Massimo Guardigli

The C-Cat 37 is the first catamaran to be launched by Italian brand C-Catamarans.

Massimo Guardigli was born in Rome in 1958, some 20 kilometers from where his C-Catamarans shipyard now lies. This Italian catamaran brand is in fact based near the country’s capital, in Fiumicino, on the waterfront - and the international airport. Passionate about boating since the age of 9, Massimo became a federal sailing instructor at 18 and opened his first chandlery store at 20. His early commercial success was replicated throughout Italy. His second major project took form in 1989: along with his two brothers, he founded the charter company Media Ship International, “An adventure that is still going strong, and is still family-run!” he tells us. In 1995, the Comar shipyard was going through a difficult financial period. This Italian shipbuilder was nevertheless an institution - founded in 1961 and having produced some 4,500 boats. Massimo fell in love with one of their monohulls, the Comar Genesi 43, and the entrepreneur decided to buy the molds. He began by building ten hulls with a small group of craftsmen, and then went on to buy the entire Comar company, reviving the shipyard. “I then had the opportunity to become the owner of the Italian factory of Chris Craft Americana based in Fiumicino”, Massimo continues. With the shipyard’s 4,200 square meters (just over an acre), a new adventure began with the construction of full carbon yachts up to 100 feet in length.

Massimo and his wife have a philosophy to produce high performance and personalized boats. Specialized in racing yachts, the shipyard builds up to 120 units per year and is renowned on all the top Mediterranean racing circuits. “We have always produced innovative yachts with remarkable qualities, such as the Comet 51 or the Comet 45”, explains Massimo with passion. These models are still performing well in races today, even though some were designed back in 2003.”

Comar withstood the financial crisis of 2008 rather well, thanks to orders for custom units. However, four years later, the shipyard was looking in a bad way. The decision was taken to reduce the workforce from around 100 to just under 30.

In 2015, after a very long period of introspection, Massimo launched himself into the world of multihulls, with a new mission: to offer a compact, fast and comfortable catamaran with a sporty DNA that can be sailed offshore. He used the experience and skills acquired over the past 30 years to create the C-Catamarans brand. The recipe always remains the same, explains Massimo: “We listen to the customer’s needs, and we follow them from A to Z in order to deliver a product worthy of the greatest shipyards.” The first model was launched in 2015: The C-Cat 37, a little racer designed by Marc Lombard (see MW166). The range has now been completed with a motor catamaran called the Powerfish 40, the first example of which was sold in China. But what about the future of the range? “For the moment, ...