UK & International Business Sales and M&A News

Northshore Shipyard was founded in 1971, and is the builder of craft such as Southerly, Vancouver, Fisher and Supermarine. The origins of the waterside location can be traced back to the 1930s when it was originally ‘Gazeby’s Yard’.

Shortly before World War II, a local builder was commissioned to build attractive timber and brick buildings to blend in with Itchenor’s village houses to reduce the possibility of being bombed.
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During the war, the Ministry of Defence commandeered the Shipyard to build Fairmile landing craft. The ML shed was built with an angled floor to enable easy launching and is still in use today.

Under new ownership from 2003, new innovative yacht models were introduced and the Southerly brand strengthened and became internationally recognised as the market leader for variable draft cruising yachts, resulting in the addition of a new factory being built on site in 2007.

Production increased to 60 boats per year, making Northshore the main sail yacht manufacturer in the UK.

The property features a deep-water pontoon, two slipways, a café, and commercial buildings totalling 60,000 square feet, across a site of four acres. Facilities also include a 16-tonne boat hoist, mobile crane, and undercover heated storage facilities and workshops.

A spokesman for the Directors of the Northshore group of companies said:

The Trafalgar Group, based in Portsmouth, operates in the leisure boating market, offering boat sales, including new and used RIBs and powerboats, and Boat Club Trafalgar, where members can choose from a large range of premium cabin powerboats and RIBs.

It is also a an RYA Approved Powerboat Training Centre, offering own boat tuition and family training.

Jonny Boys, Managing Director of The Trafalgar Group, commented: