American Market Analysis
Most of what we have been doing is talking about the United States Sailboat Show and why it is good for fleet operators from the Mediterranean to be a part of the Mediterranean Corner, but we did not provide you with a full market analysis of the United States with concrete and new statistics. The US not only has millions of people who sail and travel to Europe, but it also has highly potential travelers who are millionaires, and in general, the US way of organizing holidays is different from the classical European customer’s way.
We analysed the market and have 5 crucial statistics which show why being a part of the Mediterranean Corner and representing the most beautiful countries in Europe is really an opportunity for all fleet operators participating.
1 – Studies show that the value of the global nautical charter market is growing, and they show that the growth will be optimistic and stable over the next few years. By 2025, the market will almost double in value. There is a growth due to the increase in number of rich individuals, and of course the rise in popularity of traveling and sailing overseas.
2 – Americans are becoming richer and there are more and more millionaires today than there were before. According to a Global Industry Analyst survey conducted in 2017, the popularity of sailing among millionaires is growing. Did you know that the United States leads with the most households of millionaires? There are 19,134 households in where millionaires live!
3 – A study from 2016 mentions that 87 million of US citizens participate in some kind of recreational sailing. This can be for sporting, fishing, and even travelling. Many of these are of course the richer consumers whose planned consumption exceeds the average standards.
They are willing to travel across to another continent and experience something completely new. Another statistic mentions that more than 90% of all journeys of American charters were related to leisure and recreation.
4 – Statistics show that:
– 52% of people who go sailing like to sail with their friends
– 25% like to sail with their families
– 15% with their partners
– 5% with their co-corkers.
When looking at their demographics, we can divide them in two groups:
– Baby boomers are between 50-68 years old. More than 80% are married and 85% have university degrees.
– Millenniums are the younger group with people between 20-37 years old. 20% of these are only married, and 95% have university degrees! Both of these groups spent more than a week sailing last year and showed great interest in nautical tourism in Europe.
The most recognized destinations of American charter tourist overseas, based on bookings are: Greece, Croatia, Italy, Turkey, Mallorca and France.
5 – The booking habit is completely different when looking at Americans and the Europeans. To compare, studies show that Italian charter tourists book their yachts mostly during the summer season (very close to their time of arrival) and Germans make their bookings a bit before the season (relatively close to their time of arrival). However, Americans are specifically known for making their bookings months in advance. This is great as the USSS is months before the new 2019 season begins!
These 5 pieces of statistics from the market analysis show that taking place at the USSS this October can be and is the right way to enter the American market. They are the type of clients who want to sail in Europe, have the financial means, meet the demographics, and as mentioned, October is when they decide there they will go for holidays!
