Riding on the crest of a sales wave

The cabin section of a luxury yacht at the 19th China (Shanghai) International Boat Show. Xu Cheng / for China Daily

However, the path chosen most frequently by companies is cooperation between domestic outfits and overseas brands, especially financial links.

Wang Jianlin, chairman of Dalian Wanda Group and China's richest man according to Forbes magazine and the Hurun Report, bought the privately owned British luxury yacht manufacturer Sunseeker International last year.

Despite the slowing growth in the industry in the past two years, Ferretti SpA, the renowned Italian luxury yacht maker, managed to achieve growth of between 20 and 30 percent in the Chinese market in 2012 and 2013.

Chen Gang, chief representative of Ferretti's Shanghai Representative Office, said the company has huge brand name recognition among Chinese consumers, despite prices as high as 40 million yuan for a 24-meter yacht.

Ferretti's adjusted strategy, which places greater emphasis on the Chinese market, has helped the company achieve fast growth in China, and it established a foreign-held operation and a joint venture in Zhuhai, Guangdong province, last year.

The Italian outfit was one of the first overseas yacht makers to seek financial cooperation with Chinese companies.

In 2012, the Chinese equipment manufacturer Weichai Holding Group Co Ltd based in Shandong province bought a 75 percent stake in Ferretti, which could encourage other foreign companies to follow suit in their attempts to enter the Chinese market.

"In the wake of the global financial crisis, many overseas companies have been seeking cooperation with Chinese companies. Because many of these ventures have been successful, we will definitely see more activity of this kind in the future," said Chen.

Chen's view was echoed by Stefan Carlsson, president of Volvo Penta Europe, who said Chinese consumers acknowledge the prestige and professionalism of the Sweden-based manufacturer of marine power systems, and it's joint venture with Dongfeng Motor Corp Ltd has helped further the company's "footprint" in the Chinese market.