Roberto Martinoli was named president and COO of Norwegian Cruise Line last month, almost to the day his noncompete clause with Carnival Cruise Lines expired. Martinoli stepped down as Carnival’s executive vice president of operations in March 2008, accepting a position in Monaco to consult for Apollo Management, NCL’s parent company. Cruise Editor Johanna Jainchill talked with Martinoli about his move to NCL.
Q: When did you know you would be made NCL president?
A: People knew about this before I did. It was my intention to move to Europe and stay a long time. There has been a lot of speculation about me going back to Miami, but that came up later. When I moved [to work for] Apollo it was my intention to go back to Europe and stay a long time.
Q: Isn’t it unusual for a cruise line president to be in charge of fleet operations?
A: My background is strong with operations, but that doesn’t mean I won’t be helping my colleagues in other areas. Our first goal is to have a very well-synchronized operation that takes into account the needs of all the departments. We want to have as much contact and communication as possible with our colleagues.
Q: Will this job be much different from the one you had with Carnival?
A: It’s similar to what I was doing at Carnival, being in charge of operations, and also deeply involved in other aspect of the business. There is a remarkable difference because of Freestyle cruising, which is a lot more complicated than Carnival. There are so many restaurants, and people can eat when they want. … The service and preparation is more complex and sophisticated on a Norwegian ship with the food delivery and all that comes with it. You need more people, and that goes with what you give your guests. From the perspective of your guests, you are going to be getting a lot more on a ship with more restaurants.
Q: What do you plan to change about the way NCL runs its fleet?
A: We always need to do better, there is no question about it. I was very pleasantly surprised by what I’ve seen. The hardware is absolutely beautiful, both from a technology and guest experience perspective. I found NCL ships to be of the highest standard for the market we are in. It’s a unique product, and it is very well delivered, and we are looking forward to continuing to tune it up to make sure that we will be absolutely impeccable.
Q: What have you been doing for the last year with Apollo?
A: I had a lot of fun. Working in private equity was a new experience for me. I was looking for new possible acquisitions, in many areas, not only shipping. I helped with the newbuild contract in France. We had challenges with the yard [STX France] that we resolved. I spent quite a bit of time in France looking after our new vessel [the Norwegian Epic]. We are doing very well, and we are back on track.
I also put on a sales hat in helping my colleagues over there. I’ve been involved with the European market a long time, and I know the distribution system there.
Q: Do you think NCL will grow its European market share?
A: The numbers are there. NCL is growing more than anybody else. We have a smaller market share now, but our growth in Europe is considerable compared to the rest of the market.
Freestyle cruising is a formula that fits the Europeans: the Spanish, particularly, and we are homeported in Spain. They really like the concept of being able to do what they want to do when they do it. It would match any culture, but it resonates even more with southern Europeans.