Just as happened in the container shipping industry, the Italian shipping company MSC has gone from being a local passenger ship operator in Naples to becoming the fourth largest cruise operator globally in just over two decades. Its ships offer itineraries across all five oceans and destinations on every continent.
Article from CruisesNews magazine
In 1988, Gianluigi Aponte laid the foundations for MSC Cruises when he acquired a stake in StarLauro, the shipping company of his mentor Achille Lauro, which was experiencing financial difficulties following the hijacking of its ship by Palestinian terrorists on October 7, 1985. All of Aponte's businesses have been characterized by rapid organic growth, and the cruise industry was no exception. After announcing, perhaps with excessive ambition, that he would have a fleet of eight ships by 1992, he began by purchasing the Monterey in 1990 to achieve this goal.
But in December 1994, the Achille Lauro caught fire near Somalia while sailing to South Africa, unleashing another negative press campaign that led to the company changing its name. This negative situation, however, prompted Aponte to establish MSC Cruises in 1995. That year, two new ships arrived, both acquired on the second-hand market: the Symphony and the Rhapsody. In this context, MSC Cruises quickly penetrated its natural source market, Italy. Thanks to its cargo services, it also gained traction in South America and South Africa, which it served seasonally during the Northern Hemisphere summer. Nevertheless, by the end of the 1990s, it could be said that MSC Cruises was still virtually unknown to most European cruise passengers, while in its largest source market, North America, its presence was nonexistent.
In 2007, MSC Cruises transported 600,000 people, in 2008 800,000, and in 2010 it exceeded one million passengers.
During those years, MSC was expanding its regular container shipping routes. For example, in 1996 it entered the Europe/Far East trade, for which it built its first two container ships, the MSC Alexa and the MSC Rafaela.
In January 1997, Gianluigi Aponte purchased the StarShip Atlantic for seventy million dollars, which began sailing in June of that year, offering seven-night cruises from Genoa as the Melody, with stops in Capri, Sicily, Tunisia, and Spain. In January 1998, MSC Cruises offered its first Caribbean voyages: alternative twelve-night cruises from Fort Lauderdale, which it repeated the following year.
In 1999, MSC Cruises was set to launch its inaugural season from Venice with the Symphony, offering seven-night round-trip cruises to the Aegean and Adriatic. However, due to the Kosovo War, this had to be changed to Western Mediterranean cruises departing from Genoa, and the honor of the first cruise from the City of Canals went to the Rhapsody a year later.
But Aponte was not willing to remain in obscurity any longer, and with the new century, he decided to transform the company into a cruise line with global ambitions. To this end, amidst a booming economy, he opted to commission his first cruise ships. In 2001, he signed the construction contract for the MSC Lirica and the MSC Opera with Chantiers de l'Atlantique, ships derived from the Mistral project but adapted to MSC's requirements. The Lirica was delivered in 2003. And that same year, MSC became the second-largest container shipping company, a position it still holds. After successfully expanding its global cargo fleet, it was time for cruises.
2004. A pivotal year.
On its path to becoming a global operator, 2004 was a pivotal year. In April 2004, coinciding with the arrival of the MSC Opera, which brought its fleet to five ships, Pierfrancesco Vago joined MSC Cruises as CEO, alongside Domenico Pellegrino as Managing Director and Maurizio Amato as Commercial Director. In addition to this core management team, the company began developing its own global sales network, recruiting leading professionals from the tourism sector. For example, in 2005, Rick Sasso became President of MSC Cruises USA. And in Spain, after a stint as General Agent on the Latitude 4, the company soon opened its own offices, initially with Giovanni Bancalari at the helm, and shortly thereafter, Emiliano González. Domenico Pellegrino, Commercial Director of MSC Cruises, emphasized at the press conference presenting the 2004 season the importance of their presence throughout Italy, "to be close to the 6,000 travel agencies with whom we have established relationships." Alongside these offices, Pellegrino mentioned their international locations in Great Britain, Switzerland, Germany, Belgium, Spain, France, Argentina, Brazil, and the United States. He also announced the opening of new sales offices in Northern Europe.
In just two years, MSC Cruises had a fleet of seven cruise ships.
In addition, MSC Cruises also opened new destinations. That year it marketed cruises to Northern Europe for the first time, offering seven-night cruises to the Baltic Sea and the Norwegian fjords with the Rhapsody in the summer of 2004.
Continuing with the developments of 2004, MSC Cruises adopted a new logo that year, designed to improve brand recognition. The new logo was almost identical to the traditional one: the initials MSC inside a porthole, surrounded by a compass, and the phrase MSC Crociere below. In addition, the funnels changed from white to blue. And in 2008, the logo was incorporated into the hull, at the stern, making MSC Cruises ships instantly recognizable. Also in 2004, the contract was signed to build two 3,000-passenger, 90,000-GT ships at Chantiers de l'Atlantique (MSC Musica and MSC Orchestra) for one billion euros.
2004 was also the year Festival Cruises went bankrupt. MSC Cruises seized the opportunity and purchased two of Festival's ships at auction. The European Vision was christened MSC Armonia in Venice in May 2004. That year, it offered cruises from the city of canals to the Aegean and Adriatic Seas. In November, it crossed the Atlantic to offer cruises in Brazil. Its sister ship, the European Stars, became the MSC Sinfonia in 2005, and that summer it offered cruises from Genoa to the Western Mediterranean.
Thus, in just two years, MSC Cruises magically acquired a fleet of seven cruise ships, four of them ultramodern, which allowed it to lay the foundations for conquering the European market, the company's first objective.
The Music Series:
In May 2005, MSC Cruises USA announced its ambition to operate a ship year-round from an American port. Until then, MSC had only operated a ship from Fort Lauderdale during the winter. At the end of 2004, MSC Cruises sent two ships to the Caribbean from Europe for the first time, the two best in its fleet: the new MSC Opera, which offered seven-night round-trip Caribbean cruises for the first time, and the MSC Lirica, which continued the traditional eleven-night cruises pioneered by the Melody. Even then, MSC Cruises was aiming for a highly visible presence in North America. Under Rick Sasso's leadership, they sought to become a major player in the industry, including ships based year-round in the Caribbean, for which they opened an office in Florida. It was also during this period that MSC Cruises began offering the experience of a stopover on its own island, Cayo Levantado, in the Dominican Republic.
Between 2003 and 2013, MSC Cruises increased its capacity by 640%.
In 2006, MSC Cruises continued its expansion into Northern Europe, notably with the MSC Lirica, which offered Baltic and North Sea itineraries from Kiel. This new offering had been announced by Pierfrancesco Vago, CEO of MSC Cruises, at the ITB Berlin trade fair the previous year. Also in 2006, MSC Cruises, for the first time, called at three British ports with the Rhapsody, departing from Amsterdam.
A significant step in promoting the MSC Cruises brand was its sponsorship of the Alinghi Team at the 2007 America's Cup in Valencia, alongside brands such as UBS, Infonet, Audemars Piguet, SGS, and Nespresso. This initiative, announced in October 2004, was a way to convey MSC Cruises' enthusiasm for the sea and its passion for new challenges to the general public. However, in terms of brand recognition, MSC Cruises' most important move was Sophia Loren. The Italian diva has been the godmother of all the ships in the MSC Cruises fleet, as her presence emphasizes all the company's values: beauty, passion, Italy, and the Mediterranean. Sophia Loren also gave MSC Cruises global brand recognition: she became the face of the cruise line in every corner of the world, spreading the global vocation that MSC Cruises has always had, rooted in its Italian heritage.
Around that time, MSC began deciding on its cruise hubs. In the Mediterranean, it chose Genoa, a port where it embarked more than 220,000 passengers in 2006, a 26% increase, which grew to almost 900,000 in 2015. It also doubled down on its commitment to the Mediterranean, keeping one of its ships (the MSC Sinfonia) in the Mediterranean Sea for the entire winter for the first time, offering eleven- and twelve-night cruises from December 2005 to April 2006 to the Canary Islands and the Eastern Mediterranean. Its other hub was Venice, the port where MSC Cruises launched the MSC Musica in July 2006. That year, MSC Cruises offered twenty-three different itineraries with a fleet of eight ships.
And in Spain, in addition to the traditional stops in Barcelona and Palma, MSC Cruises began offering stops in Valencia with the Opera from May to October 2006 with seven-night cruises to Monte Carlo and Valencia.
MSC Cruises was the first shipowner to offer cruises from Cuba.
Following this philosophy focused on the travel agency distribution channel, MSC launched a new online booking system in 2005 that allows agents to obtain complete information on ship availability and book in real time. This system also offers supplementary information on hotels, flights, excursions, transfers, and special onboard services. In June 2016, Amadeus signed an agreement with MSC Cruises to distribute its product through the Amadeus system. Domenico Pellegrino's statement underscores the importance of this agreement: "This agreement will allow us to increase our global presence and reach within the international travel agency community.".
New concepts for passengers. The Yacht Club.
Although perhaps the most important moment of 2005 was the announcement of the construction of two post-Panamax ships at Chantiers de l'Atlantique, which would later become the MSC Fantasia and MSC Splendida. In March 2006, the order for the third sister ship in the Musica series, the MSC Poesia, was placed. And in March 2007, the contract was signed with Aker for the fourth Musica, the MSC Magnifica, for 410 million euros. In ten years, Vago's team managed a 6 billion euro investment plan to have the most modern fleet in the world and become a global operator.
With the sister ships MSC Fantasia and MSC Splendida came another concept to MSC: the Yacht Club. These ships offered three VIP decks, each with its own restaurant, spa, pool, and dedicated staff. Passengers could visit the rest of the ship, but would have everything they needed on those three decks. The idea behind this concept was to offer a high-quality niche within the MSC product range, rather than creating another luxury brand. The Yacht Club concept was designed for Europeans, North Americans, and emerging markets like Russia. Both sister ships were also the first to receive the Energy Efficient Design label from Bureau Veritas.
In 2008, MSC Cruises christened a ship outside of Italy for the first time: the MSC Poesia in Dover. This was followed by the MSC Splendida in Barcelona in 2009, the MSC Magnifica in Hamburg in 2010, and the MSC Divina in Marseille in 2012. Only two of MSC Cruises' six most recent ships have been christened in an Italian port: the MSC Fantasia in Naples in 2008, and the MSC Preziosa in Genoa in 2013. This marketing effort recognized the company's growing presence in these markets, which were also important destinations for its fleet.
2008 was also the year MSC Cruises entered Formula 1, partially sponsoring the Spanish, French, German, and Brazilian Grand Prix races—precisely the company's most important emerging source markets. According to Pierfrancesco Vago, MSC Cruises' presence in Formula 1 "strengthens our image and emphasizes our position and growth in the market.".
2009. One Million Passengers.
In November 2009, a significant milestone in MSC Cruises' globalization was reached when the company surpassed one million passengers annually for the first time. A 13-year-old Italian boy was chosen to be the first to board the MSC Fantasia in Genoa. MSC Cruises ended 2009 with 1,085,000 passengers, a 36% increase over 2008. All source markets contributed to this achievement: France and Spain, with 65,000 passengers each; Brazil, with 300,000, and so on. In five years, MSC Cruises' capacity had increased tenfold.
In May 2009, the MSC Orchestra made its first port call in New York, docking beneath the Manhattan skyline. And in the winter of 2009-2010, MSC Cruises sent its first modern cruise ship to South Africa, the MSC Sinfonia, opening up that market to such an extent that in subsequent seasons there have always been two MSC ships visiting that destination. In 2010-11, they were the MSC Sinfonia and the Melody.
The new source markets opened by the company, such as the UK, were also growing. In 2009, the Lirica was based in the UK, and after 60% growth, it was replaced by the MSC Opera a year later. In 2011, Southampton replaced Dover as the home port in the British Isles.
MSC Cruises will transport 3.4 million passengers in 2022.
These were the years of the crisis, which also affected MSC Cruises, but the company always maintained its global ambition. Thus, instead of cancelling the fifth and sixth sister ships of the Musica series ordered in September 2008, the company converted that order into the third ship of the Fantasia series in February 2010, which became the MSC Preziosa in 2012.
2010: MSC's Fortieth Anniversary.
In 2010, Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC), the parent company of MSC Cruises, celebrated its fortieth anniversary. It had become the world's second largest shipping company, with more than 420 local offices, 435 ships, and 306 ports of call worldwide. Following this global commitment, MSC Cruises continued to grow and offer new destinations. In the fall of 2010, the MSC Poesia offered its first season in Canada/New England, sailing from New York and Quebec.
In addition to the Copa América and Formula 1, MSC Cruises has expanded its brand by sponsoring several football teams in Italy and Spain. In 2011, it renewed its agreement with AC Milan and signed another with Napoli. Agreements with Lazio and the two Genoa teams, Sampdoria and Genoa, followed. In Spain, in August 2011, MSC Cruises and Valencia CF finalized a sponsorship agreement, making the cruise line the team's Official Cruise Ship, with its logo appearing on the left sleeve of the kit for the following season. In Germany, it sponsors Hamburger SV. MSC Cruises also extends its sponsorship to other sports such as ice hockey and basketball. Finally, MSC Cruises was named the official cruise operator of the 2015 Milan Expo, and some of its ships displayed the Expo Milano 2015 logo on their hulls.
In 2011, Pierfrancesco Vago, CEO of MSC Cruises, joined the CLIA Executive Committee, which was chaired by Howard Frank. Subsequently, Pierfrancesco Vago was elected Chairman of CLIA Europe in 2013 and unanimously re-elected for an additional one-year term after completing his initial two-year term.
MSC Cruises' onboard product itself is also constantly being refined over the years. In 2011, MSC Cruises began opening its ships' buffets in the afternoon, and a year later extended their opening hours again, offering all kinds of food and drinks for twenty hours a day. Also in 2011, MSC Cruises introduced the Aurea Spa Suites on the MSC Splendida and MSC Fantasia, offering significant benefits for wellness enthusiasts.
For a cruise line that has based its global presence on organic growth, acquiring a company is a significant event. In 2011, MSC Cruises acquired Starlight Cruises, its general agent in South Africa for over twenty years. MSC Cruises has historically had a close relationship with South Africa, dating back to the late 1980s, initially with seasons there by the Achille Lauro, Monterey, Rhapsody, and Melody, before the arrival of the MSC Sinfonia in 2009. The next step in MSC Cruises' global expansion was to enter the cruise terminal business. That year, it acquired a stake in Genova Stazione Marittime. Gianluigi Aponte, who already held a stake in the Naples terminal, obtained 45% of the Genoa terminal's capital by purchasing 50% of Grandi Navi Veloci. By 2010, MSC Cruises had embarked nearly 700,000 passengers in the Ligurian capital.
In 2011, rumors began circulating about the purchase of a cruise ship, a sister ship to the MSC Divina, under construction in St. Nazaire and initially commissioned by the Libyan shipping company GNMTC. After arduous negotiations, this ship joined the fleet in 2013 as the MSC Preziosa. That same year, the company sold the Melody, the last of its traditional ships, thus acquiring a state-of-the-art fleet of twelve vessels, all built in St. Nazaire in just ten years. This global expansion led MSC Cruises to become, for a few weeks, the third largest cruise line in the world, surpassing Norwegian Cruise Line. In 2003, MSC Cruises offered 5,000 beds, and by 2012, it had 39,000 across twelve ships—a growth of 640% in only ten years. However, Gianluigi Aponte declared at the end of 2012 that “for the time being, we are suspending our expansion in the cruise sector pending an improvement in the economic situation.” This decision only lasted two years.
New destinations: Persian Gulf, Red Sea, Canary Islands, etc…
The fleet expansion led MSC Cruises to offer new destinations in the Middle East. The first was the Persian Gulf, and from November 2011, the MSC Lirica was based in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, offering seven-night cruises. The following winter, 2012/2013, it was the Red Sea's turn, where the MSC Armonia offered a full season from Sharm El Sheikh. The political instability in Egypt brought an end to those voyages. However, the Persian Gulf destination has seen a significant increase in MSC Cruises' offerings. First came the MSC Lirica in the winter of 2013/2014, while the following two seasons saw the MSC Orchestra and MSC Musica cover that destination. Next winter, the MSC Fantasia will sail those latitudes.
MSC Cruises' departure from the Red Sea meant its arrival in the Canary Islands, where the MSC Armonia offered two alternative itineraries from Las Palmas in the winters of 2013/14 and 2014/15.
In Germany, Europe's largest source market, MSC Cruises began offering cruises from Hamburg in the summer of 2012 with the MSC Lirica, which operated 25 cruises. As had happened in other destinations, it was soon replaced by a larger ship, the MSC Magnifica, before finally arriving in 2015 with the MSC Splendida. This marked the first time a Fantasia-class ship offered cruises in Northern Europe, totaling thirteen voyages, including MSC Cruises' first Arctic Circle cruises. In 2016, MSC Cruises expanded its offerings from Germany, introducing a second Fantasia-class ship, the MSC Fantasia, departing from Kiel and replacing the MSC Orchestra. This complemented the MSC Splendida, which continued its service from Hamburg. Furthermore, the MSC Splendida offered several cruises from Southampton that summer, after a year's absence.
In the fall of 2013, MSC Cruises' newest ship, the MSC Divina, was based year-round in the Caribbean at its new homeport of Miami. The company had previously planned to operate it only during the winter months, as it had done in recent years from Port Everglades. This marked the first time a Fantasia-class ship had been deployed to the Caribbean. The Divina returned to the Mediterranean in the summer of 2015 and remains permanently based in Miami, offering three different itineraries.
For the first time, the 2013 MSC Cruises catalog featured a section dedicated to MSC Grand Voyages: special cruises for discovering the world. One of these MSC Grand Voyages was the first cruise to Australia, announced in December 2013. The MSC Orchestra sailed for 33 days between Dubai and Fremantle in March and April 2015, before returning to Europe.
With the arrival of Gianni Onorato,
MSC Cruises decided to strengthen its management team with a high-profile appointment: Gianni Onorato. The former president of Costa Cruises was appointed CEO in August 2013, reporting directly to Pierfrancesco Vago. Onorato's appointment consolidated the MSC Cruises management team, strengthening it for a second phase of expansion beyond 2017, even more intense than that experienced between 2003 and 2013.
The first challenge Onorato had to lead was the lengthening and modernization of the four sister ships of the Lírica series, a €200 million project called Renaissance. The capacity of each ship was increased by almost 200 cabins, and they also received a water park, lounges, shops, and other amenities.
The new orders arrived in 2014. In March, MSC Cruises signed a letter of intent with STX France to build two 168,000 GT, 4,500-passenger ships, named Vista, with an option for two more, to be delivered in 2017 and 2019. Also in March, a second order was signed, this time with the Italian shipyard Fincantieri, to build two new Seaside-class ships, with an option for a third. Two series of ships at two shipyards, with the aim of doubling their capacity by 2022. MSC Cruises is the only cruise line capable of building two different classes of ships in parallel, at a cost of more than €5 billion, which will allow it to offer around 80,000 berths by 2022, representing approximately 3.4 million passengers per year. And in February 2016, MSC Cruises converted the two Vista prototype options into two ships, with 2,444 cabins, and even a contemporary art museum on board.
Gianni Onorato stated in April 2014 that MSC Cruises would reach two million passengers annually in 2017, with the delivery of its first Vista ship, the MSC Meraviglia, after three years in which it had transported approximately 1,700,000 people. That year, MSC Cruises was publishing its brochures in eighteen languages and offering around 1,000 itineraries between October 2014 and April 2016.
Onorato has also reached agreements with other leaders to make MSC cruises even more universal: Chicco and Lego in 2014, to strengthen the offering for families; Samsung, this year, to turn MSC ships into “smartships” and attract “millennials”; Eataly, in 2013, to maintain the essence of Italian gastronomy on board… But perhaps the most talked-about is the arrival of Cirque du Soleil on the stages of the new MSC Cruises ships, starting with the Meraviglia next year, for which a special venue has been built on board that will cost more than twenty million euros.
New destinations: Cuba, China, …
The strengthening of MSC Cruises in traditional destinations in South America, the Middle East, the Mediterranean and Northern Europe, along with a firm commitment to the traditional Caribbean from Miami and new destinations such as Cuba and China, confirm in this last year the commitment of the Geneva-based shipping company to improve its global offering.
A stronger presence in the world's largest cruise market, North America, is a priority for MSC Cruises. A cruise line with global aspirations cannot turn its back on the biggest cruise market. Thus, the first ship in the Seaside series will be based in Miami year-round, enhancing the seasonal offerings of the MSC Divina. Furthermore, Pierfrancesco Vago finalized an agreement with the Port of Miami for a dedicated terminal. And the latest step in the company's commitment to the Caribbean was the announcement last December of the creation of a private island in the Bahamas, Ocean Cay MSC Marine Reserve, which will cost $200 million, thanks to a 100-year concession. After two years of construction, it will open alongside the MSC SeaSide, offering more than three kilometers of beach, a 2,000-seat amphitheater, a pier, and more. This new attraction will be used by ships based in both Florida and Cuba.
In July 2015, MSC Cruises, thanks to its status as a privately owned European cruise line, decided to launch its Cuba cruise line for the 2015/16 winter season, offering sixteen cruises departing from Havana on the MSC Opera. In just six months, MSC Cruises was able to launch this destination virtually from scratch: flights, excursions, logistics, etc., in a monumental effort. But the reward was an excellent reception for the Cuba product, which led the company to allocate a second ship, the MSC Armonia, to the island the following winter.
MSC Cruises' ambition to conquer the Chinese market is longstanding. In April 2008, MSC Cruises signed an agreement with Shanghai Port International Cruise Terminal to create a travel agency through a joint venture. One of the objectives of this initiative was to bring the advantages of cruise travel to the Chinese market. MSC Cruises began selling cruises in the Chinese market in 2010. However, it wasn't until Gianni Onorato's arrival in 2013 that the decisive steps were taken. Onorato had led Costa's entry into China and was familiar with the market. In September 2015, MSC Cruises announced its entry into the Chinese market with the MSC Lirica, in partnership with the tour operator CAISSA Touristic. The ship was first refurbished to suit Chinese tastes, while maintaining the essence of MSC Cruises. The MSC Lirica arrived in Shanghai on May 1st and has since been offering cruises to Korea and Japan.
World Class
But the real bombshell of 2016 for MSC Cruises (and the industry in general) was the announcement of the construction in France of four World Class prototype ships, which will run on liquefied natural gas to avoid pollution. These four ships (two firm orders and two options) will have a gross tonnage of over 200,000 GT and carry more than 5,400 passengers, and will be delivered in 2022, 2024, 2025, and 2026. With this order, MSC Cruises' backlog comprises eleven ships, eight in France and three in Italy, far surpassing that of any other cruise line in the sector today.
This tremendous expansion led MSC Cruises to offer a new brand positioning, with a renewed focus on the MSC Cruises experience, its professionalism, dedication, and attention to detail. The new communication campaign, based on the slogan “Not just any cruise,” highlights the essential principles that distinguish the MSC Cruises experience: the modern ships with spacious cabins and elegantly designed decks; the gastronomy; and the entertainment, with partners such as Cirque du Soleil. At the campaign launch, Gianni Onorato, CEO of MSC Cruises, stated, “We are a very ambitious company that will double in size over the next six years. It is important that we develop our positioning in line with this growth to ensure that our travelers’ experiences meet or even exceed their expectations. The new positioning, which is a renewed evolution of our core values, clearly demonstrates our passion for offering our guests unique onboard experiences, taking care of even the smallest detail.”.
MSC Cruises, which carried more than 1.7 million passengers in 2015, is poised to remain the dominant player in Europe, with an annual capacity of over four million passengers by 2026 based on current orders. In key markets such as Italy, Germany, Spain, and France, the company's growth has led to increased market share. Also during the last fiscal year, the company further strengthened its leadership in South America and South Africa. In South America, the best example of MSC Cruises' dominance was its four ships (MSC Splendida, MSC Lirica, MSC Armonia, and MSC Poesia) anchored in Copacabana on New Year's Eve, with more than 12,000 passengers watching its famous fireworks. In South Africa, it remains the only cruise line with a continuous presence, winter after winter.
Furthermore, the global reach of its offering expanded beyond the core of the Mediterranean and Northern Europe, becoming the first cruise line in the world to make Cuba its home port. And a second ship is on its way. In May 2016, it also deployed its first ship in China, while continuing to strengthen its presence in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Oman. In the Caribbean, MSC Divina is now operating year-round from Miami, and next year the MSC Seaside will arrive… And to think that all this began in Sorrento less than 50 years ago.
