Robert Braithwaite (engineer) facts for kids
Robert Braithwaite CBE DL (born May 12, 1943 – died March 7, 2019) was a British businessman and engineer. He was famous for starting the company Sunseeker with John Macklin. Sunseeker makes very fancy and fast boats called luxury powerboats.
Contents
Robert's Journey to Success
Robert Braithwaite was born in Otley Moor, a place in Yorkshire, England. He left school when he was 15 years old without any special qualifications. He then moved to the coast in Hampshire, where his parents ran a small shop. Robert had a dream to build boats. He spent a few years fixing boat engines and took an engineering course. He also completed a six-month training program in Belgium at a company that made boat engines.
Starting Sunseeker Boats
At first, Robert's company, Poole Powerboats (which later became Sunseeker), bought and sold boats from countries like Scandinavia and the United States. But Robert and John Macklin wanted to build their own boats. They borrowed £5,000 to make their very first boat, which was 17 feet long.
Soon, they worked with a boat designer named Don Shead. Sunseeker quickly grew and started selling many boats in the Mediterranean Sea area. Robert kept making the Sunseeker boat factories in Poole bigger. He also created a way to sell their boats all over the world.
Awards and Fame
In 1992, Robert received an award from the Queen called an MBE. This was for his great work in the boat-building industry.
In 2002, he was named the UK Entrepreneur of the Year. In 2007, he received an even higher award from the Queen, called a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE).
Sunseeker boats became very famous, even appearing in four James Bond films. Because of this, Robert Braithwaite was asked to have a small acting part in the James Bond movie Quantum of Solace. He filmed his scene in Italy in April 2008. In the movie, James Bond drives a Sunseeker Sovereign 17, which was one of the company's first fast open-cockpit boats.
In 2013, a big Chinese company called Dalian Wanda Group bought most of Sunseeker. Robert Braithwaite continued to be the president of the company. He also spent time supporting his own charity, The Autumn Trust.
Personal Life
Robert Braithwaite lived in Devon and Poole. He was married and had two daughters and four grandchildren.
His Legacy
Robert Braithwaite passed away on March 7, 2019, when he was 75 years old. He had health problems from Alzheimer's disease. He left behind a big legacy as the founder of a world-famous luxury boat company.
