Dan Lenard was born in 1968 in Ljubljana, the Slovenian capital. However, it was during family vacations on the Adriatic Sea when he developed a passion that would ultimately make him an internationally famous designer.

As a small boy, he was excited about boats of all shapes and sizes. Lenard’s hobby triggered a passion for watercraft, and he eventually decided to design yachts for a living.

Lenard spent a year studying architecture at the University of Ljubljana, and got some hands-on experience working for the Jakopin brothers, well-known in Slovenia for their innovative boat designs. Lenard was inexperienced and was not able to do much hands-on work at their company, but he was introduced to the exciting world of luxury yacht design. He even hitchhiked to southern France to work as an assistant at a company working on mega-yachts. Lenard was less successful back home. He wanted to study design in Ljubljana, but did not pass the rigorous entrance exams.

When he was just 22, he attended a trade show and met an Italian man who would change his career. Carlo Nuvolari was a nautical architect with an equally strong passion for boats. The two were a perfect match, and a new company -- Nuvolari-Lenard, based in the Italian town of Treviso – was born.

Nuvolari-Lenard turned out to be a huge success. It remains one of only a few companies in the world that is involved in all stages of yacht design. Their “budget” models cost a mere half a million euros, but the company is most famous for the type of unique, expensive mega yachts that feature heliports and attached submarines. Their various designs have won awards such “Motor Boat of the Year” and the “Nautical Design Award” at major international boat shows.

A strong commitment for detail characterizes the company’s output. Lenard drafts all of his designs by hand. This passion has not gone unnoticed by the world’s rich and famous. Nuvolari-Lenard’s full client list remains confidential, but international celebrities such as Gianni Versace, Giorgio Armani, and Stephen Spielberg have all personally visited the company’s sleek, modernist studio in Treviso.

Despite achieving his success abroad, Lenard remains worried about the economic situation in Slovenia and bemoans its lost potential. He urges the government to open up Slovenia’s economy to the world and give a new generation of entrepreneurs an opportunity to seek the kind of international success he ultimately found in northern Italy.