Merrill-Stevens Still Booking Charters
There was a lot of scuttlebutt around Fort Lauderdale late yesterday afternoon after Merrill-Stevens closed its entire Yacht Services Division, including charter management, yacht management, and crew placement.
The first rumors I heard were that the company had also closed its retail charter division–the brokers you call to book vacations–but I have now confirmed from a high-ranking source within Merrill-Stevens that the company’s retail charter division is remaining open.
Longtime broker Sue Flammia is still employed in the company’s Fort Lauderdale office, and charter director Marta Iglesias, based in Palma de Mallorca, Spain, also remains with the company.
The changes at Merrill-Stevens are significant, but from what I can tell, they should have little to no effect on readers like you who are interested in booking charter vacations.
The yachts that Merrill-Stevens used to manage for charter may have glitches in their schedules as they find new management companies, but on the retail side, the reputable brokers we recommend that you work with here on CharterWave are still at their desks, ready to take your calls.