Beautiful Virgin Islands

Sunday, Jul 12, 2026

Meet The London Design Firm Disrupting The World Of Superyachts

“I think the biggest compliment we’ve received is, ‘Oh my God it looks different!’” describes Albin Berglund of working with yacht owners, the top slice of society who are not easy to please.
Berglund, along with Marie Soliman and Sarah Colbon, has just launched Njord, a new yachting arm to the established London design firm Bergman Interiors, which takes its name from the Norse god of wind and waters.

With over 25 years of combined experience, Soliman and Berglund have been innovating the often staid world of luxury interiors and architectural design.

But recently, they noticed a sector-yachts-that seemed to attract people with limitless budgets despite limited variations in the design and execution of the Herculean boats.

And it was with this knowledge that they joined forces with Sarah Colbon, a long-time marketing and management executive in the yachting industry with a bursting little black book and created Njord.

“I've worked with some of the major and iconic yachts,” describes Colbon of her experience. And she’s right-the likes of Black Pearl-the 350-foot, three-mast superyacht built by Oceanco and managed by Divergent Yachting that consistently tops media lists of the world’s most-impressive vessels.

Exciting the client who has everything is not easy. It’s not simply a matter of choosing and installing the most expensive items at every bend. “It's our part of the job to get them excited, and that means finding things that they haven't seen before,” says Berglund.

It’s about designing something that is surprising but also functional. But how do you surprise a client who travels the world and has seen every finish of wood and cut of marble?

“We challenge, and we push the boundaries,” explains Soliman. “When you say ‘boat’, you have a very specific idea of what will you see. The same happens in hotel lobbies and lounges or gyms. But the idea behind Bergman was always to break that mould. And we are doing the same here with yachts.”

Even Colbon, who has now come onboard as a partner, notes that when she first saw Bergman’s designs of an infinity pool released on social media she took pause. “I was like ‘Oh this is a breath of fresh air!’”

Collaboration is also an important part of the process. As designers, the Njord team consult the boat captain and crew throughout to ensure each element is not only beautiful but functional. Where some designers tend to be blind to those around them, the aim here is to listen and celebrate every voice and idea. “It’s all about the family on the boat,” says Soliman.

And it’s not simply lip service.“We are creating that amazing community of captains, crews, craftsmen and artisans,” says Soliman. “These people will be members of our club because we are organising amazing events and connecting people on both a professional and personal level. We will show movies, launch products and create a journey for everyone involved.”

It’s also about celebrating the unique artists and craftsmen behind each piece and artefact inside the yacht. A perfect example of this is Mathieu Lehanneur, a French artist and furniture designer who makes large and elegant marble pieces, manipulating the glossy edges of the stone to resemble the surface of the ocean. “It’s about collaborating with the right people and not just running it by yourself,” says Soliman.

And it’s not just yachts the team has their sights set on. “We want to enter the world of floating hotels and cruise ships,” explains Berglund. “We want to design anything on water.”
Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
The AI Invoice Shock: Layoffs Didn't Save Managers Money — They Cost Them More
Concern: Sexually Transmitted Bacterium Among Men Develops Antibiotic Resistance
Following Massive Investor Demand: SK Hynix Raises 26.5 Billion Dollars on Nasdaq
Passenger Partially Pulled Out of Ryanair Jet After Cabin Window Fails Mid-Flight
After Four Years, and Under a Heavy Veil of Secrecy: King Charles Meets His Grandchildren, Harry and Meghan's Children
Severe Heatwave Drives Dangerous Ground-Level Ozone Pollution Across Two Thirds of European Union
Westminster in Freefall as Farage's By-Election Gamble Triggers Broader Systemic Crises
Institutional Fractures and Political Volatility Reshape Britain's Domestic Landscape
Deadly Fire, Health Emergencies and Political Upheaval Shape a Volatile Global News Cycle
Flight Instructor Jumped to His Death — Student Landed the Plane: "You Know What You Need to Do"
The Physical and Electronic Barriers Disrupting Domestic Wireless Networks
France and Morocco Open World Cup Quarter-Finals as Collina Defends Refereeing
Prince Harry Suffers Major Court Defeat in Legal Battle Against Daily Mail Publisher
Bonnie Tyler, Welsh Singer Behind Total Eclipse of the Heart, Dies at 75
Tech Pulse: The Future of AI and Screen Culture
Global News Briefing: Escalating Geopolitical Tensions and Corporate Shakeups
Global News Brief: Escalating Conflicts, Public Health Crises, and World Cup Drama
Federal Financial Framework Shifts as Treasury Launches Universal Savings Program for Minors
French Court Allows Le Pen to Run for Presidency, but with an Electronic Tag: "I Will Appeal, and I Will Run"
$1.4 Trillion: The Lawsuit That Could Crush Meta
Europe's Growing Struggle with Extreme Heat and Air Conditioning
UK Daily Briefing: Legal Developments and Social Issues
Political Turmoil and Rising Costs
Anthropic Reengineers Agentic Architecture to Shift Autonomous Workplace Automation to the Cloud
Logic Flaw in Windows 11 Permission Architecture Silently Consumes Hundreds of Gigabytes of Local Storage
Apple Advances Late-Stage Operating Systems with Fourth Beta Deployments
Global Crisis Alert: Escalating Middle East Tensions and UK Political Upheaval
Deep Purple Has Released Its Best Album in Decades
Microsoft Lays Off 4,800 Employees and Xbox Suffers the Hardest Blow
Morocco and France Advance as 2026 FIFA World Cup Enters Quarterfinals.
Historic 2026 Tour de France Opens in Barcelona With Revamped Team Time Trial.
Global Mergers and Acquisitions Approach $4 Trillion Defying Geopolitical Tumult.
Negotiators Advance 20-Point Framework for Gaza Ceasefire and Demilitarization.
OECD Warns Middle East Conflict Will Depress Global Economic Growth.
Ukrainian Drones Strike Major Oil Terminal in St. Petersburg.
World Meteorological Organization Issues Urgent Alert Over Rapidly Intensifying El Niño.
United States Commemorates 250th Anniversary With Diplomatic Summits and Global Flotilla.
Iran Begins Days-Long Funeral for Supreme Leader Khamenei Amid Strait of Hormuz Standoff.
Technology giant reports surging carbon emissions driven by artificial intelligence infrastructure demands.
Artificial intelligence adoption accelerates workforce reductions across the technology and financial sectors.
Global technology and financial conglomerates collaborate to launch a new stablecoin standard.
United States regulators lift export restrictions on a major frontier artificial intelligence model.
Luxury bags take over the World Cup: style, status symbol, or just showing off?
×