The File
Burgess
Charter, brokerage, new build and management · Reas 2, Vouliagmeni — headquartered in London
The large-yacht house, with an office in Vouliagmeni and ten people in it. Owned by US private equity since November 2025, which most coverage has not caught up with.
Commercial relationship
LivingTheta earns referral fees from brokers in this category where an introduction leads to a booking. That is a standing commercial interest in you chartering, and it is disclosed on every page of this site that touches the category. There is no agreement with Burgess specifically, nothing has been received from it, and it has not paid for this page.
- Athens Riviera office
- Reas 2, Vouliagmeni 166 71 Ten named staff across brokerage, charter, charter management and technical. The closest of any house on this list to the readers of this site.
- Founded
- 1975, by Nigel Burgess
- Headquarters
- Cunard House, 15 Regent Street, London
- Offices
- 19 Palm Beach opened in 2026. Press still quoting eighteen is out of date.
- Charter fleet size
- Not published This house does not publish a fleet or managed-fleet number. A live listing count is inventory, not a fleet, and is not reproduced here as one.
- Ownership
- Ancient, a US private equity firm, since 1 November 2025 Companies House records the change of persons with significant control at 75% or more. The trade press disagrees on the framing: Marine Industry News called it an acquisition, SuperyachtNews called it an investment. Price and stake undisclosed. Jonathan Beckett remains chief executive.
- What they claim
- Led the 50m-plus sector in 2026 Self-reported, 20 August 2026: 31 yachts sold in the first 32 weeks, average length 50 metres, average asking price €42 million, and "nearly half our business remains off-market". Not independently verified, and Edmiston and Fraser make competing claims.
- Further reading
- Yacht Charter Compass — yachtchartercompass.com Destination guides, itineraries and weekly rates for the megayacht market. It is published by the same group as LivingTheta, which is why it is labelled here rather than presented as an independent source. The link is in the sources below.
Burgess has been trading since 1975 and runs nineteen offices from Cunard House on Regent Street. Charter, brokerage, new build, management, crew and insurance — and an office on Reas Street in Vouliagmeni with ten named people in it.
What changed in November 2025
Control passed to Ancient, a US private equity firm. Companies House records the new holding vehicle as a person with significant control at 75% or more of shares and voting rights, replacing the two individuals who held it before.
The trade press has not settled on a word for it. Marine Industry News wrote that Burgess "has been acquired"; SuperyachtNews wrote that Ancient "has made an investment". We are printing both rather than choosing, because the filing shows control and the price shows nothing — it was not disclosed.
That puts Burgess on one side of a split that has opened up across this whole industry in ten months, and it is worth understanding before you pick a house.
Sources
- Burgess
- Companies House 01203529 — persons with significant control, Nigel Burgess Limited
- Marine Industry News, 18 November 2025: Burgess acquired by US private equity firm Ancient
- SuperyachtNews, 27 November 2025: Ancient takes stake in Burgess
- Yacht Charter Compass — published by the same group as LivingTheta
