1985 - Present
Chairman & CEO, Mediterranean Yacht Corporation
Mediterranean Yacht Corporation manufactures a line of high-quality sportfishers. Two 38’ models and a 54’ model ranging in price from $250,000 to $1,000,000. These boats are sold factory direct to the consumer and have been shipped to more than 22 countries in the past 15 years.

1974 - 1985
President, Lancer Yacht Corporation
Lancer Yacht Corporation manufactured a line of sailing yachts and a line of high-speed motorsailers ranging in size from 25’ to 65’ (14 models). These boats were distributed through 62 dealers worldwide. Lancer high-speed motorsailers were quite unique in that that they were powered with single or twin engines and were capable of speeds in excess of 15 knots yet sailed well enough to win some major international sailboat races. Lancer was sold to Bally, a New York Stock Exchange company, in 1983.

1958 - 1974
President, Columbia Yacht Corporation
Columbia Yachts became the world’s largest fiberglass sailboat manufacturer in the late 1960’s with plants building some 30 models ranging in size from 21’ thru 57’. Various manufacturing sites included California, Virginia, Florida, Spain, Canada, Japan (with Yamaha as a licensee), Australia and Taiwan.

Columbia developed and perfected the one-piece unitized fiberglass interior production method for large sailboats and pioneered the use of balsa sandwich construction in its large boats in the 1960s.

Columbia built more than 30,000 boats under the brand names of Columbia, Coronado, Sailcrafter (a supplier of sailing yacht kit boats for the home builder ranging in sizes from 30’ to 57’), Meridian (a 48’ high-speed trawler yacht) and Express (a 30’ fiberglass express cruiser - this model and its two sets of production tooling was sold to the Henry Luhrs Company in New Jersey and became the first of the Luhrs fiberglass boats - a line that now includes Hunter Marine).

Columbia Yacht Corporation was sold to Whittaker (a New York Stock Exchange company) in the late 1960s. Inasmuch as Columbia was the first company that Whittaker purchased in the marine industry, Valdes was in the unique position to help guide and develop the Whittaker Marine Group, which ultimately included Bertram Yachts, Trojan Yachts, Riva in Italy, Desco Marine in Florida, Kettenburg in San Diego, Balboa Marine in Newport Beach and several others.

Valdes’ responsibilities not only included his role as President of Columbia Yacht Corporation but also included the Whittaker Marine Group role of working with Trojan Yacht Corporation to assist in the conversion from a strictly wood builder to a fiberglass yacht builder and also assist with the conversion of Desco Marine from a wood shrimp builder to a production fiberglass builder of 75’ commercial fishing boats turning out more than one per week. These boats loaded were 75’ in length with a 25’ beam and 25’ molded depth and a displacement of more than 250,000 lbs. Riva was also a strictly wood boat builder within the Whittaker Marine Group line that was converted to a fiberglass builder under Valdes’ supervision.

Valdes also worked with the Whittaker Marine Group in the development and Coast Guard certification of the Bruckner survival capsule used today on hundreds of offshore oil platforms worldwide. Total sales of the Whittaker Marine Group reached between $250 and $300 Million in the early 1970’s.

Richard Valdes is a member of both the Balboa Bay Club and the Newport Harbor Yacht Club and has raced his several yachts ranging in sizes from 30 feet to 57 feet (all named “ESCUDERO”) in numerous national and international races throughout the world, winning many awards and trophies including Overall 1st Place victories in the Southern California Whitney Series, the Ahmanson Series and the 66 Series in the same year.

return to top