“OUR CUSTOMERS HAVE RESPONDED POSITIVELY TO VISBORG”

Name: Christer Bruzelius

Position: CEO, Destination Gotland AB

Age: 61

Zodiac sign: Aries

Civil status and family: Married with four grown-up children

Place of birth: Stockholm, Sweden

Could you briefly describe your career path in shipping, which culminated in the job of CEO at Destination Gotland?

After graduating from Stockholm’s KTH Royal Institute of Technology with a master’s degree in naval architecture I started my career in shipping. I have worked with different companies, including Finnlines/Grimaldi, Nordö-Link, Europalinjen, Euroway, and STC Technology. I also made a stop at the Swedish Transport Agency in the earlier days of my career.  

You are a naval architect by training. Don’t you miss the ‘technical side’ of the business in your current job?

Both yes and no. In my early days I enjoyed very much working in the site teams of different newbuilding projects. But with the passing time, my role has become much more of running the day-to-day affairs with focus on leading the team and reaching the goals through delegations instead of running around doing everything myself.

Destination Gotland/Rederi AB Gotland recently introduced the LNG-powered, GSI-built VISBORG. Have you experienced any teething problems with this vessel? What has been the experience so far from an operational point of view, including LNG bunkering?

Starting off with a newbuilding is always a challenge for a company, but it’s also the best reward you can get after a long newbuilding project having come to an end and the operation starts. So far, it has gone very well for us.

How have your everyday customers responded to VISBORG?

Our customers have in general responded very well to VISBORG and the feedbacks we’ve received so far are very positive.

Islanders who rely on a lifeline service are typically rather conservative and suspicious of change. Do you have a similar experience with the VISBORG clientele?

Maybe the people of Gotland are a bit different from other islanders because they are not so suspicious of change. They are rather open-minded and easy to cater for and, in this case, when it’s a matter of the lifeline service it’s easy to convince them about the good things with a new ferry.

When do you expect the still-to-be-delivered THJELVAR – a sister of VISBORG – to be introduced?

For now we concentrate on offering the best of VISBORG to our customers. It’s too early to discuss THJELVAR.

Will the 2003-built VISBY and GOTLAND be put on the second-hand sales market once THJELVAR is in service or do you expect to charter them out – or would you rather keep one or both ships as back-up?

As I mentioned above it’s too early to discuss that. We concentrate on the vessels in service for this summer.

The Destination Gotland fleet also comprises two high-speed monohull units, built in 2003 and 2006, respectively. These ships are only activated during the peak seasons, which makes it an altogether expensive operation. What are your long-term plans for these high-speed craft?

For the time being we will operate one of them in our newly reopened traffic between Visby and Västervik.

Could you briefly describe the Public Service Obligation contract that you have to honour and the amount of subsidy you receive in return?

Our contract with Trafikverket, in essence with the Swedish Government, is a ten-year contract where, through us, the state has secured a daily and yearly ferry service capacity and frequency between Gotland and the mainland, thus making it possible to live on or visit the island.

On a year-round basis, is freight your bread and butter? Could you give us a revenue breakup?  

The service is built on three pillars: transport for all the goods, transport for the islanders, and transport for the visitors to the island. All three parts are important for the overall result, although the major part of our income comes from carrying visitors to and from the island during the summer.

How would you describe yourself in five words?

Achieving desirable result through teamwork.

What was your childhood dream job?

To work in the oilfields in Norway.

What is your number one holiday destination?

Bourgogne, in the south of France.

Would you consider going on a cruise?

Yes, I would love to. I have only done it once.

Are you a new man? Do you cook at home?  

Yes, but only on Sundays.

What is your favourite dinner and drink combination?

French cuisine.