John Dane Iii
Whirlwind of change: Where’s Trinity Yachts' crew today?
Four key players of the disbanded Trinity Yachts, once the world’s sixth largest custom yacht builder, are working in new roles in yachting since the company’s break-up about four years ago.Billy Smith, Geoffrey van Aller, Jim Berulis and Phil Nuss rolled with the punches, just as they did when this author interviewed them at Trinity’s Cinco de Mayo crayfish boil celebrating their new Gulfport facility in Mississippi in May, 2006. In a region suffering after Hurricane Katrina toppled the Gulf Coast and sank New Orleans on August 29…
TY and Trinity Form Gulf Coast Shipyard Group
TY Offshore, Llc. and Trinity Yachts, Llc. announced the formation of the Gulf Coast Shipyard Group along with its new investment partner, Littlejohn & Co., a multi-billion dollar private equity firm based in Greenwich, Conn. Gulf Coast Shipyard Group will own and operate two major Gulf Coast based shipyards engaged in the new construction of commercial, military and luxury yachts. The Company will also operate International Yacht Collection (IYC), a wholly owned yacht brokerage unit. Management is enthusiastic about its partnership with Littlejohn…
John Dane III Leaves His Mark
“The 2008 financial crash slowed the luxury business, and the new class warfare coming out of Washington has made owning a large yacht out of favor. In the more than two years since its founding, Mississippi-based TY Offshore, the former Trinity Offshore, has invested in a new yard in Gulfport and repaired its storm-damaged New Orleans holdings. The company has doubled its capacity and racked up new orders, president and CEO John Dane III said. TY Offshore designs and builds offshore barges, tugs, oilfield-support vessels and spill-response and patrol vessels. The company's new name, adopted in late June, should make business simpler.