The Oyster Group, whose flagship company Oyster Marine is Britain’s largest yacht builder, has bought Gowen Sailmakers for an undisclosed sum. The purchase includes 45,000 sq ft of Gowen’s freehold site on the waterfront at West Mersea in Essex.

Oyster says that Gowen will be merged with Ocean Sailmakers, the company they started three years ago, which also operates from Mersea Island. The new business will trade as Gowen Ocean or GO Sailmakers and will operate from the Gowen premises later this year.

Oyster Group Chairman Richard Matthews says: “We are looking forward to GO Sailmakers becoming an important player in an increasingly technology-driven business.”