From his workshop in Aintree, Swan Boat Builders has grown from a one-man operation with no machinery into a thriving business employing 14 people, with a waiting list stretching years ahead. Founder Ian Kinvig, 47, was born in Old Swan, and has become one of the North West's most sought-after boatbuilders, creating bespoke luxury narrowboats and wide-beam canal boats worth up to £200,000 each for customers across the world.
A chance start in boatbuilding
Ian left school with little idea what he wanted to do. A family friend who owned a boatbuilding company offered him a job, and he stayed for about 15 years. "When I left school, I had no idea what I wanted to do, so I just went for it," he told the ECHO. "I worked there for about 15 years, and I just kept thinking of bigger ideas, and I wanted to do things differently."
He added: "I wasn't the best in school. I had no attention span, but if you put something in front of me, I'd always have a go and build it. I was always good with my hands." On the company name, he said: "I was born in Old Swan, so that's where Swan Boats comes from. People always think there's another reason for it, but that's it."
From no machines to a four-year waiting list
In 2017, after saving enough money to buy a house, Ian invested in a small industrial unit in Aintree and started Swan Boat Builders alone. "I literally had no machines and no money. Every time I built and sold a boat, I'd buy another machine - a table saw, a stacker truck, whatever I needed. I just kept reinvesting everything."
The Covid-19 pandemic changed everything. "Covid was probably the best thing that ever happened to the leisure industry. People couldn't go abroad anymore, so they thought, 'You know what? I'm going to buy a boat'. My phone just never stopped." Within months, he had secured around four years' worth of orders, forcing him to expand into larger premises and recruit skilled tradespeople he had worked alongside.
Bespoke boats and floating apartments
Today the company has completed more than 60 bespoke boats, with every stage of construction under one roof. Ian employs his own welders, electricians, painters, engineers and joiners rather than outsourcing work. "Everything's made here by hand. Every cupboard, every door, every bit of furniture is made specifically for that boat because every customer wants something different."
He saw customers settling for stock boats, which prompted his bespoke approach. "I thought, 'Why don't we just build exactly what the customer wants?' If someone wants a chandelier in the living room, why shouldn't they have one?" Modern canal boats now feature luxury kitchens, granite worktops, dishwashers and high-end interiors, with Ian describing many larger wide-beam boats as "floating apartments".
Managing expectations
Customers come from the UK, Australia, Canada and the United States, some downsizing from large family homes, others returning to Britain after decades abroad. But not every request is practical. "I've had people ask for American-style fridge freezers on a narrowboat. I'm like, 'How's that going to fit?'. I've had people who have sold their houses and are downsizing to a boat turn up with 50-inch TVs, and I'll say, 'Where's that going?' and they'll say, 'Can't you just put it in the living room?' and I'm like, 'Where?' Some of the stuff people bring is crazy. People turn up with van loads of gear. You've got to manage people's expectations because a narrowboat is still only a narrowboat."
Traditional craft and Merseyside heritage
Ian remains passionate about preserving traditional craftsmanship. Every Swan Boat Builders vessel is still painted entirely by hand using specialist marine paint. "A lot of builders spray them now because people want metallic colours like car paint. But a boat isn't a car. Marine paint has been around forever, and it's designed to live on water."
He believes Merseyside's maritime heritage continues to shape the region's boatbuilding industry. "Most of the boatbuilders in the North West know each other because we all learned the trade in the same place. The canals are so historic." Customers travelling to Liverpool are often surprised by the city's waterfront history. "You find that a lot of people, especially those who don't live in the North West, who will come and visit, and they'll stay around the Albert Dock, and they'll go walking around, and they'll come to see us the next day, and they'll say, 'It's beautiful around here, isn't it?' And I'm like, 'Yeah, it's a nice place'. They don't always realise just how much boating heritage we've got."
TV fame and the biggest reward
The Aintree workshop has appeared several times on Channel 4's My Floating Home, with Ian featuring on six episodes. "Channel 4 emailed me and asked if I'd be interested in taking part and if I'd go on the telly. I was like 'Of course I'll go on the telly, why not?'. They keep ringing me because there's always something happening here. I'm like a bleeding actor now."
The exposure has brought enquiries from around the world, but Ian says the biggest reward comes when customers step aboard their completed home for the first time. "When I speak to someone, and I tell them what I do, they are always dead interested in it. Then you show them pictures and they say, 'I can't believe they look like that, I thought they were old Rosie and Jim boats' and I'm like, 'No mate, you've got everything in them now'. Honestly, it's mad." He added: "But it does make you proud, especially when the customers get the boat, and that's their home, and they're all made up, and they're all hugging you. Then the boat leaves the yard... and I'm straight onto the next one."
"Learning a trade is the best thing you can do. You're always in demand when you've got a trade."
