New Large Yacht Construction from Heesen Yachts and OYI

Prior to opening my own brokerage business, I was a broker with Ardell of Fort Lauderdale, Florida and Newport Beach, California, one of the best known brokerage houses in the yacht business. Wayne Helms was born and reared in south Texas, where after many years as an avid sailor he entered the yachting business in 1980 as a brokerage owner and new-boat builder and importer of yachts from Taiwan, France, and Italy. He currently works as a consultant on many custom and new-build projects here and abroad.

I was awarded the accolade of National Salesman of the Year based on my knowledge as a yacht broker specializing in large yacht and superyacht sales both power and sail. Much of my knowledge and experience was gained through many years as a yacht Captain and Project Manager. My contacts with various building yards such as Feadship, Heesen, ISA, Royal Huisman, Alloy, Trinity, Sensation and Delta keeps that knowledge current. I tend to be involved with the larger vessels, including the so-called superyachts. I am a member of the International Superyacht Network, a private organization made up of a very limited number of elected brokers who have experience with the Superyacht market World-wide

If your question is “what is the best type of boat for my intended purpose”, we can be of assistance. If you are inquiring about a large yacht listed for sale, we are specialized in that area, too! Our brokers have unique and specific expertise in a variety of arenas from large yachts for sale, large superyachts for sale, as well as large mega yachts and sailing yachts for sale along with all sizes of motor yachts for sale.

Although, as with any brokerage organization the Seller's listings of large yachts for sale, along with the megayacht genre' remain an important part of our focus, it must be said that we unashamedly place ourselves primarily in the position of Buyers Advocates for our clients. Our commitment to finding the right ‘fit' for a buyer is at the core of our approach to yacht brokerage. We consider that focus paramount to our efforts. Some brokers feel their ‘success' depends on the number of listings that the company holds but we don't aspire to that position as ‘bulk dealers'. We will always seek out quality listings and we also want to re-sell our client's existing boats, but we believe it is the buyer who we can assist the most.

Teamwork: Untypically, we work as a true team at OYI, and I believe our success, both past and future, stems from our rather unique team approach. The European and US approach to brokerage within the individual organization is not so much based on similarities, but rather differing philosophies about doing business. Having been exposed to both approaches during my 35 year career, I didn't think either style suited my agenda in creating my business plan. I wanted a ‘buyer oriented' team approach that would benefit and focus on the client. At OYI we are all involved in each deal through twice weekly meetings, which enhances the team approach and I feel benefits the client. There are always two brokers working with each client, making contact easier between client and broker. That back-up between brokers brings ideas to the table supported by our meetings. The exchange of ideas between brokers and client is at the central core of our commitment as “Buyer's Advocates”.

Please Ask for a Copy of our newsletter including “A BUYERS PROTOCOL”, a brief synopsis of the buying procedure; often described as “the best piece of information a boat buyer receives from his broker”. An OYI exclusive.

About us: Ocean Yachting International is based in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, but during the past year we have expanded our services with an affiliate in Nice, France, the centre of yachting in Europe and the Med.

As the market strengthens again for Sellers, then Buyers of large yachts for sale can be satisfied to know that the dramatic price adjustments that have seen yacht prices fall to record lows are now stabilizing. After all, today's Buyer is tomorrow's Seller. Although prices are steadying, there are still deals to be done in certain size ranges and there are still deals to be done, period. The inventory still favours Buyer's because it remains large. With stabilization comes buyer confidence. The speculators are leaving the market which we believe is a good thing.

On a late note, it is all too easy for me to relate accounts of vessels which have either been sold below the seller's expectations, or taken just too long to sell because of price, condition or layout. I believe this can be avoided at the time of purchase, and it is a 'hot button' issue that I believe should be as important to the buying decision as should be the survey report. An experienced broker knows this, and will be interested in future re-sale for his client, as well as purchase. It is just as important to have an exit strategy as an entry strategy; and sometimes the exit strategy should take priority! Be warned about ‘falling' for the ‘perfect boat' that might be perfect for today's needs, but when selling time comes around, the vessel might prove to be less that ‘lovable' to the next buyer.

In creating this web site, I had one goal in mind. To ensure a seamless transition into my data base, so you could 'point and click' your way to vessels of interest. To date I have been encouraged by the positive comments that have been received on this subject. Let me know how it works for you, and I welcome suggestions that will improve your ‘experience'.

Ocean Yachting International has moved from being a brokerage-house based on the Internet and World-wide web focused on large yachts for sale, to combining those elements with more conventional dealings. The fact that you are reading this is testament to my belief in the Internet, as a resource and ‘tool' for my clients. I felt it important, once again to make it easy for you to 'cruise' to the vessels of interest in the easiest way possible. When you find a vessel of interest, I have asked for just the minimum information from you so that I can respond to your inquiry. If you would prefer to contact me directly, call me on my mobile or at my office or call any of my brokers. Either way, we would like to speak to you if we can assist you in any way. Your phone contact is always helpful.

One final note. I do not list yachts under 40' on my data base because the very large number that are available cause the results of any search to be too large to be practical. If your interest is in that size range, e-mail me or call me directly for assistance.

I look forward to your feed-back regarding this site, and would like to hear from you in the hope I can assist you further.

Best regards,

Mike Sharpe