PORTIER POWER BOATS FRENCH POLISH

Behind a name with a very French resonance lies the historical destiny of one of the most important builders of Swiss yachts, installed on Lake Zurich for more than 200 years.

- GERALD GUETAT

There are few small family businesses – and even fewer boatyards – that can trace their origins back to the Napoleonic era. Location is key for standing the test of time, and around the alpine lakes you will find more boatbuilders with a long tradition of craftmanship than pretty much anywhere else. In Italy, Austria, Germany or Switzerland, the fresh waters are protected by mountain barriers, a defensive wall against the ravages of time that so devastate the marine coastlines.

However, the fate of the Portier house (originally Suter) is an exception. It was founded in 1815, a crucial year, full of twists, and the start of a new era in Europe. The emperor Napoleon abdicated that year on 22 June. In Switzerland, on 7 August, the Federal Pact was signed, forming the confederation of 22 cantons, of which Zurich, already one of the most populous in the country, was part. Its eponymous capital was already a major economic power thanks to the lake, which served as a transport route linking major border regions in the heart of Europe, long before the development of railways and roads. In addition, fishing was a crucial resource for the population, making the building and repairing of fishing boats a most important activity.

NO ONE IS A PROPHET IN HIS OWN LAND

In 1815, the year of Waterloo and the Vienna Congress, a man by the name of David Suter acquired some fine pieces of land in Meilen, ideally located on the edge of the water.