A new luxury brand will be appearing on the Broads this summer as Norfolk Boat Sales becomes the sole UK importer for Elan Motor Yachts.

Directors Daniel and Matthew Thwaites flew out to the firm's home in Croatia to clinch the deal.

Norfolk Boat Sales, which has bases in Hoveton and Brundall, has bought two demonstrators for the coming season, the Elan 30 which will be arriving in April and the Elan 42 which will appear on the Broads a month later.

The firm has seen rapid growth since it was formed six years ago as a spin-off from hire boat firm Barnes Brinkcraft and it is hoped sales success from the new brand will allow further development.

Marketing manager Kerry Sharp said: 'Our staff has already grown from two at the beginning to six and we have had an amazing start to the year. The weather has helped and we sold three boats on just one day last week.'

Sales director Matthew Stone said: 'We are delighted to be appointed agents. Elan Motor Yachts

offers an excellent range of boats which will fit in well with our business plans.

'The range includes 30ft, 35ft, 42ft and 48ft models; it is a modern, luxurious brand which is already well established in Europe and we are making a significant investment to help build the brand in the UK.'

The boats have a relatively low air draft making them suitable for the Broads as well as coastal cruising and it is hoped that keen pricing - £150,000 for the Elan 30 - will give the range added appeal compared to other luxury brands such as Fairline and Sealine.

Mr Stone said: 'This is a very exciting year for us with lots going on including the launch of our new Heritage cruiser range which will be built by English Harbour Yachts in Oundle near Peterborough.

'The Heritage 286 was launched at the Anglia Afloat show in Oulton Broad earlier this month and has already attracted a huge amount of interest with the first forward order already taken.

'We are also looking forward to the launch of a new 27ft sea/river cruiser by English Harbour Yachts in early June which has an attractive price tag of £99,950.'

Norfolk Boat Sales will stop selling new Broom Boats from June although its brokerage office will

remain at the firm's Brundall premises until December.

It will then move to its new Norfolk Boat Sales marina - formerly Eastwood marina in Brundall -

which it bought last Autumn and is being refurbished in readiness for the changes.

Broom Boats managing-director Mark Garner said they had taken the decision to serve their local market themselves to improve engagement with customers and offer an even better service.