“Traveling to uncomfortable and unexplored places is nice, but traveling to uncomfortable places in a comfortable and luxurious way is priceless, and that is where true luxury lies.”.
Article from CruisesNews magazine, issue 47 – December 2018
Manfredi Lefebvre d'Ovidio was born in Rome in 1953, the son of renowned businessman and legislator Antonio Lefebvre de Clunieres di Balsorano. Lefebvre began his career working in family businesses but quickly moved to build his own companies. He took control of Silversea Cruises in 2001, a family-owned company and world leader in luxury cruises, and became its Executive Chairman. He transformed Silversea from a cruise line with four ships into the market leader in ultra-luxury with nine cruise ships sailing to more than 900 destinations worldwide. The fleet continues to expand, with five new ships on order. He also broadened the company's product range by adding the Expedition concept to the fleet, which quickly became the benchmark for luxury cruises. Mr. Lefebvre is a recognized leader in the global cruise industry and has held key roles in CLIA, including European Chairman, Member of the Global Executive Committee, and Chairman from 2007 to 2013. Royal Caribbean has just acquired 66.7% of Silversea.
His father, Antonio D'Ovidio, was a highly regarded maritime lawyer who later became a shipowner. Was his father a dreamer or a visionary?
Undoubtedly a visionary. He was a pioneer in launching Silversea in 1994, a unique concept at the time and clearly differentiated from the mass market. I had the same pioneering spirit when I launched the first fleet of ultra-luxury expeditions in 2008. It was a matter of intuition. Both concepts have proven to be tremendously successful.
How did Antonio D'Ovidio build Silversea's elegant concept in the early 1990s, when everything was focused on opulence and ostentation? What inspired him to create Silversea?
The inspiration he had at that time is the same one I have every time we launch a new product or a new ship. I don't base my intuition on trends or "fashion" or market research. What inspires me most is my way of life and my own vision of life and luxury in the strictest sense of elegance personified.
The first thing I do is put myself in the shoes of the luxury client who isn't looking for ostentation and ask myself, "Would this appeal to me? Would I buy this product? Would it be right for me?" Silversea's clients are very similar to me: they are people who appreciate life's comforts, people who want to enjoy life, see the world, and have enriching experiences, but in a luxurious, understated way, without compromising our unique and exquisite service standards.
It's very simple: traveling to uncomfortable and unexplored places is nice, but traveling to uncomfortable places in comfort and luxury is priceless, and that's where the true luxury that Silversea customers seek lies.
Going back to what inspired my father to create Silversea, it was simply himself: he wanted to create a way of cruising that met his desires and needs.
His first experiences with cruise ships were working at Sitmar in Monaco, before becoming Chairman of Silversea in 2001, with just four ships in the fleet. Now, he faces the company's largest fleet expansion ever, with nine ships currently in service and five more on the way. What sets Silversea apart from other companies and allows it to remain a leader?
This industry is in my DNA. It was my father Antonio Lefebvre's idea and intuition to enter the cruise business. He worked as a lawyer specializing in maritime law and taught maritime and commercial law at the university, eventually becoming a professor at the universities of Bari, Naples, and Rome in 1938. He had extensive knowledge of and passion for the maritime field: in 1988, my father bought a majority stake in Sitmar Cruises, merging it with Princess Cruises from P&O a year later, and in 1994 he founded Silversea Cruises with two ships specially designed for the line. He loved this business his entire life. I share his passion. My career in this field began at a young age, while I was a student at the naval academy in Venice.
Since 2001, I have worked to make Silversea Cruises the successful company my father envisioned from its inception.
2018 was a pivotal year for Silversea's organic and inorganic growth; we partnered with RCCL. Thanks to this partnership, Silversea can grow further and faster, in line with our long-held ambition to lead the way in comfort, luxury, and unforgettable experiences through our unique product and value proposition. We are currently awaiting the launch of five new ships.
Is Silversea today the project you envisioned building when your father started this adventure?
It's exactly what my father wanted to achieve. It's the perfect realization of his dream. This makes me very proud of the company today.
If you had to choose one of these words to define Silversea today, which would it be?
a. Tradition
b. Ultra-luxury
c. Gastronomy
d. Experience
e. Elegance
It would be 'Experience'. This is our main objective: the company's mission is to create profound and incredible travel experiences for our guests from scratch, going beyond what is currently available in the market. All of this is organized under the banner of luxury, elegance, and the uniqueness of the travel experience. We not only take our clients to the most incredible places in the world, but we also immerse them in the authentic beauty of each of our destinations and provide them with unique experiences. Of course, the element of ultra-luxury will always be a prerequisite.
You were the founder and first president of CLIA Europe in 2013. How do you foresee the European cruise market? Industry data shows that the German market is the main source of customers in Europe. Do you think this trend will continue to expand and that Germany will remain the driving force behind the growth of the cruise industry in Europe?
I believe the cruise industry will continue to grow in Europe, and of course, Germany will play a very important role. But for our segment, I expect growth to come primarily from other regions. Germans tend to choose German products, while our positioning is much more international, although it's fair to say that the German market continues to experience positive vertical growth for us, and we would like it to grow even more, hence our commercial presence in Germany.
For our segment, we believe that areas such as Australia, Scandinavia, Eastern Europe, and Benelux will experience significant growth over the next few years, not to mention our more established markets like the US and the UK.
In its early days, Silversea relied heavily on American cruise passengers as its primary source market. Currently, we are experiencing growth in the luxury cruise market in China, Australia, and elsewhere. Which source markets have the greatest potential for your company and are positioned for growth?
As I mentioned earlier, the US is, and will continue to be, Silversea's primary market in terms of volume. That said, we see significant opportunities for growth in other parts of the world, such as Australia and Asia, to name just a couple, in addition to the regions I mentioned in the previous question.
In a world where celebrities are the stars of ship launches in our industry, how did you feel when your daughter Costanza was the godmother of your flagship, the Silver Muse, in 2017?
It might sound trivial, but I was simply proud of her. I often say that I have two daughters in my life: Costanza and Silversea. I couldn't have been luckier in that regard, in the sense that they are both incredible young women. I am so proud of the woman Costanza has become, and it was a very emotional moment for me to have her as the godmother of the Silver Muse.
This choice clearly expresses what Silversea is all about: Silversea is not about celebrities and ostentation; it's about authenticity. We do, in fact, have many celebrities sailing with us, but we never publicize it. Every Silversea guest is treated with special privileges. They are all celebrities to us. I can tell you that I also valued the idea of asking one of our most important and loyal guests to be the godmother of the Silver Muse, as they are part of our extended family.
The Expedition product is for future generations an incredible way to discover the comfort of our ships and satisfy their personal desires to discover the world in a different way.
Since Silversea's inception, the godmothers of its ships have been female family members. Will this tradition continue in the future? You still have five more ships to christen!
Actually, for the christening of Silver Discoverer, Silversea's third Expedition ship, we had a godmother who wasn't a family member, but a very close friend: she was a colleague and friend of my father, a professor of Maritime Law at the University of Rome, Tor Vergata.
Regarding future godmothers, I can't reveal anything at this stage, but, as mentioned before, we could explore other options…
When Silversea started, there was little competition in the ultra-luxury segment, but now the company competes with lines like Regent, Ponant, and Seabourn, and even with strong new players like Scenic and Ritz-Carlton. What is Silversea's value proposition that allows it to stay ahead of the luxury market? Do you think there are risks of oversupply in this segment?
Not yet. The ultra-luxury cruise industry is growing and will continue to grow in the coming years. I still believe there's room for all of us. That's why new players in the industry aren't a threat; they're a challenge to improve and an opportunity for all of us to grow this wonderful business.
Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has acquired a 67% stake in Silversea at a valuation of $2 billion. Why not buy it outright?
Firstly, because the company wasn't for sale, and secondly, because I'm not ready to retire. This is still my life. I'm still too young to simply sell everything and retire! All joking aside, RCCL's objective was to keep me as a major shareholder, as this will ensure the company's continued growth, based on the successful strategy we've followed since its founding.
What makes RCCL different from any other suitor? Was Richard Fain a key factor in your decision?
The ultra-luxury industry is growing well, so it's quite logical that there are many interested parties in this segment. I've known Richard for over 20 years, so I knew we shared the same vision. What convinced me to sell part of the company wasn't the financial gain, but the real growth potential for Silversea to expand much further and faster in the future.
Since taking office, you've always had many friends in the cruise industry. One of them, Torsten Hagen, the president of Viking, even named the Italian restaurants on his ships after you. How do you value this respect in such a competitive industry?
It's incredibly valuable. We don't see each other as competitors; we see each other as allies with a common goal: to increase the penetration of this industry and drive its growth. In this sense, I have many friends, and many of them are great visionaries and managers in this sector. We trust and respect each other. Tor named his Italian restaurant after me, and I must admit it's quite good! In return, I've named our libraries after him: across the entire Silversea fleet, the library is called the "Tor Observation Library." I've also placed a nice photo of the two of us in each library!
The company's mission is to create profound and incredible travel experiences for our guests from scratch, going beyond what is currently available in the market. All of this is organized under the banner of luxury, elegance, and a truly unique travel experience.
Demographics are always fundamental to the business strategy of luxury cruise lines. It's always about who you're targeting and how to best reach them. How is Silversea delivering its value proposition to new generations while also retaining repeat customers?
Our strategy is never a revolution, it's always an evolution. In this sense, we're never perceived as "disruptive" or "disruptive" by our loyal customers. Our goal is, of course, to attract new customers while pampering our valued members of the Venetian Society. We conduct meticulous market research to ensure we're heading in the right direction.
Furthermore, we're quite focused in terms of objectives, meaning our aim isn't to be desired by everyone. We don't need to win everyone over. We focus on baby boomers, and our product is tailored to their needs. We know we're not the most important thing for Gen X or millennials, but this is consistent with our strategy: we want our main target audience to feel comfortable traveling with us, so we have to adapt our product to their needs.
Silversea has also been a pioneer in expedition cruising since the introduction of Silver Explorer in 2008. How has the market responded to this product range? Do you see this as a product for generations seeking true luxury experiences combined with the adventure of unexplored or off-the-beaten-path destinations?
Silversea has always been a pioneer. We launched the company with a strong and unique concept in 1994, and since then we have continued to bring innovation to the industry. So it was no surprise that Silversea reinvented the expedition industry again in 2008. It was a matter of intuition. For many years, the industry remained stagnant or saw little growth, and now we are seeing a large number of not only new ships, but also many new entrants in this segment. Silversea started the luxury expedition segment 10 years ago, and many people were skeptical about whether luxury expeditions would work. Many asked, “How does luxury relate to expedition travel?” We set the standard for luxury expeditions, and many are following our lead. Expedition cruising is certainly booming, with an unprecedented number of new ships currently on order. Of course, for future generations, it's an incredible way to experience the comfort of our ships and fulfill their personal desires to discover the world in a unique way.
In terms of destinations, what are the new frontiers for cruise ships? Are there really any limits for a man like yourself who sails all seven continents and calls at more ports than any other cruise line—over 900?
The world's most wonderful destinations are countless, but continuing to innovate is a huge challenge. We like to offer places not typically associated with luxury, yet we allow our guests to enjoy them with Silversea's standard of comfort.
The only barrier we face is related to the places we can safely visit: in some cases, we have to temporarily avoid certain destinations for a while due to political or stability reasons—the Black Sea, for example.
Silversea's first ships, the Cloud and the Wind, were small at 16,000 GT each. The next two, the Shadow and the Whisper, were 75% larger. Their flagship, the Silver Muse, and its sister ship, the Silver Moon, when it sails, will be two 40,000 GT ships each—250% larger than their first ships in the 1990s. Will Silversea retain its intimate and welcoming character on board these new ships?
Absolutely. We must remain true to the original principles established by my father when the company was launched. Our ships must be intimate, our onboard service must be tailored and committed to our guests' enjoyment, and our voyages must be personalized for an immersive cruising experience.
It's obvious his father was a visionary, as many companies are now carving out space for the ultra-luxury sector. How do you see MSC, also a family business, entering that sector?
I wish them all the best and welcome MSC and my good friend Pierfrancesco Vago to the luxury field, of course. MSC will enter the segment with a very different concept than Silversea, as the dimensions of their ships are quite different from ours, but I'm sure they will bring tremendous added value to the luxury yacht market.
