Boesch

Swiss mahogany runabouts from Lake Zurich since 1920.

Boesch Motorboote has been building mahogany motor boats in Kilchberg on Lake Zurich since 1920. In that year, Jakob Boesch took over an existing yard that had been on that site since the nineteenth century. The company remains independent and family-owned, with Markus Boesch at the helm as the fourth generation. A hull consists of up to eleven glued layers of mahogany, finished with several layers of epoxy and varnish. A distinctive feature is the ‘horizon gliding’ design from the 1940s, in which the engine is positioned amidships so that the boat maintains a level ride and creates little stern wake.

The fleet consists of open runabouts ranging from approximately 6.2 to 9.7 metres. The 620 is available as the Acapulco De Luxe, Acapulco Sport and Bimini De Luxe; the range also includes the Sunski 625, the 710 Costa Brava De Luxe and 710 Sunsport, the 750 Portofino De Luxe, the 860 Monaco De Luxe and the 970 St. Tropez. In addition to petrol-powered eight-cylinder inboard engines, Boesch has been supplying electric propulsion since 2005, currently available as the ‘Electric Power’ version of models including the 620. The yard builds between fifteen and twenty boats a year, many of them for water skiing.

Facts & figures

• Founded in 1920 by Jakob Boesch in Kilchberg on Lake Zurich
• Still an independent family business, now in its fourth generation
• Hulls made from up to eleven glued layers of mahogany
• Builds between fifteen and twenty boats a year
• Has also been supplying electrically powered versions since 2005