15th Zoute Grand Prix is a successful restart (update)

This weekend, the 15th edition of the Zoute Grand Prix (ZGP) took place in Knokke on the Belgian coast. The (cristal) jubilee edition was also the first of a new era. After serious financial problems, the organization was taken over, and the event wanted to start on a clean sheet. That worked well, apparently, with more than 12,500 entry tickets sold and a Bonhams sales result of over €22 million.

Not long ago, the well-known Flemish businessman and investor Marc Coucke called the Mayor of Knokke and asked him if he wanted to fully cooperate on a revised edition of the Zoute Grand Prix. Coucke and some other investors planned to take over the ZGP and wondered if they could still count on the commune’s support to organize the event.

With more than 400,000 visitors on Friday and during the weekend, the ZGP has become the most important event for the mundane coast commune, and the new organization wanted to set some things right before starting a new era. Under one condition, the local municipality was enthusiastic: the local trade had to be much more involved.

Some adjusting

The new organizers of the ZGP have tried to comply with these wishes and have taken initiatives to involve the local merchants more. Of course, the ZGP remains an exclusive event that wants to attract the happy (and wealthy) few and pamper them in an enchanting atmosphere.

However, during these last years, the ZGP evolved into a very exclusive event where common visitors or onlookers were more considered a necessary evil than an opportunity. To deter them as much as possible, they were asked to pay a lot of money to get inside. This weekend, some 12,500 people bought a ticket for the inside show.

From now on, the new organization wants to involve the public again. Of course, the 11,000 m3 event hall remains only accessible with an entrance fee, but outside, on the beach avenue, there are also attractive cars to see, and the whole event seems less hermetic for outsiders than it had become in the last years. Still, additional efforts would be welcome to create enjoyment for the people outside.

Oldtimers

The ZGP has begun as a classic oldtimer event by organizing a two-day oldtimer rally along the Belgian coast. Quickly, a ‘concours d’elegance’  was added on the grounds of the Zoute Golf Club, and the weekend was closed by a ‘GT Tour’ on Sunday, where contenders could show their contemporary ‘supercars’ and also enjoy a drive around Knokke.

The Concours d’elegance has disappeared, but its organizers have vowed to return in the future. The oldtimer rally has become very popular among Flemish car lovers, attracting over 200 participants (225 this year) and some very attractive four-wheelers.

The event has also become a famous auction for exclusive cars (oldtimers and others) organized by specialist Bonhams. This year, some 70 cars are for sale. Some of them, like the yellow Porsche 550 RS Spyder (1956) or the Ferrari 340 America Touring Berlinetta (1955), are expected to be hammered off for at least three to four million euros.

Finally, the bright red Mercedes-Benz McLaren Stirling Moss superseded expectations and was hammered off for €3,220,000. In all, the 12th edition of this Zoute Sale by Bonhams knocked off at +22 million euros, making the Zoute Sale the most important event in 2024 for the auction house.

Motor show alternative

But the center of gravity in Knokke has become the big hall where premium and high-luxury car manufacturers can show their new gear. For them, the ZGP has become a more valuable alternative to meet their customer than the Brussels Motor Show, for example.

The Ferraris, Lamborghinis, and other Maseratis of this world are joined by a whole bunch of manufacturers showing their premium or high-end luxury and sports cars, from Rolls-Royce to Bentley, from Bugatti to Rimac, from Lotus to Aston Martin, from Porsche to Audi, BMW, and Mercedes.

It becomes evident that the Brussels Motor Show (BMS), when organized, targets B2C in essence. At the ZGP, B2B clients and exclusive car owners can more easily be met.

We won’t be surprised if those more exclusive brands turn away from a mass event like the BMS and prefer the exclusivity of Knokke Beach to meet their customers. The next edition of 2025 will take place from 9 to 12 October.