Meet & Greet with Henk de Vries (former CEO of Royal de Vries Shipyard and Feadship-Holland
Young professionals have the rare opportunity to join the Meet & Greet Key Industry Player on Wednesday 19 November to meet Henk de Vries, former CEO of Royal De Vries Shipyard and Feadship-Holland. As a leader of the prestigious Royal De Vries Shipyard (a founding member of the legendary Feadship brand), he was instrumental in shaping the yard's reputation for building some of the world's most luxurious and technically advanced custom motor yachts. His career spans decades, offering unparalleled insights into high-end shipbuilding, innovation, and maintaining excellence in a demanding, competitive market. The change as a young professional to get up close, ask questions, and learn directly from a veteran who has steered one of the world's finest yacht builder
Speakers
Henk de Vries was born in Aalsmeer, The Netherlands in 1958. After high school he studied business economics at the VU Amsterdam, following which he worked as business consultant in various sectors. He joined Koninklijke De Vries Scheepsbouw and Feadship in 1987 as sales manager and became director/shareholder in 1996. Together with cousin Tom de Vries and later joined by Rob and Roderick de Vries they expanded the family business to its current size, with seven operating companies and over 1200 employees.
De Vries still is a completely family-owned company and owns 50% of Feadship. Henk retired in April 2025 as CEO. Henk is now a member of the supervisory board and remains an ambassador for Feadship.
In 1998 Henk was Co-Founder and chairman of the Board of the Water Revolution Foundation. The Water Revolution Foundation is the first independent, international, science-driven, non-profit organization started from with the superyacht industry that is taking the lead to neutralize its ecological footprint and preserve the world’s precious
oceans.
Henk lives in Amsterdam with his wife and has a son.