Organisation. New owner; outside CEO rebuilt the top team; commercial split by territory
What it shows for a new yard. The template for a new owner's first year: an outside CEO, then every senior seat refilled, commercial split by territory.
Former leaders now elsewhere8 people who held a top or senior seat here
now CFO at Optisport
now Founder at Fossani V.O.F.
now Chief Commercial Officer at Baglietto spa
now Managing Director & Co-Founder at Nauticworx.com
now Uitvoerend directeur at Oceanco
now Company Owner at The NERA Company B.V.
now Sales Director at Feadship at Feadship
now Commercial Director at Sichterman Yachts
Organisation chartthe top seat, the senior layer by function, and the managers where the top team is small; the number two is marked
Jeroen van der Meer
Chief Executive Officer
since 2025
Sales and marketing4 senior, +3 managers below
Engineering and design5 senior, +3 managers below
Production and operations7 senior, +5 managers below
Projects and service1 senior, +1 managers below
Purchasing1 senior, +2 managers below
Finance, legal and IT3 senior, +3 managers below
People2 senior, +1 managers below
Folkert Schoots
Commercial Director
since 2026
MC
Mark Cavendish
Director of Sales and Marketing
since 2008
Roxane Ducruet
Sales Director
since 2026
Sipke (Sip) Halbertsma
Commercial Director, Americas
since 2026
DA
Dennis Akerboom
Manager mechanical engineering
since 2026
Jos Verbruggen
Manager shipbuilding engineering
since 1997
Peter Van Der Zanden
Director Design & Development / Engineering
since 2026
Sjoerd Engelaer
Manager interior
since 2002
Sjoerd van Herk
Manager naval architecture
since 2011
Bob van Zundert
Manager technical services; yard captain
since 2026
Clint Romsom
Manager mechanical production
since 2025
HV
Henk van Grunsven
General Production Manager
PB
Patrick Blom
Manager quality
since 2025
Paul van Herpen
Operations Director
since 2026
Number two
Theo van Beljouw
Manager interior and exterior production
since 2025
Tom Jansen
Manager shipbuilding production
since 2025
Eric Boers
Director Technical Services & After Sales
since 2026
Juan Smit
Director Procurement & Supply Chain
since 2026
Carla de Kock -van Dijk
Manager business systems
since 2025
Marius Janse van Rensburg
Financial Director
since 2026
Rob van Grinsven
Manager finance
since 2015
Ilze Lamers
Human Resources Director
since 2025
Maike Bonke
Manager human resources
since 2019
Number two. Twenty years inside Heesen through planning, purchasing, after sales and production, operations director since January 2026 under a CEO who arrived in September 2025. The commercial seat changed hands twice in two years.
The top team as read on LinkedIn86 people read as staff, October 2026
CEO (industrial outsider, Sep 2025) over a renewed senior layer: three commercial seats (Commercial Director Europe, Commercial Director Americas, Sales Director Monaco) beside a long-serving Director of Sales and Marketing; Operations Director; Director Design & Development / Engineering; Director Technical Services & After Sales; Director Procurement & Supply Chain; Financial Director; HR Director.
Almost the whole top team changed between Sep 2025 and Sep 2026 after the ownership change: CEO, HR, finance, operations, procurement, after sales and two commercial directors are all new in the seat. The two people who carry the yard's memory are the engineering director (since 2007) and the sales and marketing director (since 2008). Commercial is split by territory with a strong Feadship bloodline (both new commercial directors came from Feadship), and the vendor's manager tag shows nobody titled COO or CCO: the CEO holds the integration.
Seats and dates are as the people describe them on LinkedIn; a person who moved in the last months can still show the old seat. Tap a person for the profile and the reading.
Candidates at Heesen Yachts5 people under 50 in the pools; the shortlisted first
Folkert Schoots
Commercial Director at Heesen Yachts · Amsterdam, Netherlands
Age36 to 40estimate from the degree years on the profile
Based inAmsterdam, Netherlands
Current seatCommercial Director, Heesen Yachts, since 2026
CareerSince 2012, 14 years
Builders on the CVHeesen Yachts (current); Feadship · Koninklijke De Vries (earlier); Feadship (earlier)
EducationUniversity of Westminster BA (HONS) · International Business; Nyenrode New Business School BA (HONS) · Entrepreneurship
LanguagesNot given
In brief
Commercial Director since Sep 2026 (the appointment the brief mentions). Twelve years at Feadship and De Vries: marketing, after sales, business development, resale. Commercial through and through, no technical or P&L seat yet; a strong second-line name rather than a GM today.
Sipke (Sip) Halbertsma
Commercial Director - America at Heesen Yachts · Miami, United States
AgeAbout 38estimate from the school years on the profile
Based inMiami, United States
Current seatCommercial Director - America, Heesen Yachts, since 2026
CareerSince 2008, 18 years
Builders on the CVHeesen Yachts (current); Feadship (earlier)
EducationAmsterdam University of Applied Sciences Bachelor · Marketing; Sint Nicolaas Lyceum Amsterdam High School · HAVO
LanguagesDutch, English, German
In brief
Feadship Commercial Director 2018-2026 (sales manager from 2015), moved to Heesen Aug 2026 to run the Americas from Miami. Pure sales career, marketing degree; no general management or technical role.
Paul van Herpen
Operations Director at Heesen Yachts · Netherlands
Age40 to 44estimate from the degree years on the profile
Based inNetherlands
Current seatOperations Director, Heesen Yachts, since 2026
CareerSince 2006, 20 years
Builders on the CVHeesen Yachts (current)
Educationde Baak High Performance Leadership; de Baak Young Executives Program
LanguagesNot given
In brief
Operations Director since Jan 2026 after 20 years inside Heesen: planner, purchasing, after sales, GM Production 2023-2025. Insider who grew through every operational function; no sales or P&L role.
Clint Romsom
Manager Mechanical Production at Heesen Yachts · Netherlands
AgeAbout 38estimate from the school years on the profile
Based inNetherlands
Current seatManager Mechanical Production, Heesen Yachts, since 2025
CareerSince 2002, 24 years
Builders on the CVHeesen Yachts (current)
EducationNetherlands Maritime Institute of Technology Jachtbouw techniek; Mansal Management Training Heesen Yachts Masters training program; leadership
LanguagesDutch, English, German, Spanish
In brief
Mechanical production manager since Dec 2025 after six years as manager interior production; ESTEPE production manager before; about 39.
Tom Jansen
Manager Shipbuilding Production at Heesen Yachts · Wijchen, Netherlands
AgeAbout 37estimate from the school years on the profile
Based inWijchen, Netherlands
Current seatManager Shipbuilding Production, Heesen Yachts, since 2025
CareerSince 2015, 11 years
Builders on the CVHeesen Yachts (current)
EducationTilburg University Bachelor of Science (BSc) · International Business Administr; Maaswaal College Wijchen VWO Atheneum · Economie & Maatschappij
LanguagesNot given
In brief
Shipbuilding production manager since Dec 2025 over several departments, after exterior production manager and team lead; Alfa Laval and PostNL operations before; Tilburg, about 37.
Facts and news, with sourcesthe research behind the overview
Show the facts and the dated news with their sources
Identity
Full name: Heesen Yachts (Heesen Shipyards B.V. trading name not confirmed). source
Founded: 1978 by Frans Heesen; still operates from the same base in Oss, the Netherlands.
Headquarters and main yard: Rijstraat 2, Oss. Yard has 8 sheds, 6 dry docks, 22,000 m2 of sheds and workshops, 4.4 hectares, an 85-metre dry dock (2016 expansion), construction capability up to 83 m.
Second site: Heesen Interiors, Winterswijk (8,100 m2 of interior workshops).
Ownership: since April 2025, Dutch entrepreneur Laurens Last through his family office TSAL Holding; price undisclosed; full acquisition of the shipyard reported (exact stake not stated). Before that: owned from 2008 by Russian billionaire Vagit Alekperov (via Cyprus-based Morcell Ltd); after EU sanctions in 2022 it was put in an independent Dutch foundation. source
Laurens Last also sits on the SIG Group AG board (since April 2022).
Sister brands: none found.
Size
Employees: "more than 1,000" workforce including internal and external employees and subcontractors (press kit, October 2025, URL above). The Oss careers page says close to 400 own staff plus a similar number of subcontractors and temporary workers (undated page) source
Revenue: EUR 209 million in 2024 (record), EBITDA EUR 17 million. source
Boat International Global Order Book 2026 (data as of 1 September 2025): rank 19, 8 projects, 434 m total, average 54.3 m. GOB 2025: rank 17, 651 m. source
More than 200 yachts built since 1978.
Product
Size range: specialises in 50 to 60 m; custom yachts up to 80 m.
Hull materials: steel and aluminium (aluminium hulls with its Fast Displacement Hull Form, FDHF, for speed and fuel efficiency).
Three build lines ("families"), press kit October 2025.
Series: built on speculation, before a buyer signs; shortest delivery time. Current models: 50 m Aluminium semi-displacement, 50 m Aluminium FDHF, 50 m Steel FDHF, 55 m Steel FDHF, 57 m Aluminium FDHF.
Full custom: blank sheet or pre-engineered concept (examples: Genesis, Sparta, Ultra G, all 2023). New full-custom concepts on offer: XVenture 67 (67 m, Winch Design) and Monte Carlo (62 m, Harrison Eidsgaard).
Flagship: Genesis, 80 m, full aluminium, delivered 2023 (largest Heesen).
Notable deliveries 2023 to 2026.
Genesis, 80 m, 2023; Sparta, 2023; Ultra G, 2023 (lengths not stated in source).
Pa'lante (YN 21055, ex Project Frida), 55 m smart custom, June 2026. source
Leadership
Owner: Laurens Last (TSAL Holding) — as of 2025-04-07. source
CEO: Jeroen van der Meer (since September 2025) — as of 2026-09-07. source
Commercial Director: Folkert Schoots (Oss) — as of 2026-09-07. Same source.
Commercial Director America: Sipke Halbertsma — as of 2026-09-07. Same source.
Sales Director Monaco: Roxane Ducruet — as of 2026-09-07. Same source.
Sales Manager Monaco: Lyam Last — as of 2026-09-07. Same source.
Director Technical Services and After Sales: Eric Boers — as of 2026-07-02. source
Chief Commercial Officer: Ruud van der Stroom — as of 2024-08-28 (appointment). Current status not confirmed; see open points. source
Former: Niels Vaessen, CEO 2023-11 to 2025-08. source
News 2023 to 2026
2026-09
Heesen hires three commercial leaders: Folkert Schoots as Commercial Director (Oss), Sipke Halbertsma as Commercial Director America (Florida), Roxane Ducruet as Sales Director Monaco.heesenyachts.com
2026-07
Heesen launches 57 m full-custom Project Setteesettanta (YN 20857), and appoints Eric Boers Director Technical Services and After Sales.heesenyachts.com
2026-04
Heesen opens a Monaco sales office and appoints Lyam Last as Sales Manager.heesenyachts.com
2025-08
Jeroen van der Meer named CEO from September 2025; Niels Vaessen leaves by mutual agreement after 13 years (CFO, then CEO).heesenyachts.com
2025-04
Laurens Last buys Heesen through TSAL Holding, ending interim ownership by a Dutch foundation; 2024 revenue EUR 209 million reported.superyachtnews.com
2024-08
Ruud van der Stroom named Chief Commercial Officer from 1 September 2024, replacing Mark Cavendish who retired after 16 years.heesenyachts.com
2023-11
Niels Vaessen becomes CEO on 1 November 2023, after Arthur Brouwer (CEO 2014 to late 2023).superyachtnews.com
2023
Delivery of Genesis, 80 m, the largest Heesen and a full-aluminium full-custom yacht.
