26 October 2018
Co-founder of Richardson’s Boating Holidays, Robert ‘Bobby’ Richardson has passed away at the age of 95.
Mr Richardson and his father bought the Old Mill House Boatyard in Oulton Broad in 1944 where they let motor launches, rowing and sailing boats. Their boating business started with the purchase of four rowing boats in the early part of the war prior to Bobby being ‘called up’.
Mr Richardson re-joined his father in the boat hire business in 1947, but within 10 years the hire fleet was too big for the Oulton site so the fleet of hire boats moved to Stalham. Over the next 15 years the fleet increased and in turn the site expanded, making Richardsons the largest boatyard on the Norfolk and Suffolk Broads. Mr Richardson purchased the Horning Boatyard in 1986, followed by three boatyards on the Thames in the early 90’s and the last boatyard to be purchased was Hearts Cruisers in Thorpe in 1992. Mr Richardson introduced holiday villages to the group in 1993.
In 2010 Mr Richardson’s was awarded the Boating Business Lifetime Achievement Award by Marine Trades Association (MTA) and Boating Business.
Mr Richardson leaves behind two daughters Jess and Laura, sons Paul and Clive and nine grandchildren.
