There is some symbolism about the highly successful yachtsman Sir Ben Ainslie locating his Americas Cup bid in Portsmouth at a time when the south coast is performing so strongly.
So often the message for a region is that it is a nice place to live and work but the reality is that it lacks economic vibrancy.
That does not appear to be the case in the south coast where there is strong demand for offices and industrial space as well as a healthy inflow of investment.
Indeed the region is one of the favourite areas for commercial property development. At the same time, this has created its own problem of a lack of prime space.
The signs, however, are hopeful that speculative development is happening and that the flow of properties for conversion to residential use will be balanced by new buildings. The potential for the south coast can be seen classically with Rolls Royce pre letting a huge building for logistics in Bognor Regis.
The fact of life is that the south coast weathered the recession better than most parts of the country and is now in a position to reap the benefits. That can be seen in Bournemouth and Poole which are also performing well. A further measure is the success of Realest which has started business with a bang and is highlighting the strengths of the region.
Mark you, the region has some natural advantages such as the Royal Navy in Portsmouth and the superb harbour facilities in many places as well as good transport links through railways and roads.