A generational shift is taking place in Thorsminde, with skipper John Christensen preparing to step back as his son Lehnert and cousin Brian Kjergård prepare to take over, just as a new trawler/flyshooter is prepared for delivery next year.
The process of handing over the company is linked to the decision to order the new Pia Glanz L-654, a 33 metre, 9.40 metre beam combined trawler/flyshooter due for delivery from Vestværft in Hvide Sande in the spring of next year.
John Christensen said that the process is a gradual one, as his son Lehnert already owns 30% of the company while his cousin Brian Kjærgård has a 10% holding.
‘We want to secure our future, and it’s not as if I’m going too quit working,’ he said.
‘I’ve been fishing for 37 years and would like to see the younger generation taking over. I’m not stopping, but In increasingly have things I want to be doing ashore, plus we also have the Bolette L-632,’ he said.
The new Pia Glanz will be a larger and more sophisticated boat than the one that was delivered to the family in 2011.
‘I feel it’s time to invest in a new vessel. Fishing looks promising and there is a good amount of fish in the sea. So we have a confidence in the future,’ John Christensen said.
