Dutch-yard Moonen Yachts has revealed its founder, Rien Moonen, passed away earlier this week while on holiday in Spain. He was 84-years-old.
Rien Moonen’s path to founding Moonen Yachts can be traced back to 1951 when he was just 15-years-old and he began working at his fathers’ painting company. He soon took over the business and quickly showed his entrepreneurial acumen by turning it into a profitable organization.
One of his rewards for his success was the purchase of his first boat, an 11m steel cruiser, which he bought from De Ruiter Shipyards. At this point Rien had moved into real estate where he forged closer ties with De Ruiter before eventually buying the yard in 1981 and renaming it Moonen Shipyards.
Combining his entrepreneurial skills with his passion for yachts Rien’s influence saw Moonen become renowned for building stylish superyachts with great seaworthiness. He also created the company logo by using the two interconnected OO’s from his family name.
According to YachtBuyer intelligence Moonen has been responsible for more than 40 yachts, with its largest build to date being the 41.76m SOFIA, which was delivered in 2013.
