YSA Design Celebrates Four Decades Of Cruise Ship Excellence

[By: YSA Design]

YSA Design, whose ship interiors and exteriors design creativity has helped to define guest experiences in the modern cruise era, is celebrating its 40^th anniversary.

At a special gathering marking the occasion at its Oslo headquarters on 25^th September, the company is bringing together past and present colleagues, customers, shipyards and other industry partners to celebrate its achievements over four decades of design excellence. 

YSA Design has been at the heart of multiple award-winning ships, with its work featuring across vessels built for Costa Cruises, Holland America Line, Hurtigruten, MSC Cruises, Norwegian Cruise Line, Regent Seven Seas Cruises, SeaDream, Viking Ocean Cruises, Virgin Voyages and more. It has worked with Disney Cruise Line since the group entered the sector in 1993.

“We continue to innovate, by designing for custom-built vacations that serve luxury, wellness, individuality and adventure to match the creative vision of our clients’ brands,” says Anne Mari Gullikstad, CEO, YSA Design. “To attract the best next generation talent, we also invest in cutting edge design tools. Doing so enhances efficiency and transparency for customers and yards.”

Formally established in 1985 by partners Petter Yran and Bjørn Storbraaten, the company restructured as YSA Design in 2016 after a management buy-in, with Gullikstad working alongside fellow board members Einar Jungård, Jan Krefting, Trond Sigurdsen and Tov Arne Svalestuen.

Krefting, now Chair of YSA Design, joined in 1987 and has worked on high profile design projects through the cruise sector’s transformation into a market worth hundreds of billions of dollars.

“We’ve seen it change from a business where we were the first people the owner called and the job was agreed on a handshake into an industry involving multiple stakeholders and a complex regulatory framework, where every minute is budgeted for,” he says. “We are always evolving but remain anchored in decades of industry experience, developing everything from the GA onwards to balance the best in aesthetic form with effective function.”

With a 30-strong team made up of individuals from 13 nationalities, Gullikstad says multicultural dialogues are one driver for fresh thinking at YSA Design. “The team’s diversity offers a unique breeding ground for originality, and also provides the basis for the recommendations YSA Design makes on sustainable materials to protect our planet’s resources,” she says.

Krefting adds: “Reaching our 40-year milestone is a fitting moment for YSA Design to celebrate, both its resilience in an industry that faced the challenges of 9/11 and COVID, and the creativity, knowledge, and open and honest collaboration that kept our cruise clients coming back for more.”