Established in 1994 by Jonny Horsfield, H2 Yacht Design is the studio behind some of the world’s most spectacular superyachts. Sitting down with Jonny, BOAT spotlights some of company’s rich and varied achievements.
How did H2 Yacht Design begin?
My partner Steve Howard (now retired) and I started H2 in 1994 after we were both made redundant. It was the middle of a global economic crisis, and we did what we had to do. There were fewer new builds in those days and a greater focus on used yachts, so through brokers, such as Alex Braden of YPI, we carved out a niche in refit, largely in Turkey and Mallorca. It was hard work but a good way of building the business. I’ve worked in Turkey for more than 30 years now and we’re one of the most high-profile yacht design houses in the region. We’re currently working on our 13th project with Turquoise Yachts, as well as our 10th with Bilgin.
Where else are you focusing your attention?
We’re in the middle of opening an office in Nice, France which will give us a greater presence in Monaco and on the French Riviera. It’s where much of the brokerage community is based and will make yards like Sanlorenzo [based across the border in Italy] more convenient. I don’t feel that London is the epicentre of yachting anymore. In terms of current projects, we have a 74-metre and an 80-metre at Bilgin, an 87-metre, a 79-metre and a 75-metre at Turquoise, a 120-metre at AKYacht and a 52-metre with Sanlorenzo, plus the interior of 195-metre REV Ocean, the soon-to-be world's largest superyacht.
Is there one yacht that you consider to be the turning point of your career?
There have been a few. The first was 54-metre Talisman (now Talisman Maiton), built at Proteksan Turquoise in 2006. We’d designed some smaller new builds before then, but I persuaded Tim Wiltshire of Burgess, a young broker in those days, to put me in front of the client. I won the project and it was a big success. Our next significant yacht after that has to be the 123-metre Lürssen Al Lusail. To build such a large and prestigious yacht at an iconic German shipyard was hugely significant for me.
What’s the secret to good yacht design?
Our sweet spot is the 60- to 90-metre range, but I’ve learned over the years that the least provocative yachts prove the most successful with clients. The 77-metre Go, built at Turquoise in 2018, isn’t a radical design, yet it appears that more people like Go than Al Lusail.
Most clients are quite conservative; they gravitate towards existing designs with resale value rather than something they’ve never seen before. Our interior for Tatiana, an 80-metre Bilgin, is a good example. The popularity of that yacht came out of nowhere, and we picked up four projects off the back of it. I’m often asked by clients to design them an icon, but that’s like trying to write a hit single – it’s virtually impossible to predict what will be a success.
Is REV Ocean your most unusual interior design to date?
It’s unusual on many levels. It’s what I call industrial chic, but more importantly, it’s true to its commercial vessel construction, with concrete wall panels and a lot of hard finishes, such as stone, marble and metal. The idea was to not make it look like a superyacht but rather celebrate its industrial materials.
The owner had been aboard the first expedition boat we designed, the 107-metre Ulysses (now Andromeda) built for Graeme Hart in 2016, and appreciated what we’d achieved. Ulysses was a steep learning curve for us. The level of detail wasn’t quite as sophisticated as REV Ocean but it was more than enough at the time.
Do you have a preference between exterior and interior design?
Around 80 per cent of our business is interior, but I don’t have a preference. I trained in automotive design and transport so I gravitate towards exteriors, but I worked on interiors from day one. You either have the brain for design or you don’t, but I believe you can design anything if you put your mind to it. We also do residential work; we’ve just finished a villa in Lugano for a yacht client and a New York apartment in the tallest building in America.
What’s the studio’s balance between custom and production yachts?
Our work is predominantly custom, though we recently designed the interiors for Damen Yachting's SeaXplorer 60, which is a semi-production boat. Production boats can be more challenging as there are certain points you can’t change, and the budgets tend to be stricter. Equally though, having a blank paper with no limits and a million client decisions is just as ambitious.
Who have been your mentors?
Martin Francis gave me my first break and inspired me to get involved in yacht design. I’m still friends with him now. When I later went to work for Donald Starkey, he taught me the mechanics of interior design, as well as the commercial side of yachting.
And your career highlight to date?
I’ll never forget seeing Al Lusail launch. That was a big moment for me because I felt we had finally reached a level. When you’re running your own business, you always measure yourself against your competitors, and I don’t think you can do much more in yachting than build a 123-metre yacht with Lürssen.
To find out more about H2 Yacht Design, visit its London studio, tucked away in a quiet courtyard by the river in Putney, or its new office in Nice.
W: h2yachtdesign.com
E: jonny@h2yachtdesign.com
T: +44 (0)208 788 5008
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