Smart money...

I know I have been known to rant on the subject of consumer yachting from time to time.. But here's another tack.

The need to spend money by many is also confused with the flip side of saving money while doing so and trying to float both sides of that equation is both crazy making and self defeating.

We pimp boats... Which is an apt description of what a charter broker does. Someone comes to us and wants to do a yacht charter and we find a selection of boats fitting their needs, tastes, budget and time frame. A lot of variables so a bit more complicated than it sounds but you get the idea...

Now, these days almost everyone wants a discount, but in the real world discounts almost always come with a measurable cost. You might get a 20% discount but then again the boat in question will most likely cut back on the service, menu and activities (they won't mention this of course) so more than likely for your 20% discount you will be getting a 20% less charter. Of course that is not always the case as some boats are simply over priced, so a 20% discount might actually bring them down to a fair rate. Unlike a lot of industries, the yacht charter business is not a cookie cutter affair and you have all sorts of boats and crews from superb to truly horrid... So a fifty foot yacht may equate to the Ritz or Motel Six.

Fact of the matter is, that right now there are simply not enough great yachts and crews to cover demand so you have to wonder about discounts in general because if there are not enough good yachts to fill demand then why is this one discounting?

Sadly the demand from consumers on all fronts means that we have sort of lost our way in the whole value vs discount mindset and whether we are buying boat gear or a yacht charter, if we pay cheap it is not really surprising we get cheap...

"Cheap... The High Cost of Discount Culture" explains a lot of what is wrong on many levels and more importantly why nothing ever seems to work like it should these days and is a very important read.