My name is Jozsef Devenyi, friends call me Joe and I am an electrical engineer, founder, co-owner and CEO of Anico Kft HU. My company is in the radio communication business, but I am also a founder, co-owner and CEO of Happy Sailor d.o.o., used for our charter business in Croatia. Before investing in charter management, I used to charter sailing boats in Croatia at least once a year, for family vacations, usually through a Hungarian agent and we often attended regattas held by Hungarian organizers, along with our friends. In Spring of 2018 I was attending the so called “Golden shackle Regatta” with my friends and Murter Hramina was our base marina.
One evening, we were checking the Internet for boat shows in Croatia and realized that there was an upcoming show in Split on the following weekend. When the regatta has finished, we went to Split. There we met Igor from Croatia Yachting. We were very impressed with Hanse yachts and the professionalism of Croatia Yachting staff during the show. We made a quick calculation and found out that if we purchase a new boat with leasing and leave it in the Croatia Yachting charter fleet, would be a better option than buying 10-year-old boat just for personal use. Of course, I had a few concerns about the entire process, such as finding a partner for financial leasing. Hungarian banks did not finance boats that are based in Croatia and Croatian banks did not finance Hungarian companies. The suggested solution was to establish a Croatian company we had professional support from the Croatia Yachting team and their affiliates through the entire process. The business and taxation environment in Croatia is little bit different than in Hungary so it was greatly appreciated that Croatia Yachting provided an attorney and an accounting company to establish our company and run it.
I would say that the cooperation Croatia Yachting, the attorney and the accountant was very smooth. They all speak very good English and were very helpful and cooperative. We use approximately 3-4 owners’ weeks a year, usually one week in, or close to high season, during June or September and sometimes in August for a family vacation and other weeks during low season in April, May or October with our friends who also love to sail. On top of that, if there is a vacant week left during the charter season, we make sure to use it for ourselves. Bear in mind that, when owners use their own boats registered for charter, they have to pay some VAT. It is same in Hungary, so we fully understand.
If I disregard the current pandemic, I am very satisfied with the booking results. In a normal charter season, we reach 24-26 booked weeks, including the owners’ weeks. Hopefully, the pandemic will be behind us soon or at least decreased and we can all get back to our lives and business as normal. I am also very satisfied with the maintenance standards for my boats. If I happen to have some questions about the incoming invoices, related to the maintenance and I ask for an explanation, Croatia Yachting is quick to respond.
Even though 2020 charter season was shorter, the full maintenance still had to be done to keep the boats in top shape, so the maintenance costs remained almost the same as in the full charter season. We have even decided to add some extra features to make our boats even more attractive for charter. These were Webasto heating for pre and after season, radar, cockpit grill, stern thruster and unlimited sailing area registration.
The transparency of the cash flow and maintenance costs are great. Having access to NauSYS, an online booking platform, makes everything transparent for us and it is easy to track everything.
Based on my experience with the charter management program, I would recommend Croatia Yachting as reliable partner and for those who are thinking about a new boat and the charter management program, I would suggest bigger boats, above 50ft. There is less competition in the category above 50 feet and the annual overall outcome could be more appealing to those who are aiming for higher return on investment.