Why not stirred, Mr Bond?
November 18, 2021
The yachting industry has always been a lucrative (and fun) career opportunity for intrepid young South Africans. We spoke to Chanel Marais, owner of
Virtual Yacht Assistant to get some insights on why now is a great time to enter the industry. These are her words
1. The industry is booming
The yachting industry currently has 1024 yachts either on order or in production, which should leave our future yacht crew feeling calm and at ease. The industry didn’t really come to a halt when the pandemic struck, it just slowed down slightly. Two years later and we are in full swing again, only question now is 'will there be enough marina’s to accommodate all the new yachts?’
2. It’s never been easier to build a quality CV
A CV is a future superyacht crew member’s marketing platform. It is their first introduction to their potential employers. Due to the volume of CVs we get when we post vacant positions, we take an average of 10 seconds to make a decision on placing the CV in the ‘reject’ or ‘review’ pile. For this reason, it is vital that the most important information is captured on the first page in a particular sequence. That is why we offer services such a Professional Yacht CVs, where we build you a CV that a potential employer wants to see, by highlighting skills and characteristics you may not think are important & structuring it with an optimal lay-out.
3. There are various easy (and fun) ways of improving your credentials
Potential employers look at valid compulsory certifications, value-added courses, vaccinations, valid visas and your current location. With a focus on what roles you were employed in and how much responsibility you held in those roles. Especially for interior crew, having hospitality as a background is beneficial.
Yachting is a service-based role, whether you are a deckhand or steward/stewardess, you will at one point, or another find yourself making a cocktail or serving your guests food. That is why investment in furthering your skills in mixology and other service-related skills would improve your confidence around guests. It all plumps up your CV and shows a potential employer that you are serious about investing in your yachting career.
At Salute we offer two yachting-specific course, the
Ultimate Yachting Mixology Course and the
Superyacht Cocktail Course. Both are accredited by Virtual Yacht Assistant. Learn more here.