Company History & Structure

Like all good ideas, the idea for Boatshed.com was borne out of necessity.  Neil and Mandy Chapman, Boatshed’s founders realised that they could not return to their old jobs after their 10 month sabbatical sailing aboard their 41 foot sailing yacht.

The couple had more adventure that they had bargained for when they encountered storm force 10 winds in the Bay of Biscay.  The yacht was rolled 360° by the monstrous seas and the couple along with crewman, Neil’s cousin were plucked to safety by the Courtmacsherry Lifeboat. This is one of the reasons why Boatshed.com is proud to be RNLI ambassadors – the company itself might not exist had it not been for the brave actions of the Courtmacsherry crew.

Thankfully no one was seriously injured and the boat was later salvaged.  Neil and Mandy set about repairing her, eventually completing their voyage.  Once back on dry land they quickly realised their old life was not for them and started contemplating a new venture which would indulge their passion for boats.  They sought out the advice, help and support of friends and relations, recruiting several along the way to create a dedicated, hard working and close knit team with which to start Boatshed.com.  Most of those original team members are still with the company maintaining the original ethos of honest, open professionalism.

The difference between Boatshed and other yacht brokers is that we personally visit every boat on our books and photograph her up to 70 times with a standard set of shots which are uploaded onto our easy-to-use website. Each broker is intimately acquainted with the boats that they have listed and produce a detailed description and inventory which is displayed on our website along with the photos. This means that the research process for buying a boats start from the buyer’s computer rather than on endless trips to marinas, yards and yacht clubs. Boatshed only sells USED boats which means we not trying to sell you anything other than the boat you are interested in and each Boatshed office is local but has the backing of a global company with all the expertise and commercial might that brings.

The technology behind Boatshed has been constantly developed and improved over the years and now the website ranks amongst the most visited yachting sites in the world.  Our customers love the clear photographs of all parts of the interior and exterior of each boat and the full honest descriptions along with variable search options to locate just what they are looking for means that visitors return again and again.

Boatshed.com HQ is run by founders, Neil and Mandy Chapman.  HQ is responsible for the overall running of the whole Boatshed group.  HQ’s roles are to support and develop the business through the help and advice they give to the Boatshed offices, the expansion of Boatshed.com and the continuing support and development of the Boatshed system and software.

The Boatshed offices are all operated under licence from Boatshed.com.  Each office is an individual business with its own name and operates within the area local to their office. As licensees of the Boatshed system all our offices have standard working practices, standard procedures and standard agreements and contracts so that we can ensure each office maintains the high standards of customer service and professionalism which Neil and Mandy started when Boatshed was formed.

Many Boatshed offices have brokers and agents to assist with buying and selling used boats within their specific area.  All the Boatshed agents and brokers have undergone our in house training to ensure that our customers always receive the best quality of service whoever they deal with.  Brokers and agents work on a commission basis and are contracted to the individual Boatshed office they work with but everyone within Boatshed always has access to HQ for support and advice.

Company Structure

We are lucky enough to have a fantastic team of dedicated Boatshed HQ people, who have the passion and enthusiasm to keep the business professional and enjoyable.

Everyone that works within Boatshed.com from HQ through to local agents on the ground across the world share the same ethos and has been trained the same way at the Boatshed HQ, we have one mission in mind to make your experience with Boatshed an enjoyable one.

We chase every opportunity and try to be as responsive as we can - to our customers, and to opportunities in the market place. We're always here to talk or alternatively come and see us at our HQ in Gosport the coffee is always on.

Our head quarters is based at the "The engine House" at Royal Clarence Marina in Gosport. The Engine House was the old fire station for Nelson Navy which use to service the Naval vitualling yard. After much renovation the interior now houses, training suites, board room tables and meeting rooms and conference facilities.

What do we do at HQ?

At Boatshed HQ we deal with the daily running of the business from queries from our customers to development of the website, training and enrolling new offices and we are always on hand to answer any queries you have. 

You might have heard of our infamous fizz@five parties which are held every night of every boat show we attend, its a great venue to come and meet us and find more about the Boatshed Yacht Brokerage offer over over a glass of fizz.

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