George Marsh visits a small UK boatbuilder - soon to become bigger -which has built up a strong market for tough seaworthy catamaran workboats. An apprentice who rose in the world to take over the boatbuilding yard where he began his career may sound, like the proverbial rags to riches tale, too good to be true. But that is what has happened to Clive Jeffery, proprietor and managing director of South Boats Ltd, based at Cowes, Isle of Wight. Armed with energy, commitment and - from his own experience - a concept of how a seagoing catamaran hull should be, he has built up from nothing a company that turns out tough, seaworthy working craft of up to 19.8m length overall and last year turned over some ￡1.2 million. Currently South Boats is in the midst of a transformation that will make it a ￡2m turnover company and more than double the number of craft it produces.
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