1. ISSUE 72
SPRING 2015
SEA TO SHORE
We hear from crewmembers who
have started their own yachting
business on land.
UNLIMITED TICKETS
Is it worth getting your Master
Unlimited? We look at the increasing
trend and whether it’s worth it.
THE PYA
What does the Professional Yachting
Association really do for you? Why
should – or shouldn’t – you join?
DIVING
Are the standards of operation high
enough to ensure safe training and
diving excursions?

2. FROM SEA
TO SHOREThe crew industry’s focus on longevity has expanded not only
to those working on board but to those making the transition
from sea to land, understanding the importance of keeping
crewmembers’ learned skills within the wider industry. We hear
from a number of crewmembers – two captains, two chief
stewardess and three engineers – about why they decided to
start a business on land, why they decided to stay in the yachting
industry and how they found the transition from sea to shore.
WORDS: LULU TRASK

3. 45
CAREER
CAPTAIN JASON
DOWNES,
CO-OWNER,
THE CREW GRAPEVINE
After 15 years at sea on yachts ranging
from 25m to 55m, Captain Jason Downes
stepped ashore to manage family life, and
set up Antibes-based crew house The Crew
Grapevine with wife Jenn.
Why did you decide to leave life at sea and
start a business ashore?
We made the decision to start a shore-
based business in order to avoid the
‘golden handcuff’ syndrome – career
seafarers (typically captains in their 40s
and 50s) struggling to balance their shore-
based marriages and families with their
sea-based careers.
What might the biggest challenge be for
someone deciding to leave life at sea?
Yachting is an amazing opportunity but
it is all-consuming. When you sign on to
each yacht you accept to forgo any real
control over your own time and location,
essentially trading freedom for money
and making it very difficult to manage
relationships and responsibilities ashore.
In your 20s and 30s it is easy to ignore
shore-based obligations altogether – I
certainly did – and there are many benefits
that come with it. But I noticed that for
many career seafarers there were some
sharp edges to the silver lining. Up to
15,000 euros per month is pretty hard
to give up when making a change would
mean retraining and possibly starting
again at the low salary end in any new
industry.
What made you decide to set up your own
crew house?
Crew housing wasn’t our first idea – or
our last – but we knew of too many
crewmembers who had messed up their
exit. I remember overhearing a story of
a deckhand who left to start a bakery
somewhere; it failed and he lost his savings
and wound up back at sea. And this is by
no means an isolated tale of yacht exit
woe.
Yachties have earned a considerable
insight into a growing, multi-national,
exciting industry and I am not sure why
so many want to turn their back and head
in unknown directions. We noticed crew
accommodation was an opportunity to
move sideways rather than exit altogether,
and we took it.
What patterns have you seen emerge from
crew during your time running The Crew
Grapevine?
Crew from all over the world coming from
home towns where the biggest yacht in the
typical marina is 50ft, and within a week
of arriving on planet yachting are writing
off the possibility of working on anything
smaller than 60m, as if somehow those
impoverished owners of small 30m yachts
don’t deserve their attention. Most yacht
owners who have 30m yachts have towards
100 million euros of their own holdings
under their direct management and they
are often doing this on the phone right
in front of you when on board – on 50m
yachts this is rarely the case. This is an
opportunity frequently overlooked by
budding exit entrepreneurs.
What advice would you give crew
considering setting up shop ashore?
To make money one needs to look for
gaps in the market. All you need to do is
find something that is being done badly
and do it better – this way you are tapping
into a known market, not trying to create
a new one. Dreaming about creating
some business that piques your personal
interest, and then trying to create a
market for that, is a much harder road to
follow, and I see the two are frequently
confused.
Yachties have earned
a considerable insight
into a growing, multi-
national, exciting
industry and I am
not sure why so many
want to turn their back
and head in unknown
directions.

4. 46
Right:
50m Victoria Del Mar.
CAREER
AMY BOWLES,
OWNER, OYSTER
GLOBAL INTERIORS
Amy Bowles worked in yachting for four
and a half years and as a chief stewardess
for two and a half, and over her time in
the industry has worked on superyachts
from 43m to 72m. During her time on
board, Bowles assisted with the outfitting
of two new-build Feadships – 61m Rasselas
and 71.6m Utopia. Now, having left
life at sea, Bowles has founded Oyster
Global Interiors – the name, she tells me
is because “I believe the world is your
oyster” – and, 18 months later, has worked
on three projects, including the refit of
Delta’s 50m Victoria del Mar and two
85m+ builds – as well as smaller projects
involving the replenishment and selection
of miscellaneous items.
How has your knowledge from being a
chief stewardess helped you with your
outfitting business?
My first-hand experience as a chief
stewardess has been invaluable and very
appealing to my clients. I am a visual
person and with every item I propose I
envision the functionality for the guests
and crew. For example, my client had
narrowed down a cutlery selection to three
patterns; I suggested that we remove one of
the patterns because the knife stood on the
edge of the blade – I reminded my client
how nervous a junior stewardess can be
clearing the table and we would not want
the balancing knife to roll off the plate,
damaging the carpet, floor or deck. While
sourcing crew dinnerware I am quickly
reminded of the many different types of
soup and cereal bowls; once taken out
of the cupboards and sea-fasteners they
will fall over if stacked more than three
or four high, especially underway. There
is, however, an ideal bowl shape, which
securely nests between 10 and 12 high,
even while moving. Hands-on experience
on board superyachts is extremely helpful.
What made you decide to find a land-
based job?
Years of having my possessions in storage,
collecting many decorative items from around
the world while travelling on yachts and my
passion for interiors all led to my decision to
come ashore, set up a home and establish a
land-based career.
Did you know you wanted to work in outfitting?
While on boats I really enjoyed having the
opportunity to leverage my combined skills and
interests with interior and outfitting projects.
My degree is in interior design and prior to
yachting I worked in residential interior design.
During my yachting career assisting with the
outfitting of two new Feadships [Rasselas
and Utopia] was eye-opening and exciting.
I have always loved the thrill of the hunt,
determined to quickly find what is needed at
the right price. Also, with such a strong retail
background I knew where and how we could
get good pricing. I was in my element and my
captain and boss were pleased. After my new
construction outfitting experiences I started
to realise there could be a future business
opportunity in outfitting as a career some day.
CREDIT:JIMRAYCROFT

5. Is there space in the industry for a chief stewardess
to find a job on land in the superyacht industry when
they decide they are done with being at sea?
Absolutely. With the size of yachts, services offered
and level of professionalism all continuing to
grow, the opportunities to support the yachting
industry on land are expanding as well. Most chief
stewardesses are very talented and diversified. There
are many niche opportunities to continue land-based
work within the superyacht industry. When I came
ashore I took a non-yachting position in luxury
goods purchasing and high-end brand management.
Yachting was clearly in my blood because every time
I was on a buying trip for the company I worked for
I found myself looking at items and thinking how
perfect they would be for yachts.
How easy did you find the transition from working
on board to working on land?
Coming ashore was certainly an adjustment. I have
always been quite nomadic, loving travel, especially
after my yachting adventures. The thought of living
and working in one location made me a bit nervous,
but with a client base that is 100 per cent mobile,
I am mobile and available to travel to my clients if
needed.
What would have made the transition from sea to
land easier?
The yachting industry is moving to a higher level
of professionalism, with training, certification and
accreditations for all departments now. It would
have been very helpful coming ashore with tangible
qualifications achieved as a chief stewardess, which
could have easily been understood and transferred
to land-based employment. Like many crewmembers,
I took courses to improve my skill set in yachting.
Land-based employers do not hold much value or
understand what is involved in a silver service, wine
or advanced medical course, let alone a Yachtmaster
captain’s ticket [which Bowles has] for someone
working in luxury goods. At a minimum, you hope
they see you are dedicated. Whether continuing a
career at sea or planning to come ashore, I believe
the increased level of professionalism in yachting and
transferable accreditations across all departments is
very beneficial.
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S
ee
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in
the
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uperyacht
U
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at
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onaco
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how
Marine House, 86a Market Street,
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CH47 3BD United Kingdom.
Tel: +44 (0) 151-632 4000
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E-mail: purser@hss.ac.uk
Web: www.sailorsworld.co.uk
After my new construction
outfitting experiences I started
to realise there could be a
future business opportunity in
outfitting as a career some day.

6. 48
ROB BATISTIC AND
JUSTIN GRUBB,
CO-OWNERS,
TNS YACHTING
Rob Batistic (left) and Justin Grubb
(right) are ex-superyacht engineers.
Batistic started yachting in 1999 and has
worked on board yachts including 38.5m
Sirenuse and 38m Betty; the latter began
his yachting career in 1995 and has worked
on board 37m sailing yacht Atlanta (now
Genevieve). Both had worked for each
other during their yachting careers, and
in March 2014 the two joined forces once
more and set up a chandlery business in
Fort Lauderdale.
What made you leave yachting in the first
place?
RB: When I started in yachting I gave
myself two to five years and I went past
that. I’d spent my last two years in yachting
trying to come up with a plan of what to
do next. In the end I just came ashore
and spoke to one of the local chandlery
companies. I sort of got forced to make a
decision because I got engaged and knew,
for me, a relationship wouldn’t work if I
were at sea most of the time. But I didn’t
really have a plan of what to do next and
that’s a hard issue for a lot of people
working on board.
JG: The move ashore was something that
I hadn’t fully planned out, and when I
met my fiancé it made everything so much
easier and clearer in my mind. In 2012 I
had the opportunity to come ashore and
work for Megafend Mooring Products and
after six months I realised it would not be
so easy for me to reinvent myself, and went
back to engineering – this time working
for an AV company doing specifications
for new builds in Europe. In 2013 I walked
away from that and went back to working as
an engineer, this time for myself in my own
consulting company. Rob and I had been
talking for quite some time about getting
into something on our own and in March
2014 we took the opportunity and opened
up TNS Yachting.
Did setting up a business with a partner
ease the transition?
RB: The transition was relatively painless,
but starting a business isn’t easy, with or
without a partner. There are so many things
we didn’t even think about and little things
that pop up along the way that can be
hugely frustrating. So when trying to iron
out the teething problems four hands are
always better than two. We’ve both worked
for each other and both work well together.
Why did you choose to stay involved in the
yachting industry when you set up your
business on land?
RB: Most of us really like the marine
industry and want to stay somehow
involved. Which makes it harder again
because what can I do that’s shore-based
and still involved with the industry and
where I can still hang out with the people
I’ve hung out with for the past couple of
years? Because yachtie folk are good folk.
And this way, with a chandlery, I get to deal
with everyone.
JG: We decided to head down the
chandlery route as it’s the closest thing we
feel to still being on board a boat. At times
you can’t help but get caught up in the pre-
trip hype of getting ready for the guests.
In some small sense we have been part of
that – like supplying the seal for the main
engine raw water pump that failed last
minute and was replaced while everyone
was sleeping so that the trip was still
possible, or providing the beautiful flower
arrangements that blew the guests away
when they stepped into the main salon.
Does your experience on board create
good levels of trust with potential clients?
RB: Yes, and we saw lots of familiar faces
coming to us. When talking to engineers
we have an understanding about the
machinery they are working on, and this
especially helps when it comes to additional
products they might need to make a job
easier.
But you’ve still got to break down
that barrier of, “You’re a new guy in the
industry”. Even though they do know you,
it’s like, “How long have you been doing
supply?” But one of the things we tell
people is, hey, we’ve been in your position.
We know how demanding bosses are,
and because of that we know what your
requirements are, so we can take it to the
next level and get you what you need for
when you need it. Because some crew can
be a little bit disorganised; some will leave
things to the last minute.
CAREER

7. 49
MARGARITA AMAM,
OWNER, INTERIOR
MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS
(IMS)
Margarita Amam began in the hospitality
industry in 1993, working in hotels and on
cruise ships, and for the past seven years
has worked in yachting, working her way
up to chief stewardess on board yachts of
40m, 60m, 75m, 100m and 134m. Early
in 2014 Amam left yachting to set up IMS
GmbH and associated product CRYSTAL
– a software designed to support and
educate interior crew and management of
a vessel.
What made you decide to leave yachting
and set up IMS?
The culmination of frustrations and the
growing unkept promises – it’s just not
right. I don’t like how blame gets passed
down to girls and stewardesses, resulting
in being called ‘stupidesses’. In the
upscale restaurants I worked at in the past
there was no such blaming culture. We
knew exactly the what, when, who and
how of our tasks, and if we had questions
our superiors – all highly educated in the
profession – had the right answers and
supported us with proper tools. Proper
education and access to fundamental
knowledge and tools is needed in the
yachting industry. Interior management is
not just rocket science.
Why do you feel the stewardesses get so
much blame put upon them?
Let’s face it, girls get lured into the
industry by, “Hey, you can make great
money and pay no tax”, but no one tells
them, “Oh, by the way, you need to be an
expert in leather care, couture treatment,
French service, butler service and also
be a mixologist, sommelier and PA.” It’s
unfair and it obviously leads to frustration
for the girl who gets thrown in there
and has to be an expert on everything.
They have to instantly operate at the
highest level. The lack of time and energy
for sourcing further development or
education has led the industry to the “I’ll
wing it” mentality. The industry is filled
with individual opinions masquerading as
guidelines which are not endorsed by a
relevant and unbiased institution. It’s very
confusing and just adds to the fog over
interior operations. That’s why I think you
can’t blame the girls who start at 20 or 25
years old, when they’re not being given
concrete protocols.
What’s been the best part of being based on
land?
RB: Being in control of where I was going
to be in the foreseeable future. And that big
bed! Your personal space. And running. It’s
something I couldn’t do on the boat. I joined
a running club and I train regularly with
them. If you’re somewhere for a month doing
a refit, you’re there for a month and you’re
off again and that’s the end of the routine.
Being on land is much better for getting into
routines. And for building a solid circle of
friends who are always around. I’ve got some
great yachtie friends who are here for six
weeks at a time and I love it when we have the
bi-annual visit, but in six weeks they’re gone
and suddenly there’s a hole in your life.
What changes have you noticed change in
the industry over your time on board and on
land?
JG: I think being crew on board these
days has become more demanding than
when I first got into it, from certification
to the guests themselves becoming more
demanding of your attention and service.
RB: Communication has changed yachting
incredibly. When I first started, most of us
were on satellite connections that were so
slow. God help you if one of your family
members sent a photo. Now all boats have
a good internet connection and one of the
things that I’ve found odd opening a business
is I get orders via text, cell phone, landline,
Facebook, email and WhatsApp. How many
apps do you download on your phone so
people can keep in touch with you? Lots.
Skype’s a good one because people just
message you and it’s easy – it just pops up
on your screen and says, ‘Hey, how are you
doing? I need this please’. You can have a
two-day discussion straight away – email takes
longer because you’re waiting for the other
party to reply. With Skype they get it straight
away, which is useful because there are often
questions associated with an order.
You’ve still got to break
down that barrier of,
“You’re a new guy in the
industry”.
CAREER

8. 50
The mentality of
the industry has to
change and the only
way to achieve it is by
improving the people
that you have.
How did this turn into the creation of IMS?
The idea for IMS had been lingering in
my head for six years, and five years ago I
started to make the first advances with the
content and getting patents on the various
aspects. And I just felt this frustration
was getting bigger and bigger. Crew were
turning over faster and faster. Now, if you
ask a stewardess a very basic question with
basic terminology, such as, “What is the
difference between silver service and butler
service?” most of them will say silver service
is the overall terminology, which is isn’t
correct. Acquiring service knowledge is a
long process and cannot be done within a
five-day course. Offering an ‘instant help’
at high cost is only taking advantage of the
desperate need of help from stewardesses
and captains who send their crew to be
trained. It’s the same trick companies use to
sell ‘magic’ diet pills. Everybody knows they
don’t help and that nobody got slim and fit
through a five-day vitamin course and yet
people still fall for it. That’s not a solution.
I believe all these girls are truly capable
of doing the job, as long as you give them
the means and as much guidance as they
demand. And this is where the whole idea
came from for IMS. Nobody writes the
established protocols down in a meaningful
way. I’ve seen attempts on yacht interiors
that I took over; there was a document on
the desktop in the crew mess, then there
was another document on the personal
laptop, then some notes on an iPhone. But
the IMS software allows you to channel what
actually needs to be done – daily, weekly,
monthly, quarterly and yearly. It gives you
a skeleton of what needs to be done with
key data and duty cards and you can add
your own information on what needs to be
done, when and how. You can assign them
to the individual stewardesses and they can
look them up on the cabin’s iPad. You can
add time frames for standard duties such
as how long crystal maintenance takes,
so even management and owners can
see, “Oh, it takes that long”, because how
would they know otherwise? The set time
frame gets blocked in your calendar and
you automatically have your proof of work
report in case the question arises.
Stepping in or up will be easier for all
parties involved. It’s stressful for captains
and management and ultimately for the
owner having to adjust to new crew. Let’s
say you have a chief stewardess who was
there a few seasons and then suddenly left
– the next girl can just step up because she
knows the system and can easily look up her
new duties. The mentality of the industry
has to change and the only way to achieve
it is by improving the people that you have,
because you always have different people.
With so many frustrations from working on
board, did you find the transition to being
land-based an easy one?
I found it easy because I always had my
own place. I moved out when I was 18 so
I’ve always maintained my own apartment.
So the transition wasn’t difficult, but I was
surprised that after so long in the hospitality
industry I needed about three months to
wind down before I could start setting up
the business full time. I thought I could
just run straight into it but because you’re
under so much voltage all the time while at
sea, ashore I felt like, “Did someone pull my
plug?” I needed a couple of months to wind
down but now I am ready.
CAREER
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9. 51
TYRONNE GLENNIE,
OWNER,
MARINE VSAT
Tyronne Glennie spent 11 years on
board superyachts, including positions
as first officer and relief captain on 50m
motoryacht Aquila and relief first officer
on a 56m motoryacht. Prior to being a
crewmember, Glennie’s background was
in IT, and during his time at sea, with no
ETOs on board his vessels, he took on the
responsibility of AV and IT equipment.
Moving shoreside, Glennie set up Marine
Vsat, a Vsat and AV integration company,
and hopes to provide yachts with those
services he felt were lacking when he
worked on board.
What was your biggest concern when
deciding to step away from yachting and
move shoreside?
In my case, I spent 11 years on board
vessels obtaining my Master 500gt, which
can’t really do anything for me in any
other field than the superyacht industry.
Fortunately for me, prior to yachting I had
come from an IT background, which I used
while on the vessel, and with how the yachts
have changed it has created a shore-based
position for me.
What advice would you give a crewmember
who is thinking of going shoreside?
There is never the perfect time for leaving
the yachts. Reality kicks in once you get
off the boats. Bills add up quickly when
you start having to pay for everything we
took for granted while working on board a
vessel. I guess you need to make a decision
before going ashore, and that is what kind
of lifestyle you want – one for the family or
one for travelling? Personally, I reached my
limit of being on board, and having kids
helped make the choice a lot easier. Once
you do decide to move on, no matter what
you get into, the chances are there is no
way it will be as stressful as the work done
on a yacht. I see my friends now that have
never worked on board a vessel stressing
out for having to work past five o’clock in
the afternoon. My sense of a work week has
been corrupted by years of 24/7 standby
with guests.
Would you recommend keeping close ties
with the yachting industry when setting up
shop on land?
While opening my business I was still
actively doing relief work. This constant
cash flow has allowed me to be able to
support my business while it grows. And
since my company is still involved with
yachts, it has been great for business. The
yacht industry is growing and it is great to
have it as a fall back, so completely cutting
ties to it wouldn’t seem like a good idea.
Where do you see the company in five
years?
Honestly, I haven’t thought that far ahead.
My goal is to have 15 to 20 full-time yachts
that I do the remote support on and two
full AV installs a year. Keep true to my core
customers and not grow too big; yachting
is a service industry and the support the
yachts receive should be the same.
You decided to start a business in the
AV/IT realm. Would you say this is a
challenging business to run alone?
I wouldn’t say it is challenging to run
alone. I believe that when the vessel buys a
system, they own it, and with that thought
in mind I give the crew full access to
everything I know. It is a catch-22 position:
they may decide they don’t need me after
a while and cut me from the budget, but
in most cases they keep me around for
remote support, and because they have
been educated and have full access they
are able to fix most issues without having
to contact me. When guests are on board
this is a key factor, as there is nothing worse
than waiting for somebody else to fix the
issue when you are the person getting
hammered with all the questions about why
it doesn’t work.
In the end we are all working for the
same person, so I’m not really running the
business alone. Another key factor to this
working so well is most devices have gone
to the point where they can be troubleshot
remotely – this has really helped. It means
that smaller vessels that don’t have space
for IT crewmembers can get by.
When working on board what was the
biggest problem you found with AV/IT?
The AV/IT companies wouldn’t give you
full access to the equipment you had
bought and paid for. Systems were over-
complicated. I like the keep-it-simple
approach – especially on charter boats,
where you may have all the best equipment
with the most elaborate interface for
picking a movie but it is not good when you
have a 70-year-old charter guest who can’t
get a movie to play or change channels on
the TV.
What benefit do you feel you have in
coming from yachts to offer this service
shoreside?
I have been there and done that. I know
the stresses that the crew are under. And
my systems are built as the complete
package from the Vsat to the ship’s network
to the AV, so no finger pointing when
something goes wrong. Let’s face it, yachts
are not the perfect environment for IT
equipment, so something is going to go
wrong. It may be something simple to
fix, but the idea is to teach the crew what
happened and the easiest way to fix it,
so next time when it happens they have
the answers.
I have been there and
done that. I know the
stresses that the crew
are under.
TO COMMENT ON THIS ARTICLE, EMAIL
LULU@THESUPERYACHTGROUP.COM
WITH SUBJECT: TCR 72 FROM SEA TO SHORE
CAREER