You could feel the passion and pride in the air as Riviera’s dedicated team of designers, engineers and master craftsmen gathered for a special celebration last week. Having just won – two major Australian Marine Industry export awards, and having staged an extremely successful 2015 Riviera Festival of Boating, the 430-strong team at the world-class Riviera facility at Coomera on Australia’s Gold Coast had every reason to be extremely buoyant.

But it was the sincerity of the personal thanks from Riviera chairman and owner Rodney Longhurst that struck a chord among the team – Rodney promising to continue to invest in the development and growth of a luxury marque that is enjoying growing global affection.

“You should be proud,” Rodney told the huge crowd as they enjoyed a thank-you barbecue lunch at Riviera’s world-class facility at Coomera on Australia’s Gold Coast. “Winning the Australian Export Performance and the Exporter of the Year is a grand final performance … it’s a gold medal for your efforts.

“For that, I thank you … because it wouldn’t happen without you, and it wouldn’t happen without your commitment to excellence and your loyalty … to your ability to produce luxury motor yachts that are right up there amongst the best in the world.

“All I ask of you is that we stay the course … that we encourage and develop our apprentices. Riviera has 36 apprentices at the moment and I ask that we do all that we can to make sure they are the master craftsmen and boat-builders of tomorrow. To be the best, you have to learn from the best.

“Everyone has a key role to play in their development … so that Riviera can keep moving forward and continues to show the world just what we can do here in Australia.”