The Boat Princess Podcast

Ok, so I will admit, as an Aussie that grew up in the UK that is constantly chasing the sunshine for my boating, Scotland would not be the first place I would think of to go boating. But then I tried it. And what a glorious boating experience it was. You see, my dear friend Ashlee and her husband Mike own a Freedom Boat Club on Loch Lomond in Scotland and on a recent trip to the other side of the world we decided to add their location to our itinerary of boating industry visits and we discovered what an amazing place it was. Loch Lomond has some 35 places to stop off and enjoy something to drink or eat or an activity to participate in so it in fact lends itself beautifully to the Freedom Boat Club model. So what is Freedom Boat Club and why did Ashlee and Mike decide to open one? Freedom Boat Club is now a division of Brunswick since they acquired the brand in 2019. It makes perfect sense for a boat manufacturer to acquire a Boat Club Franchise brand after all it secures boat sales of their boats but also is a way that curious people that would like to get into boating but literally have no idea how to do so, are brought into boating experiences in the easiest and most risk averse way and may well at some point convert to owners. The model includes boats that are new or almost new, training, check in and checkout procedures each use and a joining fee and monthly fee rather than an outright boat purchase or having to have a boat sitting on the driveway and fighting for usage rights at the Boat Ramp with other boat owners. Ashlee clearly got into it, and you will hear this in her voice, because she believed more people should be boating and that indeed SHE should be doing MORE boating. Having a club like this literally forces you to: Go boating taking prospective clients out and in events Spend time getting boats ready and taking care of them Mixing with people that love boating And as a mum – it exposes her kids to not only the world of boating but the world of running your own business. So I hope you enjoy my chat with Ashlee. She will reveal some of the challenges of mixing motherhood and business and her strategies for handling that (this is not their only business) and what boating really is like in this stunning part of the world. We are Freedom Boat Club Owners in Australia too at our fabulous Empire Marina locations at Empire Marina Bobbin Head and Empire Marina Lake Macquarie and in Pittwater too – so if you live in Sydney, Northern Beaches, Central Coast, Sydney's North Shore, Lake Macquarie or Newcastle and would like to dip your toes into boating or maybe you’ve sold your boat and wish you hadn’t or you’ve got a busy family life and would still like to boat but don’t have time to even think about the boat let alone care for it, then get in touch. Links below Nicky X Our Bobbin Head Sydney and Pittwater Freedom Boat Clubs: https://www.empiremarinas.com.au/freedom-boat-club Our Lake Macquarie Boat Club: https://empiremarinalakemacquarie.com.au/freedom-boat-club/ Ashlee and Mike's Freedom Boat Club on Loch Lomond, Scotland https://fbclomond.co.uk/

In fact you can study and start your career in Theatre Production Management..and jazz bars. In this interview I chat with Frank Hugelmeyer – President and CEO at National Marine Manufacturers Association about his career and his love of boating. Frankie as I rather cheekily call him, is a dear friend that I have come to know through ICOMIA. As the new President of ICOMIA (The International Council of Marine Industry Associations) he leads the world in recreational boating bringing the MIA’s and BIA’s and as many boating associations of the world as possible together to discuss and hopefully solve the barriers, the struggles, the limitations, the new regulations and the successes they are all affected by – it’s amazing how many of them are the same the world over. Given he’s been doing that for the NMMA for the last 6 years I would suggest he’s the perfect candidate for the task. Frank is a man that loves to rise to a challenge. Check out how he introduces himself on his Linked In below: “Here’s something very important to know about me: I love to inspire teams to do extraordinary things, especially when the outcome or idea has never been done before. Climb a mountain? Check. Build a better sandbox? Let’s do it. Grow an entire industry? I'm all in.Striving to accomplish what seems hard and sometimes impossible is why I bring a pioneering spirit to every encounter, challenge conventional thinking and discover new ways to learn and grow.” Our chat covers where his love of boating began, his passion for this industry and what he sees for the future of it. You see, he finishes his Linked In with:There is one more thing that I am very passionate about…living a life-well-lived and encouraging others to do the same. So go fly fish Alaska's Kongakut, paddle Costa Rica’s Pacuare River, climb Italy’s Dolomites or dive Australia’s Great Barrier Reef. You’ll note 3 of those activities involves boating. That’s because Frank doesn’t just work in the boating industry, he truly believes in how much it enriches peoples lives and what a disappointment life would be without it - and that’s why he diplomatically fights for it every day. You can follow Frank here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/frankhugelmeyer/ And connect with his amazing team at the NMMA here: https://www.nmma.org/

All of us - no matter what gender - go through moments of self doubt. Women though - maybe more so. In this podcast Sarah inspires us with how she overcame her fears to become so capable in the Coastguard - inspiring her own daughter at the same time. She has taken chances in life - including moving to New Zealand from the UK without having even visited - but those chances have meant she has said yes to more in the future - like saying yes to being on this podcast. We discuss self belief, and go through the fear of public speaking with some terrific advice to help you get through your understanding of this skill that so many fear. Building confidence in doing something can literally change your life. In every aspect of it - find out Sarah's views on this and listen to her encouragement to others to do so. Sarah talks about the importance of having women within a team and what they bring to the organisation and her love of teaching kids and making a difference. I hope you enjoy this podcast recorded at Auckland Boat Show. I thoroughly enjoyed spending time with Sarah and thank Dean at Protector and Rayglass Boats for the introduction and for the fun we had Sarah driving the awesome Protector at speed! If you would like to become a member, donate to or volunteer for NZ Coastguard you can find out more information here: https://www.coastguard.nz/ As a boater we are always grateful for the volunteers at NZ Coastguard and all of the other bodies all over the world including Marine Rescue NSW. Enjoy this episode and be inspired. Nicky x

Dubai Boat Show was an amazing experience for me this year. I met some incredible people, presented on stage, enjoyed the media walk with fellow marine media and best of all recorded some fantastic interviews. One of which you are about to hear. Wyndham Tops (great name huh) is a friend of mine through ICOMIA and he is a really interesting guy to listen to. With a fantastic history as to how he got into the boating industry and now working on one of THE most exciting projects in the world for yachting I wanted to share his story with you. He then suggested we include John W R Paul aswell to give another perspective to the marine industry in this region and share more information about the Leisure Marine Association MENA. This Association was only founded in 2020 but is so important to bring the industry together in this region to allow them to have more strength and ability to work with legislators, authorities and other stakeholders. John leads Exalto Emirates, a prominent marine equipment distributor and retailer in the Middle East. John has 29 years of experience in the GCC, sharing his expertise with the marine community and now with you, our listeners. Exalto Emirates LLC was founded in 1995 and is a wholesaler of marine equipment. The company represents over 80 reputed international manufacturers of high-quality marine components supplying to pleasure and commercial boat builders, shipyards, service providers, fleet owners and to the retail market thru a network of dealers. Operating from the head office in Sharjah and branch office in Dubai, the company supplies within the UAE, other GCC countries and across the greater Middle East, Africa, and Indian subcontinent. Wyndham Tops is Senior Director for Marine and Marina Mobility Operations at Red Sea Global, with extensive experience in marina management. An active sailor and certified Yacht Master Ocean, Wyndham has held leadership roles at Abu Dhabi Maritime, Emirates Palace Marina, and Ferretti Group. His expertise spans marina operations, community harbors, and ferry terminals. Now at Red Sea Global (RSG), he's working on projects where luxury, sustainability, and innovation converge to redefine how development is done. They are spearheading new development and tourism models, putting people and planet first to deliver projects that actively enhance the well-being of customers, communities, and environments. If you have seen any photos of the new resorts (Roxy Jacenko posted some just this weekend) you'll have seen they are mind blowingly beautiful and frankly, almost out of this world. Bringing boaters and yachties to this region is so incredibly exciting. Enjoy our chat and please give us a review! Nicky x https://www.redseaglobal.com/en/ https://www.exalto-emirates.com Make sure you sign up for our Newsletter at https://theboatprincess.com for all news on events, which Boat Shows we'll be at and educational info

Life is full of incredible moments when you make them happen, and for me interviewing Abeer AlShaali – Deputy Managing Director of Gulf Craft Inc and Captain Patricia Caswell – General Manager of Gulf Craft Services onboard the very boat that Mohammed Hussein Alshaali Chairman of Gulf Craft) calls his own was one of those. I know you are going to listen to this one at least twice. You see interviewing Abeer is a delight. She is one of the most articulate and interesting people I have ever met and is it any wonder their business Gulf Craft Inc has been expanding whilst some other boat builders have been retracting. Is this because they are in a part of the world that is continuing to grow or is it because they are meeting the market worldwide on what the market are asking for? I would suggest it’s both. Captain Patricia Caswell has had a distinguished career in the yachting sector. Currently serving as General Manager of Gulf Craft Services, she previously held the role of Quality Control Manager. With extensive hands-on experience as a yacht captain, Patricia ensures the highest standards in yacht building, overseeing processes from design to delivery. Notably, she played a pivotal role in the successful sea trials of the Majesty 175, the world’s largest composite production yacht. She was recently elected as Vice Chair of the Leisure Marine Association (LMA) for 2025. If you are not aware of Gulf Craft Inc as a boat brand let me help you out a bit here. Gulf Craft are an Emirati brand built in the UAE. (I know that kind of doubles up - but sometimes we need a deeper understanding in regions we don’t know well if we haven’t been there) They produce 5 brands: Majesty Yachts – for those of you that have chartered “One World” in Sydney she is one of these Nomad Yachts – for those of you that have chartered “BlueStone” in Sydney she is a Nomad 101 and in fact she is featured on the Gulf Craft Website in of course the iconic position right in front of the beautiful Sydney Opera House. Oryx – these are fast and fabulous Sports Cruisers designed for fishing or just having fun Silver Craft – Fishing and Day boats And Finally Silver Cat – their name gives them away of course as their Catamaran range (of the motor variety) So, as you can see, they’re covering quite a range of client types and budgets. This in itself is a clever strategy as most of us know in the boating industry - most boat owners will start small and grow big as time in their life and their bank account progresses. Their dominance at Dubai Boat Show with 18 boats on display showed not only their versatility but also their support of the industry in this region. In this podcast we delve into what they have done in their company to attract more women and what they do especially for them to make them feel supported. Surely though, the most obvious move they have made is engage two strong women at the very helm of the business. You see once the team look up to that, and the world sees the success they achieve – that’s when changes happen, that’s when others can see what they can do and are encouraged to aim high (this is the difference with women, some of us need that). That’s when other companies think about following the lead too. So, thank you to Gulf Craft Inc for being one of those showing the way for women in our industry. I know some think we don’t need to dwell on this still, but the reality is, we still need to shine a light, we still need to be there to encourage, support and celebrate the progress. About Gulfcraft: Gulf Craft envisages success not as the reward for our innovation, but as a motivation to set out on a path of difference, with dedication and commitment, while creating world-class masterpieces that truly belong to the waters of the world. From manufacturing fishing boats to megayachts, and standing amongst the top superyacht builders around the world, the company nurtures and preserves each brand’s distinctive identity. Since the com

Being part of the boating industry means I get to call some pretty amazing people friends. Alberto Sonino is one of those friends. As an owner of a marina in Venice with an extraordinary history of creating a now idyllic environment from a wasteland, to stories of organising the boats for the James Bond movie Casino Royale scenes set in Venice - Alberto has some stories many would love to hear, and so it is great to share them here with you in this interview. Our chat took place at the METSTRADE show in 2024 - probably one of the best events for networking - alongside the WORLD MARINAS CONFERENCE of which he is one of the main organisers this year. The World Marinas Conference is an event anyone can attend - and it's always not only a great way to catch up with marina owners and operators from all over the world, but every location loves to "show off" their location to it's best - so can you imagine what Alberto and the Venice team will put together? I can't wait to see. See you there in October folks. In the meantime if you would like to meet Alberto he's in the Italian section of the halls at Dubai International Boat Show this week. For more information on the World Marinas Conference and to book go to: https://www.worldmarinasconference.com/ For more information on Alberto's marina go to: https://www.veneziacertosamarina.it/en/ Major Sponsors of The World Marinas Conference include: https://www.d-marin.com/en/ https://www.ferrettigroup.com/en-us/

Josie Eastman was pulled into the boating industry by a family that believed she would bring a fresh and modern approach to it, and along with her strong organisational skills, business management training and team management abilities she hasn't looked back. Winning the Rising Star Award at the Raymarine Boat Builder Awards in Amsterdam in 2023 really put her Australian boat brand "Edencraft" on the world map which is her goal - to make Edencraft a world distributed brand. These strong and able to handle Australian conditions boats are based on an original hull design the story of which includes drug cartels and murder intrigue. It's a boat brand grown men aspire to and even shed a tear for. Listen as I explore with Josie her career trajectory and her passion for a brand that she holds with great pride and ambition to truly bring to all of those that have a love for fishing all over the world. There are some great marketing tips for all boat businesses (how to get kids hounding their parents to buy boats) and some truly inspirational moments for all women looking to enter or further their career in the boating industry in this podcast. The image for this Podcast is Josie to the left then Lisa Blair middle and myself on the right and just some of the amazing women at our networking event at Sydney Boat Show Thanks to Shadow Superyacht and Chapman Yachting. Photo Credit: Rising Tide Films/Mulpha Events For more details on Edencraft see: https://www.edencraft.com.au/ If you would like to connect with The Boat Princess and enquire about being on the podcast or sponsoring one of our events you can connect with me here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicky-vaux-the-boat-princess-04014530/