The interview Martin Bellamy

CAREER
detaIls
w Current role:
Chairman and CEO
of Salamanca Group.
Bellamy founded the
company in 2002
and is responsible
for running the group
and overseeing
its continued
development.
w Work experience:
Previously Bellamy
worked at WPP, a
British multinational
advertising and public
relations company,
and served in the
British Army after
training at Sandhurst.
He has an MBA from

Photo: Madeleine Fitzsimons

Reading University
and is a fellow of the
Royal Geographical
Society. In 1997, he
Bellamy photographed near salamanca rowed across the
groups Mayfair headquarters in london Atlantic Ocean.

Martin Bellamy
Chairman & CEO | Salamanca Group
The founder of Salamanca Group is convinced that greater fnancial
regulation will hit the industry shortly and when it does his new venture
OneOcean will be poised for action

S
IntervIewed By JulIet BennIng

alamanca Groups chairman and CEO,
Martin Bellamy, is in no doubt that greater
regulation, and in particular, the fnancial
services practice of onboarding, will hit
the superyacht industry within the next
few years. It will happen Bellamy tells me
with absolute conviction. The industry is never going
to get over its own problems if it doesnt accept that
regulation is going to be a big part of its future. I
promise you, in fve years time no-one is going to be
able to charter a boat without understanding where the
source of funds is from he warns.
Onboarding is a process that the fnancial sector has
already been through and which traces the source of
client funds, checking their legitimacy. Over a period of
time its these kinds of regulations that will make an
industry like this raise its game. It will be a real shake
up. Its an irreversible trend so you might as well be
aware of it and be prepared for it, Bellamy tells me.
I have met Bellamy on a dull London day in a
charming French brasserie a stones throw from
Salamanca Groups Mayfair headquarters. Salamanca
Group is a company name starting to be heard on the
lips of industry players due to its substantial
$100million investment in Barcelonas Marina Port Vell,
which having been overhauled, is set to become a
serious contender as one of the worlds fnest
superyacht facilities. Moreover the Group is in
discussions about making an investment into the
marinas neighbouring reft yard, MB92, and has created
a transatlantic service collaboration with Rybovich in
West Palm Beach.

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 The interview

Salamanca Group itself was Training at Sandhurst

founded in 2002 and has grown
into a multinational company
that covers investment and
advisory, corporate risk services,
business intelligence and
investigations, as well as private
client advisory. The acquisition
of Marina Port Vell represented
its frst foray into the marine
industry and the decision was
made based upon the marinas
location and competitive price, Its an amazing asset in
the middle of a city Bellamy enthuses. The real
winning thing about buying it was that we bought it
competitively but we didnt need to build anything
around it as it had the most amazing city surrounding it
and the development of that part of Barcelona over the
last four years has made it almost unrecognisable. The
group famously announced its grand ambition to
transform the run down marina at the Monaco Yacht
Show in 2011.
Strong focus
Ambition and tenacity clearly run strong through
Bellamys blood. Its these inclinations that appear to
dictate the pace and fow of both his business and
personal goals. Clearly well versed in delivering answers
to interviewers, he maintains an unrelenting focus
throughout our meeting. Though as polished and sharp
in appearance as any city high roller one might meet,
educated Bellamy in
lifelong leadership skills
Bellamy also has the poise and
immaculate manners of a true
English gent. He admits he
wasnt academically minded at
school, but excelled at sports
and upon leaving went
straight to the Royal Military
Academy Sandhurst. The
experience taught him invaluable leadership skills,
which he refers back to regularly. Sandhurst is great at
getting you to understand the principals of leadership
he explains. The frst eight years of my career were
really formative in terms of learning about what it takes
to lead. [As an offcer] you eat last and you get paid last.
You get the accolades but if it goes badly its your fault.
It can be a pretty lonely place when its not going so
well. You should never expect somebody to do
something you would not be prepared to do yourself.
Youve got to be able to communicate effectively. Other
people have got to know whats in your mind and what
youre trying to achieve.
After years of the rigorous institutional parameters
of both school and the army, Bellamy was itching to do
his own thing. But this was not before he had pulled yet
more from his infnite personal well of fortitude by
rowing unsupported across the Atlantic a feat, which
at 72 days, meant Bellamy and his rowing partner Mark

TO THE POINT
How have you found coming into
the industry from an outsiders
point of view?
I think the important thing is
not to get too drawn in. My
time is best spent working out
strategically what direction
OneOcean should go in. Its for
other people in time who are
executives within the business
to work within the industry but
I think you need to challenge
the status quo a bit. Ive been
to quite a few industry events,
boatshows, and if youre just
going to try and slot in and do the
rest as everyone else thats not
very productive for the industry.
What kind of presence do you
think OneOcean will have in the
industry?
I think we need to approach it
from a slightly diferent direction
and I think that to some extent
OneOcean should be fairly well
under the radar because if youre
going to speak with a very high
profle client they probably
want a business thats relatively
discreet thats not going to
wear bright colours and hold the
biggest parties in the world. It
needs to be diferent because if
you do throw the biggest parties
at any event one thing you wont
get are any clients going to it.
Youll get the industry going
but you wont get any clients.
OneOcean needs to be much
more client focused.
Are your clients coming from
Salamanca Group?
Our primary focus is on our own
clients and working with those
clients within the context of the
industry. Its not about stealing
market share this is about
growing market share.
Do you have any forecasts for
the industrys growth?
Theres a lot of analysis out there.
You need to take that analysis
and put it in context. I think
that OneOcean needs to run a
robust business model because
trends can change pretty quickly,
especially in todays economic
climate. I dont think anybody sat
in 2008 would have projected
the trend between 2010 to 2014
in terms of the growth in the
upper end of the market. I think
these things can reverse pretty
quickly so I think youve got to
fnd a business model thats
sustainable.
What do you do with your spare
time?
I like keeping ft when I can. The
truth of the matter is that I dont
have much spare time but one
of the good things about that is
that I enjoy what I do so much. I
dont do it as a lifestyle business

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Mortimer had seriously underestimated their nutritional
needs. One of the things I learned about myself was
that I was pretty determined. We fshed off the boat
towards the end of the race because we ran out of food.
Out of 30, about 20 boats fnished the race. A lot called
for help and got picked up.
Bellamy founded Salamanca Group in 2002 with
current COO David Livingston, naming it after his old
regiment and its namesake, the hard-pressed rowing
boat. All we had were determination and ignorance
our star qualities. Without experience we made tonnes
of mistakes but were determined to make it work. Until
you run your own business you just dont realise how
tough it can be. You eat live and breathe it. Youll never
work harder. The pairs single minded grit was
eventually rewarded by various investors. We were just
not going to take no for an answer and eventually we
managed to raise money. Our frst initial success was a
residential development investment in Poland. It raised
about $15 million.
A retrospective approach to investment banking had
become the example to which Salamanca Group was
fashioned. I admired the old merchant banking model
an era of bespoke closely held relationships. The
Italian Renaissance banks made long-term, long distance
investments. The biggest risk they faced was piracy.
Bellamy explains.
Marina Port Vell represented the Salamanca Groups
frst foray into the marine industry, which was a sector
the company had previously overlooked, Wed never
done anything in the marine space. Why would you?
Bellamy hopes to encourage more UHNWI to invest
in superyachts
but its a business where you have
so many good people involved and
so much enjoyment. Having a lunch
like this is hardly hard work and you
get to meet lots of great people
and go to very interesting places.
There are lots of challenges some
of them good, some of them not
so good.
P041_SB_dec_interview-mg_JB.indd 4
Martin Bellamy
Why on earth would we want to buy a marina?
Bellamy says.
After unveiling the project at the Monaco Yacht Show
in 2011, Salamanca Group encountered some initial
resistance from the head of the Barcelona Port Authority.
Bellamy makes the admission, They were really
annoyed. [The head of the Port Authority] said Who said
you could go to Monaco and say you were going to do
this? But after hed given me a ten-minute dressing
down he came round and said it was a fantastic idea.
And not only has Salamanca Group redeveloped the
entire marina, it has also been strongly involved in the
lobbying towards favourable changes in the Spanish
matriculation tax. I dont want to overstate our impact,
but I think we have had one. Bellamy tells me.
The new venture, OneOcean, aims to
become the pre-eminent provider of services
and facilities to the superyacht sector
The acquisition of the marina, considered by
Salamanca Group to be a long-term investment, already
appears to be paying off, with the company predicting
that the asset has the potential to become one of the
best superyacht destinations in the world.
Welcome regulations
But the ripples of Salamanca Group infuence are
widening within the superyacht industry and are
helping to usher in a wind of change. At a press
conference during the Monaco Yacht Show this year
the lead up to which had been paved with enigmatic
invites revealing minimal information Salamanca
Group unveiled OneOcean, as well as revealing that the
group would take a stake in both Rybovich and MB92.
Bellamy updated SB at our meeting saying, The original
idea was that Salamanca Group would buy a stake in
Rybovich, but in the short term thats more likely to be a
collaboration, which suits us better. The new venture,
OneOcean, aims to become the pre-eminent provider of
services and facilities to the upper end of the superyacht
industry and a trusted advisor to yacht owners.
OneOcean was a concept idea which came about
because we thought if were going to stay in the
industry theres no point sitting on a marina, you might
as well do something thats going to be a bit more
proactive and interesting. There were a lot of people
wed spoken to who were saying how the industry
might change over time. At this point Bellamy
acknowledges his status as something of an outsider,
and comments: Of course, were not in the industry
and, as such, you can be accused of being ignorant and
arrogant and everything else, which Im sure we will be,
but we also have the ability to look from the outside in
which is quite an interesting perspective, he says. Our
view was that its an amazing industry in that it deals
with the most high value assets in the world, but its a
very niche industry. I think there is a genuine wish
within the industry to see it change and to see it
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16/12/2014 15:33
 Theinterview
Bellamy photographed in
Monaco during the launch
of OneOcean
Weve got to be able to look at the business
from a client point of view. Well be very
reactive and very transparent
44 www.SUPERYACHTBUSINESS.NET | DECEMBER2014
P041_SB_dec_interview-mg_JB.indd 5
Bellamy and teammate Mark Mortimer
spent 72 days rowing across the Atlantic
professionalise itself. One of the things that we have
observed is that typically industries like this only change
if there is either self-determined regulation or external
regulation compliance of some description.
If at frst it was hard to see quite how the OneOcean
platform would make such progress for the industry, a
grilling of Bellamy during a tender cruise of Port
Hercule, lifted the fog as Bellamy explained, If we could
help the industry go from 3% to 4% or 5% penetration
weve done our job. If those people coming in think this
industry is starting to get serious, its starting to have
greater compliance, greater regulation, transparency,
greater corporate governance, then new clients can
begin to think buying a yacht is now a decision I dont
just take with my heart but also my head my business
mind can justify it. Bellamy emphasised that new
clients should feel that there is a predictable way into
the market and a predictable way out, with an assured
set of services along the way.
Hopefully OneOcean will be a market leader in
terms of working with the owners and promoting a
greater level of trust and transparency and also a
long-term relationship. Bellamy explained whilst
clearing up any confusion about its role with the
brokers. We will work with the brokers and will advise
clients closely on a non-transactional basis. If youre
advising a client youve got to be prepared to advise
them on everything they do in the sector and sometimes
out of it.
Asked about the levels of funding involved and
strategic plans, Bellamy revealed that OneOcean and
Marina Port Vell are long term investments. A client
advisory service is the best way to go. If you look at the
MartinBellamy
growth of the feet, owning some of the best marine
facilities in the world has got to be an absolute no
brainer. Owning some of the best service facilities in the
world is exactly the same. I think its part of our
responsibility to try and understand the market.
Get the business right
Playing devils advocate I suggested that OneOcean, as a
supporter of the greater regulation of funds coming into
the industry, could become the source of resentment
from brokers keen to make sales regardless of where the
money has come from could a major clean up
operation stunt the number of individuals wishing to
dabble in the market? Bellamy, though new to the
industry, is already a champion for its future integrity,
and drawing from his experience in the fnancial sector,
is steadfast in his conviction that greater regulation is
inevitable. We want to set our company up to say we
come from that background, we understand it, we
subscribe to it. Actually the sooner greater regulation
happens the better, he explains.
Back in London I ask what the reaction to OneOcean
has been since the announcement at the Monaco show.
I think the news has been received extremely warmly,
Bellamy says. Well get turbulence because I think that
people will challenge it, but its one of those things
where we passionately feel that the direction of travel is
right. If were worried about what the industry thinks
about us all of the time then well just fall into the same
trap that other people do. Weve got to back ourselves to
do the right thing. Were not in a hurry to make this the
biggest business in the world by tomorrow. Weve got to
do it step by step to get it right and weve got to be able
to look at the business from a client point of view. Well
be very reactive and very transparent. Well offer good
advice and we wont be conficted. These are the things
that owners want.
Having briefed me fully on Salamanca Group business
and clearly disinclined to reveal much if anything of his
personal life, Bellamy issues a polite apology before
dashing off to his next meeting.
16/12/2014 15:33