For a brand that traces its origins to 1950s Hong Kong, stepping onto the docks at Genoa for the first time is no small moment. Grand Banks' debut at the Salone Nautico di Genova, better known internationally as the Genoa Boat Show, marks a genuine milestone in the company's ongoing push to deepen its European footprint.
The Genoa Boat Show has anchored the European yachting calendar since its founding in 1962. Today it ranks among the world's largest marine events, drawing more than 120,000 visitors to 200,000 square metres of waterfront and marina space in the 2024 edition alone. For manufacturers, the event follows on from the Cannes Yachting Festival and serves a distinct purpose: a place where industry leaders gather, new technology is put to the test, and builders can engage directly with owners and enthusiasts at the heart of the Mediterranean.
That audience matters enormously to Grand Banks. The Mediterranean is one of the planet's most demanding cruising environments, rewarding yachts that can deliver long-range capability, comfort, efficiency, and elegance in equal measure. These are precisely the qualities the brand has built its reputation on across nearly seven decades of building trawler-style cruisers capable of serious passagemaking. Genoa offers access to exactly the kind of owner who understands and values what Grand Banks stands for: a market where heritage and forward-looking design carry equal weight.
The company's story begins with Robert Newton and his sons John and Whit, who founded American Marine in Hong Kong in the 1950s. In 1964, the first Grand Banks 36 was launched, a boat that helped define what a modern long-range cruising yacht could be. The brand's reputation for craftsmanship and seaworthiness grew from there, producing yachts that brought together elegance and durability in a way that attracted a devoted following.
The contemporary chapter of Grand Banks has been shaped significantly by CEO and Chief Designer Mark Richards, a figure whose credentials in ocean racing are difficult to match. Richards' record includes multiple Admiral's Cup victories, campaigns in the America's Cup, and nine podium finishes in the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race aboard the super-maxi Wild Oats. That competitive background informs a design philosophy centred on efficiency, stability, and performance. Under his direction, Grand Banks has preserved its heritage of fine craftsmanship while integrating advanced construction methods that place its yachts among the most technically accomplished in their class.
Taking centre stage at Genoa is the Grand Banks 60. First launched in 2018, the GB60 has become the clearest expression of the brand's thinking: classic lines on the outside, serious engineering within. Every Grand Banks 60 is built to its owner's specification, with interiors defined by meticulous joinery and a considered sense of flow through the boat. Underpinning it all is Grand Banks' proprietary V-Warp® Technology, a construction method drawn from ocean racing principles that uses advanced materials and lightweight techniques to cut drag, increase structural strength, and improve fuel economy. The outcome is a yacht the company describes as the most fuel-efficient in its class, with the range and sea-keeping ability that genuine long-distance passages demand.
Few cruising grounds put a yacht through its paces quite like the Mediterranean. The region requires versatility, handling everything from lazy coastal daysails to extended offshore legs, and from glassy summer mornings to the hard conditions that a mistral can bring on. The Grand Banks 60's blend of endurance and elegance makes it a natural fit for these waters.
Grand Banks already has an established community in the region, reflected in the Amicale Grand Banks Méditerranée, an association of owners who share the brand's "long haul" philosophy of cruising. The Genoa debut builds on that existing connection, reinforcing ties with a culture that places genuine value on both performance and lifestyle afloat.
Throughout the show, Grand Banks will open the Grand Banks 60 for private tours, giving visitors the opportunity to experience firsthand what the yacht is all about. Having been aboard a Grand Banks earlier this year, we think you'll come away quietly impressed. The access goes beyond a static display, offering a direct encounter with a builder that has been influencing cruising lifestyles for close to seven decades.
Choosing Genoa is a practical and purposeful move. It places Grand Banks in front of Mediterranean owners and operators at one of the most important gatherings in the yachting world, demonstrating how nearly 70 years of craft and design thinking can be brought to bear on what today's long-range cruising market expects. For a brand with deep roots and a clear sense of where it is heading, the first appearance in Genoa is less an introduction than a statement of intent.
