Szczecinbiznes.pl: Where has the idea for the business come from?

Sławomir Pyta: I’m a big enthusiast of water motor sports myself, so when I found out last year that there is a hydrofoil on sale, I thought it would be worth to try my hand at that business.  I believe Szczecin is a good place in this respect.   We have some of the most beautiful waters in Europe here.  The infrastructure is there and it is in a decent condition.  So if that business can work elsewhere, the time for it is going to come here, too.

How much money do you need to launch that business?

I won’t betray any details, but certainly it is a lot of money.  It isn’t an easy business, especially for beginners, and we’ve been doing that only for a year.  Of course, the key costs are the purchase of the vessel and its renovation.  Then you have to add the running costs, such as fees for the mooring spaces, daily operating expenses and salaries.

How many vessels does your company have at the moment?

At present, we have seven vessels.  We bought some of them and some are on lease.  Our fleet comprises one big hydrofoil for 54 passengers, three Volga-class hydrofoils from 1970s for six people each that will operate as water taxis, one RIB-class boat and two vessels to be chartered out for sports purposes such as waterskiing for example.

How much are your services going to cost?

A special promotion price for one Szczecin – Świnoujście return hydrofoil ticket will be PLN 90, which is 20% less compared with our competitors.  The price for a normal ticket should be PLN 100, which is still cheaper.  For the water cabs and the RIB boat we will charge PLN 350 per hour.

How is the water transportation market in Szczecin these days?

At the moment, there are two hydrofoils in Szczecin.  On the one hand, they are competition to us, but on the other, I can see good opportunities for cooperation and joint efforts to develop that market.  There are half a million people in Szczecin, so under normal conditions, it shouldn’t be a problem to gather 150 passengers; besides, we need more vessels like these here.  For example the local carrier in the Tricity (Gdańsk-Sopot-Gdynia) has almost half a million passengers in the summer season.  We have even more beautiful waters and many interesting places to sail to and we have our German neighbours who are our potential customers.  Everything weighs in favour of market development, but that will take a few years.

But there will be rivalry between you and the competitor, won’t it?

Of course, beginning from the ticket prices.  Besides, our hydrofoil is air-conditioned and has TV sets.  And we cruise three knots faster.

How long does it take the hydrofoil to get from Szczecin to Świnoujście?

One hour, 15 minutes.  We offer the fastest transport to places situated at the seaside, without any traffic jams.

How do you estimate the demand?

We’d like to have at least 80% of the capacity, but time will tell.  The hydrofoil will probably start operating next week and we’ve already had many queries about tickets, so people are interested for sure.  Of course, I’ve done some market research and in theory we shouldn’t have problems getting enough passengers for such a small vessel.  I think this season will be a test of our true potential and we’ll find out if we should for example open new routes.  Our vessel has a shallow draught and we can enter any port in the Bay of Szczecin, so we have many opportunities.  Unfortunately, people in Szczecin still consider travelling by boat as something unusual, as an adventure.  The ticket price can be an issue to many, too.  It’s different with Germans – to them, a boat is a normal means of public transport, which they like and use often.

When will you reach the break-even point?

That will be verified by the market.  It is usually assumed that a business should reach the break-even after five years and that is our assumption, too.

A lot has been said about Szczecin as a maritime city and the development of water tourism… What is your opinion about that?

The local authorities have been talking a lot about water tourism, but results will depend on the actions taken and the direction of those actions.  There is only so much we can do.  For the time being, we cannot see anything new happening in that direction and of course we’d like to see some initiatives in this respect.  Something should be done for children for example.  In my opinion, every child should be given a chance of covering the local water routes.  Children should be getting used to water sports from an early age so that they themselves want to continue development of water sports later on.  Even though Szczecin is situated on the water, 95% of its inhabitants don’t have anything to do with water except a walk along the river.

Interview by Łucja Pawłowska