What are the biggest changes that you have seen since you have been in the industry?
The Internet is probably the biggest change in the way we market boats to a worldwide audience. Back when I started in boat sales, the majority of my clients lived within a 200 km radius; today it is more than 2,000 km. Interestingly, though, all bar one of the deals we have done this year have been in conjunction with a co-broker, so although competition is global so is our cooperation with colleagues in the same business.
What are the biggest challenges facing the industry today?
Times are tough; we had a difficult year in 2009 and our turnover dropped considerably. 2010 has been hard but we are now turning over nearly double our 2008 levels. We have, however, added Charter, Crew and a Service division which have contributed significantly. The market is no longer in freefall; prices of used boats are low but have flattened out. Our biggest challenge is getting sellers to accept the new values which clients are prepared to pay. There are deals to be done and boats are being sold, but the old adage of “a boat is only worth what someone is prepared to pay for it” has never been driven home quite so much as it has in the last two years. As brokers, we are having to be more inventive with the ways we structure deals. The best scenario is when buyer, seller and broker work together; it does not have to be a fight.
Would you choose the same career if you had your time again?
Are you kidding me …? Yes, I love my work and the industry. I would have started Power To Sail fifteen years ago though.
Where are your other offices and what is their role in the business?
We have an office in Trafalgar Wharf, Portsmouth with two experienced brokers; we will develop the sales of our cleaning products and toiletries from there in the coming months.
What about this year’s collection
This year we have majored on Pershing, selling a 90 in March; we have also sold two 56’s and a 62, but as 2010 draws to a close, it looks like a Ferretti 80 is going to be the last deal completed this year. We have a Pershing 115, two Pershing 90’s and two Pershing 76’s for sale at the moment. Please give us some different boats to sell for a bit of variety!
It is not easy being green – how green are you?
Many people in the trade know me as “JB” but one of my lesser known nicknames is “Bio Browne” which I am hugely proud of! I quite like “Green Browne” but that one never really caught on … This year we developed a range of organically based
cleaning products and toiletries for “Yacht and Body Care”. It may seem incongruous developing this range of products when we sell boats which use around 1,500 litres of fuel per hour but, for me, choosing these products above their more toxic competitors can have long term benefits for the user, the environment and people who are not as fortunate as us. That is a great deal of benefit simply for switching soap brands! The brand we have chosen is called “Natural and Ethical” – naturally based products, which are ethically sourced and which work. We will give a proportion of the profits from the sales of these products to support sustainable charitable projects for people who quite often find themselves in a hostile environment, short of food, medicines, water and care. At least that is the plan; I am so busy running Power To Sail I have not had the chance to develop it very far, so I am inviting people who are interested in partnering with Power To Sail to develop this project to contact me. We already have Sun Tan creams, soaps, shampoos, boat wash, engine room degreasers, washing up liquid … to name but a few, what we need is someone with experience and passion to continue the development.
If you owned a boat what would it be?
A 70’ sailing yacht with a jet tender for dragging my children around on skis.. For more information:
www.powertosail.com
DECEMBER 2010
YACHTWORLD.COM 15
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