Newport Beach-based Ambassadors International Inc.’s move into cruises has paid off.
As of June 30, Ambassadors had 12-month sales of $220 million, up from $14.8 million for the same period in 2004. The company ranks No. 3 on our list of the fastest-growing public companies with a three-year sales gain of 1,382%.
Last year, Ambassadors ranked No. 11 on our list.
Since 2005, Ambassadors has moved into upscale cruises with its Majestic America line unit. Acquisitions have included American West Steamboat Co., the Delta Queen Steamboat Co. and a 49-passenger vessel that operates in Hawaii and Alaska.
In April, the company acquired Windstar Sail Cruises Ltd. from Holland America Line, a unit of Carnival Corp., for roughly $100 million. The Windstar fleet includes three luxury ships: the 312-passenger Wind Surf, and sister 148-passenger ships Wind Star and Wind Spirit.
The ships cruise in the Mediterranean, Caribbean and to Costa Rica.
The move, which put Ambassadors into international cruises, “completes another step in our growth plan to become a leader in the luxury, small ship cruise market,” Chief Executive Joe Ueberroth said.
As of June 30, Ambassadors operated nine ships, up from four a year earlier.
Ambassadors’ companywide employment rose to 1,478 from 819 a year earlier. The increase came with acquisitions and the deployment of two vessels.
The company also provides construction, consulting and operational services to marina owners through its Ambassadors Marine Group subsidiary. Last year, the company acquired Washington’s Bellingham Marine Industries, a builder of marinas.
There have been setbacks. Last summer, Congress declined to extend legislation that allowed the historic Delta Queen to operate on U.S. rivers through next year. An additional ship did not operate this year.
In May, the Empress of the North ran aground in Alaska. In its second quarter financials, Ambassadors estimated overall negative impact of the incident at $6.2 million.
The outlook for the cruise industry remains positive. According to the Fort Lauderdale, Fla.-based Cruise Lines International Association, 12 million people took a cruise in 2006. The trade group expects that figure to reach at least 12.5 million this year.
More than three-quarters of U.S. adults never have taken a cruise,untapped potential for the industry, according to the association.
Ambassadors also handles travel and puts on events for companies to reward employees, though it’s a smaller part of the business than it once was.
In 1995, it entered the meetings management, incentive travel and marketing businesses and had rapid growth until 2001 after the terrorist attacks.
Ambassadors also owns roughly 20% of Grand Prix Tours, which provides packaged tours to Nascar, Formula One and IndyCar races around the world.
The company is an outgrowth of International Ambassador Program Inc., a company acquired by brothers Peter and John Ueberroth in 1993 to offer educational travel programs for students and professionals.
Chief Executive Joe Ueberroth is the son of Peter Ueberroth, who’s chairman of the U.S. Olympic Committee.
THE NUMBERS
Three-year growth: 1,382%
Yearly sales through June 30: $220 million
Yearly profit: $2.9 million
Market value: $220 million
Employees: 1,478, 120 in OC
Company: cruises, travel-related businesses
