From the catwalks of New York to Milan, HUGO BOSS has brought its stylishness and elegance to sailing with its iconic new yacht. The brand associated with stunning designs collaborated with Egyptian-born and Canadian-raised Karim Rashid, one of the most prolific designers of his generation, to devise the brand identity for the new ‘HUGO BOSS’ yacht, which record-breaking sailor Alex Thomson, stylishly dressed in the HUGO BOSS capsule collection will race in the 2020 Vendée Globe.

Vendée Globe, known as the “Everest of Sailing”, is a solo, unassisted round-the-world race.

It is one of the most gruelling challenges a yachtsman can face, and for skipper Thomson it is one he is determined to win – after coming in third in 2012 and second in 2016.

Rashid who has more than 4,000 designs in production and 300 awards to his name worked closely with the Alex Thomson Racing Team to turn his peerless expertise to creating an inimitable look for the International Monohull Open Class Association (IMOCA) 60 yacht.

Not only will the striking neon pink design boat sail in the Vendée Globe but in a number of long-distance races.

The new ‘HUGO BOSS’ yacht, which has just been unveiled and set sail through London’s iconic Tower Bridge for the christening ceremony, will make its first voyage when Thomson competes in the Transat Jacques Vabre race from France to Brazil, starting on October 27, 2019.

On working with Rashid, Thomson said it was worthwhile: “while collectively – through our team, together with our naval architects and boat builders – we had all the skills required to design and build the new HUGO BOSS, we knew that we needed somebody to devise a strong brand identity for the boat. And that is where Karim’s vision came into play. It was great to see how passionate he was about the project from the very beginning.

Speaking about the project, award-winning designer, Rashid shared similar sentiments: “It is special to work on this. HUGO BOSS is such a global brand with a contemporary vision, and Alex Thomson is such a champion in the sailing world. Meeting Alex showed me the great passion one needs for these races. And collaborating with HUGO BOSS and the Alex Thomson Racing team members, having a constant back-and-forth dialogue, was essential in shaping my vision.”