|
|
|
Every once in a great while, life offers up a moment that changes every moment that follows it.
by Jim Gilbert
|
01/01/2005
|
Every once in a great while, life offers up a moment that changes every
moment that follows it. In science such an event is called a paradigm shift, a
point where new knowledge fundamentally changes the way we understand our world.
I remember rocker and schooner owner David Crosby describing the moment, as he
and his friends were cruising through Santa Monica one evening, when he heard
the first of his many songs being played on the car radio. “I knew in that very
instant,” he said, “that my life would never be the same.”
Some defining
moments can be predicted, while others seem to sneak up out of the blue, such as
the first time I saw my wife, Mimi. Even before we had ever exchanged a word I
knew that the very fabric of my reality had forever been altered.
Paradigm
shifts, rare as they are, often occur in clusters. So it shouldn’t be surprising
that this issue contains two such shifts. The first is a profound change whose
immediate impact may not be apparent to our readers. This issue is the first
published entirely under the auspices of new owners, Curtco Media. Publishers of
Robb Report and Worth magazines – to name but a couple of the group’s titles –
Curtco arguably is the most powerful ultra-high-net-worth luxury marketing group
in the world and the ideal publishing partner for this 16-year-old title.
The second paradigm shift in this issue is our reporting of the 2005 Global
Order Book. Like Crosby and his first song, the new reality this article
illuminates came to me unexpectedly on a 767 while flying to the Monaco Yacht
Show. I was reviewing the order book data and statistics prepared by Bill Ando,
SBI’s able contributing editor. Bill had handed me his painstakingly researched
survey as I walked out the door for the airport. Ten days previously, he had
given me a progress report during which he had happily announced that early
indications showed the industry up an invigorating 15%. While waiting for dinner
to be served on the flight, I pulled out the file and was nearly struck
dumbfounded to see business up this year by an astounding 28%. Grabbing my
calculator, I estimated that the 144 new orders, averaging 116 feet,
conservatively worth $8.5 million each, represent a $1.22 billion increase in
new business alone. As these numbers began to sink in, I remember muttering to
myself as I cruised somewhere over Labrador at 35,000 feet, “This changes
everything.”
|
|
|
|
|
Email This
Printer Friendly Version
Reprints & Permissions
Most Popular Searches