Sea circle

The custom superyacht Kasper 7, launched last year, has already begun collecting accolades from the professional yachting community. At February's Superyacht Design Festival in Kitzbühel, Austria, it won two prestigious Boat Design & Innovation Awards: "Best Naval Architecture – Displacement Motor Yachts" and "Best Interior Design – Motor Yachts 500GT+". Just two months later, at the Singapore Yacht Festival, it was recognised with the 2025 Yacht Style Award for Best Design in the 60-70 m category.

These honours are well-deserved by both the yacht's exterior designer, Giorgio Cassetta—commissioned by the Benetti shipyard—and the owners, who officially took on the role of interior designers. The driving force behind the creation and technical specifications of Kasper 7 was Karim Karagulla, a previous owner of a Benetti Classic yacht. His wife, Nisreen, who leads the Beirut-based architecture and interior design studio Ask Deco, handled the layout and design of the interiors and later introduced significant changes to the yacht’s exterior as well.



At her insistence, the height of the bulwarks on the main and upper decks was reduced to enhance the views from the salons and allow more natural light to flood the interiors. Horizontal portholes were replaced with circular ones: two enormous midship windows (1.9 m in diameter, with an innovative interior treatment) and a series of smaller portholes along the lower deck. This design creates a fascinating interplay between traditional shipbuilding aesthetics and modern trends, such as long, sleek lines, a blunt bow, and the signature semi-arch interdeck pilons characteristic of Cassetta's projects. "I thought it would be nice to give the yacht a slightly vintage look," Nisreen explains. "It makes her instantly recognisable, evoking memories of classic maritime design."

The steel hull of Kasper 7, paired with an aluminium superstructure, boasts an impressive gross tonnage of 1,250 GT, allowing for numerous spacious social areas onboard. For the Karagullas, their vision was not just to create a yacht but a true floating home that reflected their unique sense of comfort and aesthetics—sometimes with unconventional choices. For example, the yacht has no swimming pool. According to the owners, there’s no need for one when you’re surrounded by the sea.



Instead, each deck is thoughtfully designed with areas for lounging and soaking up the sun. Starting with the sundeck, you’ll find sun loungers, a corner sofa with a coffee table, and an unusually long bar with seating for ten.

One deck below, an open lounge area occupies the aft terrace, with a shaded bar beneath the sundeck overhang. Adjacent to this is a gym enclosed by glass walls, which can be fully opened to let in the sea breeze or kept closed and air-conditioned to escape the midday heat. This level also features the wheelhouse, captain's cabin, and office. For the crew’s convenience, a narrow walkway and small balconies around the wheelhouse allow for docking operations without compromising the privacy of the second deck.



On the foredeck of the second level, there’s another sunbathing area, while three steps down is a cozy seating nook adjacent to the master suite windows. The layout of the owner’s quarters is unconventional. While the office near the entrance and the forward-facing bedroom with semi-panoramic views are standard, the space between them is designed as a gallery. The starboard side of the superstructure is occupied by a corridor lined with an extended walk-in wardrobe. A transverse hallway in the middle leads to the bathroom, which is unusually large and features double sinks, toilets, and showers (but no bathtub).

A cylindrical staircase and elevator shaft separate the master suite from the salon, which serves as the family living room and creative workspace. Interestingly, this is the only area on the yacht with a television. The salon also includes a wide double-sided sofa, a bar, a game table, and Nisreen's workspace—a long desk-shelf along the starboard windows. Outside, there’s a dining table and another seating area. To shade the open sections of this and other decks, Nisreen chose yellow-and-white striped awnings, reminiscent of Mediterranean summer resorts.



Artistic references, playful design elements, and bold creative decisions can be found throughout Kasper 7. Take the dining room on the main deck, for instance, where giant circular portholes are a standout feature. Inspired by the wide-eyed characters in André Butzer’s paintings, Nisreen altered their interior framing: the round shape is partially cropped by wall coverings. The dining table, designed by Korean sculptor Wonmin Park, features a thick pink resin top that resembles an oversized candy. Wall-mounted consoles, functioning as both lights and flower vases, have such whimsical shapes that they appear as biomorphic art pieces. The sculptural bar by Sayar & Garibeh adds a dramatic finishing touch.

Similarly, avant-garde forms dominate the main salon. The bar and bookshelf structure, inspired by coral formations, was crafted from cypress trunks by the French studio Carlès & Demarquet. Plush, textured furniture resembles boulders, while round yellow glass coffee tables look like candy. This playful, almost childlike décor, combined with a soft pastel colour palette, creates a light-hearted, carefree vacation atmosphere. "In design, you shouldn’t fear simplicity," Nisreen asserts. "The landscape is what matters, not the design itself."



Lighting was meticulously planned to enhance the design elements. The designers and owners carefully considered how each space would look at sunrise, during the day, at dusk, and under artificial light. Nisreen wanted to capture the magical interplay of light and shadow reminiscent of Italian villas, particularly the way sunlight filters through shutters. "It’s simply enchanting," she says.

Guests can enjoy ocean views from the cockpit lounge or descend to the water's edge. Behind the fold-down transom lies a beach club and spa (the tender and jet ski garage is located forward), while the fixed swim platform is wide enough for sun loungers. For swimming, the central section of the platform can be lowered into the water.
The lower deck midship houses four guest suites with mirror-symmetrical layouts. Thanks to the yacht’s 10.9 m beam, these cabins are exceptionally spacious. Forward of this area are the crew’s living and working quarters, accommodating 17–19 members.



Powered by twin Caterpillar engines, each delivering 1,350 horsepower, Kasper 7 achieves a maximum speed of 16 knots and a cruising speed of 12 knots. Notably, the yacht has earned a three-star SEA Index certification, an eco-rating system developed by the Superyacht Eco Association and the Monaco Yacht Club (YCM) to measure CO₂ emissions. The more stars, the greener the yacht—and the more privileges it enjoys when docking in Monaco.

This is one of the Karagulla family’s favourite cruising grounds, where they plan to spend the summer of 2025 aboard their new floating home in the Mediterranean.

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