One of the highlights in my career as a yacht broker was stepping onboard M/Y AGAPE ROSE in Croatia at the end of September 2025. A 50 meter yacht. 11 cabins. And for 3.5 days, we were invited to experience it as actual guests. Not a quick tour. Not a sales pitch. We lived it. The crew. The service. The food and drinks. The toys. The islands. The whole feeling of being onboard. Everything was included. And that’s when you really understand how this industry works. Because this is not random generosity. There’s a reason behind it. First, exposure. A strong broker recommendation can make or break a yacht’s season. If I’ve lived the experience myself, I can sell it properly. Second, product knowledge. As a central agent, you want the brokers in the industry to truly understand what they’re offering. Not just specs on paper, but the actual feeling onboard. And third, relationships. This industry runs on trust. Moments like this are what build it. You remember the yacht. You remember the crew. And when the right client comes along… You know exactly where to place them. Of course, the whole experience and a late night drink onboard is most certainly a big benefit!

I saw a message come in from an introducer I had never worked with before. Asking for a call. Bear in mind… it’s past 7pm on a Friday. Didn’t think much of it. It had already been a crazy day, so I left it for a bit. 15 minutes later, I call him back. Within 5 minutes of the conversation, we are talking about a 3 to 4 MONTH charter. Not weeks, months. 20 to 30 meter yacht. And that is exactly how this industry works. A full day of chaos, and then out of nowhere, a serious (although not yet 100% qualified) enquiry lands. No initial heads up. Just straight into it. That’s the life of a yacht broker. Unpredictable, intense… but that is also my favorite part about being a yacht broker. It does take a certain mindset though, because this call also could've been at 11pm or 3am.

Hello everyone, glad to be among people sharing the same passion for yachts as me! Does anyone know when the course will be live? Thanks ;)

I will be attending Palma International Boatshow from 30 April to 02 May and MEDYS from 03 to 06 May! Let me know if you are in the area. It would be a pleasure to catch up!

Summer 2024 was one of those periods where everything just kept moving. I remember closing a 45 meter for a client in 19 hours. To this day, I don’t think I’ve ever pulled off a charter that quickly. It was simple on paper. A few days in St. Tropez, a bit of a party, then back to the villa. Clean, fast, done. At least that’s what I thought. Not even a week later I get a call. “Jochem, we want to look at options for 2 weeks in St. Barths over New Year’s. 70+ meters.” That is already a completely different level. Bigger yachts, bigger budgets, more moving parts. You start putting options together, thinking you have a bit of time to structure it properly. Then two days later everything shifts again. “We want to see KENSHO. Where is she and can we see her tomorrow?” And this is where you really understand the pace of this industry. In yachting, the answer is always yes. You figure it out after. So we locate the yacht on MarineTraffic, confirm everything with the central agent, and find out the owner is actually onboard. That makes it even more sensitive, but also more real. Flights get booked that same evening. France to Italy. No overthinking. No delays. The next morning we are on a tender heading out to the yacht, stepping onboard the very same day. That is the level you are operating at sometimes. Fast decisions, quick execution, no room to hesitate. And then comes the part nobody really talks about.The client changed plans. The booking never happened. All that effort, all that movement, and nothing came from it directly. But here is the key. If we didn’t go, we would have killed the opportunity before it even had a chance. In this industry you cannot sit back and “see what happens”. You move, you show up, and you put yourself in the position where things can happen. Sometimes it pays off immediately. Sometimes it doesn’t. But over time, those moments compound. Because clients remember the broker who showed up, not the one who hesitated.