that the brand has more than 100 yachts in the region and that half of its US clients are repeat owners (October 31, 2025).

Pietro Berardi is CEO of Sanlorenzo of the Americas. In March 2026, at the Palm Beach International Boat Show, the company named new sales directors for the region, which Berardi called “reflective of our long-term commitment to the Americas” (Marine Industry News, March 25, 2026).

The brand shows at all three big South Florida shows. Ahead of the 2025 Fort Lauderdale show, Superyacht24 listed US debuts for the SL86A, SX100, SP92 and Bluegame BGM75 (October 22, 2025). For the February 2026 Miami International Boat Show, Quotidiano Motori listed four Sanlorenzo models and the BGM75 (February 5, 2026). It returned to Palm Beach in March 2026 with the SX100, SX76, SL86A and SL90A (Sanlorenzo of the Americas, undated). For the 2026 Fort Lauderdale show, October 28 to November 1, YachtBuyer listed the SX88, SP92 and SX100, and the Bluegame BGX83 for its US debut (October 16, 2026).

Art Basel Miami Beach is part of the story too. In December 2025 Sanlorenzo hosted an event with Vogue aboard an SX100 during the fair, according to Sanlorenzo of the Americas. In May 2026 Perotti said the company was in exploratory talks to buy an American business. “There are interesting opportunities in America,” he told Bloomberg (May 29, 2026).

What Buying a Sanlorenzo Involves

The group sells four families, based on its September 2026 filing:

Brand or division	Length, per Sanlorenzo	What it builds
Sanlorenzo Yacht Division	24–41 m	Composite motor yachts (SL, SD, SX and SP lines)
Sanlorenzo Superyacht Division	44–74 m	Aluminium and steel motor superyachts, including explorers
Bluegame	13–26 m	Composite motor yachts and catamarans
Nautor Swan	13–44 m	Carbon and composite sailing yachts, and composite motor yachts

Timelines depend on size and how far the buyer customises the yacht. Domus put a typical build at about two years in 2019. Sanlorenzo does not publish prices on its website, and we have not found a current, dated new-build price we could verify. Ask a licensed yacht broker for live figures. Useful questions to raise include:

1. Which line suits how you will use the yacht, and which yard will build it?
2. How much of the layout and interior can still change, and by when?
3. What delivery date does the contract set, and what happens if it slips?
4. How are deposits and stage payments held and protected?
5. How will warranty and service work from the Fort Lauderdale office?

The Bottom Line

Sanlorenzo began in 1958 in a small yard on the Arno, according to the company. Under Giovanni Jannetti it moved to fibreglass and larger yachts. Since 2005, under Massimo Perotti, it has added steel superyachts, interiors by architects and furniture designers, a stock-market listing, Bluegame and Nautor Swan. As of December 2025 it ranked second in BOAT International’s Global Order Book. In the first half of 2026 the Americas made up 27.4% of its new-yacht revenue, and its regional headquarters is in Fort Lauderdale.

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Sources (47) · all checked November 1, 2026

• Sanlorenzo, official homepage (undated): source
• Sanlorenzo, first-half 2026 consolidated results (September 3, 2026): source
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• Marine Industry News, Sanlorenzo full-year 2025 results (March 10, 2026): source
• BOAT International, Global Order Book 2026 (December 2025): source
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• Superyacht Investor, Sanlorenzo shares start trading (December 12, 2019): source
• YachtBuyer, Bluegame history and heritage (undated): source
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• Giornale della Vela, Sanlorenzo buys Swan (August 1, 2024): source
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• Superyacht Investor, Perini Navi auctioned to The Italian Sea Group (January 25, 2022): source
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• YachtBuyer, The Italian Sea Group receives five binding offers (October 20, 2026): source
• Bloomberg Tax, Sanlorenzo seeks deal to expand in US (May 29, 2026): source
• Simpson Marine, Piero Lissoni appointed art director (October 22, 2018): source
• Dezeen, Sanlorenzo SX76 interior by Piero Lissoni (January 15, 2019): source
• Pressmare, SD96 interior by Patricia Urquiola (September 10, 2019): source
• itboat, first Citterio Viel yacht for Sanlorenzo (undated): source
• Pressmare, A Point of View curated by John Pawson (April 15, 2022): source
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• SuperyachtNews, Sanlorenzo launches its first methanol-powered yacht (May 20, 2024): source
• YachtBuyer, Sanlorenzo awards list (undated): source
• Simpson Marine, World Yachts Trophies and World Superyacht Awards 2021 (September 15, 2021): source
• Pressmare, Sanlorenzo Alloy wins at the World Superyacht Awards (May 22, 2022): source
• Simpson Marine, SL110A and BGF45 at the Design Innovation Awards 2025 (September 2025): source
• Simpson Marine, Yacht Style Awards 2026 (May 8, 2026): source
• Superyacht24, new regional headquarters at Pier Sixty-Six, in Italian (October 22, 2025): source
• Superyacht24, Sanlorenzo grows in the Americas, in Italian (October 31, 2025): source
• Sanlorenzo of the Americas, new headquarters at Pier Sixty-Six (undated): source
• Marine Industry News, Sanlorenzo updates commercial leadership in the Americas (March 25, 2026): source
• Quotidiano Motori, Sanlorenzo and Bluegame at the Miami boat show, in Italian (February 5, 2026): source
• Sanlorenzo of the Americas, Palm Beach International Boat Show 2026 (undated): source
• YachtBuyer, Bluegame BGX83 US debut at FLIBS 2026 (October 16, 2026): source
• Sanlorenzo of the Americas, Art Basel Miami Beach 2025 with Vogue (undated): source
• Wikipedia, Sanlorenzo S.p.a. (undated; used for early dates, with other sources where noted): source
• Pressmare, The Italian Sea Group moves toward leasing its business, in Italian (October 30, 2026): source

Last updated November 1, 2026. Facts come from the sources listed above, checked on that date, and may change. Not legal, financial, tax or investment advice. Full disclaimer