A Dutch family yard with an Australian beginning — building boats that sail beautifully out of the box.
Saffier Yachts was founded in the Netherlands by Richard Hennevanger, a man for whom building boats was never merely a trade. His sons Dean and Dennis grew up on the water, and there is a detail worth knowing: they were born in Mona Vale, on Sydney's northern beaches, which gives this Dutch yard an Australian thread that runs deeper than most importers can claim.
Three ranges, Classic, Elegance and Luxury, now span 21 to 49 ft, and four European Yacht of the Year first places confirm what anyone who has sailed one already suspects. What holds the range together is a philosophy, not a spec sheet: that a beautifully built daysailer should answer to one person, go when that person is ready, and make the act of sailing feel like exactly the kind of freedom it is supposed to be.
