Capt. Gerry Robertson is entering uncharted waters.
The founder of Bay and Delta Charters is refinancing his 15-year-old company in an attempt to more than double revenue and cruise capacity during the next year.
“Our phone is ringing off the hook,” he said, adding he is forced to turn away some requests because his larger boat can accommodate just 150 passengers for a luxury dinner cruise.
Robertson purchased that craft, the Sausalito Empress, in January for $1.5 million. The boat has been chartered almost every weekend by individual partygoers and corporations, including Google and Yahoo, helping Robertson’s company hike revenue from $360,000 last year to an estimated $1.1 million by the end of 2006.
Emboldened by the hearty and ever-increasing demand for cruising and boozing — he makes much of his money at the bar — Robertson is finding a creative way to finance his next purchase: A $3.5 million yacht that he will re-name the San Francisco Empress. He hopes to buy the 400-passenger vessel, now docked in Miami, by March.
Robertson is working with Bank of Marin to refinance his entire company. He is selling the Avalon — a 49-person craft valued around $285,000 — and is pursuing a small business loan.
The tack is a popular one for private charter companies. Hornblower Cruises and Events, which has grown its fleet from two boats to 30 during the past 26 years, has used everything from private bank loans to limited partnerships and seller-provided financing to fuel its expansion.
“At some point all the boats are financed,” said Hornblower spokeswoman Tegan Firth. With nearly $40 million in revenue last year and an estimated $56 million for 2006, Hornblower is now large enough to access lines of credit to improve existing craft and purchase new ones.
Other local cruise companies, including Signature Yachts and Commodore Events, are also doing brisk business with revenue up more than 10 percent from last year, according to representatives from both companies.
Betting on more business on the bay, Robertson is also designing a 600-person yacht. A former associate of ’70s power ballad rock band Journey, Robertson plans to build it as a floating stage of sorts, measuring 170-feet with three decks.
“It’s a $6 million deal,” he said. “But we’re not ready to go there yet.”
Source: by Lizette Wilson, San Francisco Business Times, Link to original article
