Another year, another crop of inspiring industry leading lights. SABBEX honoured this year’s award winners at the annual showpiece, this time at the Royal Cape Yacht Club.
This year’s ceremony coincided with the culmination of the African Boating Conference and had an international flavour, with several foreign ABC delegates in attendance. They witnessed the camaraderie that is a hallmark of the local sector, no matter the recent economic headwinds in the form of tariffs and market jitters.
“Our industry is built on more than boats,” commented event MC Dean Paarman. “It is built on people who take ideas and turn them into world-class products, who solve complex challenges, who push boundaries and who continue to find ways to compete on the global stage.”
This year’s awards featured a number of new categories, but as per usual the winners represented multiple top yards. A notable winner was Southern Wind CEO Marco Alberti, recipient of the Lighthouse Legend Award in recognition of his longtime contribution to building the local sector. A tribute in his nomination highlighted Marco’s dedicated service: “Under his leadership, Southern Wind has grown from a company of around 30 employees to more than 400, developing into a South African shipyard recognised internationally for building sailing superyachts to the highest standards of technology and quality.”
For the full list of winners, click HERE.