Issue five

A gradual affair

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Words by Andrew Johansson and photography by jeff brown

We have always had a passion for sailing, reveals Paola Trifir, who with husband Salvatore the founding member of one of the key law firms in Italy with offices in Milan, Rome, Turin and Genoa own 49.7m Zefira. The Fitzroy Yachts build serves an experienced couple who have steadily climbed up the sailboat ladder, having previously owned nine smaller vessels before building the Dubois Naval Architects design. Business editor Don Hoyt Gorman caught up with Paola at New York Yacht Club recently where Dubois Yachts and Fitzroy Yachts, along with sponsor The Superyacht Owner, invited owners to an exclusive evening event celebrating yacht ownership, design and manufacturing. Here, Paola imparts practical advice for would-be owners regarding the value of having a strong team for new build projects.

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A gradual affair

The Trifirs passion for yachting has been a gradual affair and not one purely focused on the love of sailing but as a means to experience new places and cultures to expand their knowledge of the world. My first sailboat was a seven-metre yacht called Calife, built in France, recalls Paola, a family and inheritance lawyer. Prior to qualifying within her chosen field, Paola developed an interest within law after acting as an assistant to Cesare Grassetti, a civil law professor and the dean of law at the university of Milano in his heyday. When I met my husband Salvatore who shares the same passion for sailing we decided to upgrade to an eight-metre yacht. This continual upgrade went on to see us owning an 11.5m and then a 14m by Dufour, which felt like a superyacht to us at the time. Like most owners, the Trifirs dont spend as much time sailing as they would like, and commit every spare moment and vacation to being on board. An average of five weeks of the year over the summer and winter seasons, and a week at the beginning of spring, is spent sailing. Paola admits that the couples many years of sailing often leads them back to the Mediterranean. The unique blue waters of Sardinia, Greece and Turkey, all of these places offer such rich culture, charged with ancient history, as well as a great location for watersports and silent bays, says Paola. When it came to building Zefira, the pair knew how they wanted to use the vessel,

and with the experience of having sailed sloops, ketches and also yawls, they were fully versed in the type of sailboat they were after. We changed from a Cantieri di Pisa an old, classic, yet elegant, wooden boat to a Jongert build, which has a hard steel keel and offered great overall comfort. We then changed from this to the sleek and elegant boats by Dubois Naval Architects. We got to know Ed Dubois after we bought the 40.3m Kokomo of London [now Nuberu Blau], and started a wonderful friendship. When we decided to build our new boat Zefira, the collaboration with the studio was easy and fruitful, reveals Paola. With the desire to have a yacht that would perform well in light wind conditions, the UK-based naval architects studio was given a detailed list of what the Trifirs wanted from their yacht. One of the main requests was for the exclusion of a flybridge,

The unique blue waters of Sardinia, Greece and Turkey, all of these places offer such rich culture, charged with ancient history, as well as a great location for watersports and silent bays. Paola Trifir, owner of Zefira

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A gradual affair

which is more common on yachts of this size. Instead the couple wanted to be as low to the water as possible, and to have a sailing yacht that offered 360-degree views of the sea. The idea of being open and close to the water was paired with a clean and simple interior provided by French architect Rmi Tessier. We like to keep to the same idea of having no more than three guest cabins to avoid any confusion or overcrowding, so we can enjoy cruising with our best friends, says Paola. With Zefira, it was important for us to have a large aft deck and an extremely wide beach platform. Again, this gives us more room to enjoy the sea and surrounding area. For most owners, the enjoyment of a project starts at the onset of the design phase, and if managed correctly, the subsequent build phase can be as exciting

as sailing the finished product. However, ownership is not without its frustrations and something that hasnt escaped Paola and Salvatore is the burden of heavy taxation. This point represents a heavy handicap for everybody who wants to build a boat, explains Paola. The desire to sail the boat of our dreams meant that we submitted to all the taxes due. However, the problem remains that the nautical sector is heavily penalised, and continues to be every day. When you consider how much work it produces and the employment it provides for thousands of people, and the links it has to various activities, events and associated markets, the industry would be far more enjoyable if more attention from the powers that be were given to reducing the level of taxation to facilitate investment in this sector.

Zefira provides a sense of freedom and allows us to enjoy the sea and sporting activities. We get a great amount of satisfaction from our investment, and it gives us a lot more than anything else. Paola Trifir, owner of Zefira

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A gradual affair

Opening page: Zefira sailing in the 2011 Dubois Cup in Porto Cervo. Previous page: (Top) Paola and Salvatore Trifir at the helm; (Below) Zefira at anchor in Fiji. This page: (Top) At 49.7m Zefira is the largest fast-cruising sloop Dubios has designed without a flybridge; (Below) The sleek lines of the main saloon.

Unfortunately for EU residents there are no easy ways of getting around costs such as VAT when building a yacht for private use within Europe. However, tax is not the only element to consider when trying to minimise costs. As the Italian owner stresses, it is crucial to have a solid and experienced team behind you, as this will save you money in the long run by avoiding mistakes. Its fundamental to seek advice from your captain and project manager throughout the construction phase, advises Paola. The fee for their services will be largely compensated for by the final and finished result. Our captain and our architects, Ed Dubois, Malcolm McKeon and interior designer Rmi Tessier, have shown the highest degree of competence, skill and integrity. When caught up in the excitement of a new project, it is easy to get swept away by the aesthetics and gadgets. However, as Paola explains, you can always change fabrics but to alter a layout is far more expensive. You can change a lot of aspects on a secondhand boat, such as the upholstery, loose furniture, colours, and so on which still costs money, mind you but you cant modify the spaces without enormous costs. Paola also highlights the importance of going below the skin of a design, paying special attention to the engine room and all the mechanical aspects with the help of an experienced captain. In doing so, an owner will save time in the long run, as it will ensure the operational aspects of the vessel. The enjoyment of sailing excursions does not come without a price but it is one that the Trifirs are happy to pay, as Zefira does not merely provide a beautiful holiday; for the Italian couple, it adds to their quality of life. According to Paola, yachting costs are completely transparent, and they run Zefira as any of their other properties, ensuring the yacht is always maintained. Zefira provides a sense of freedom and allows us to enjoy the sea and sporting activities, says Paola. We get a great amount of satisfaction from our investment, and it gives us a lot more than anything else.

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