OUR HISTORY

In June of 1959, Mr. Andrew Jackson incorporated a yacht and aircraft sales office in Miami, Florida- making us one of the earliest yacht brokerage firms in South Florida. The original name of the company was Andy Jackson Yacht & Aircraft Inc. In these very early days the company had an aircraft division selling private planes as well as small commercial aircraft. A commercial vessel division was also in place to buy and sell tugs, barges and small ships.

In August of 1979, Andrew Jackson resigned and sold the company to Mr. Bob Skillen of Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Bob was a former yacht broker with Ardell Yachts in Fort Lauderdale. Bob moved Andy Jackson Yacht & Aircraft to SE 17th Street into the heart of the yacht brokerage area in Ft. Lauderdale.

In April of 1980, Joe Marino (Yacht Captain) was hired as a yacht broker along with Arpad Papp, specializing in Power and Sport Fishing yachts. In August of 1984, Joe Marino and Arpad Papp purchased Andy Jackson Yacht and Aircraft from Bob Skillen after Bob becomes terminally ill.

In October of 1987, Joe Marino and Arpad Papp officially changed the corporate name to Atlantic Yacht & Ship Inc. The new partners felt that a more reflective name was needed since the founder was long since retired, and aircraft sales were discontinued at this juncture. Yacht sales and some commercial vessels continued to grow into the early 1990’s, until a catastrophic luxury tax was passed by congress; this event almost decimated the entire yacht brokerage industry until its repeal one year later!

AYS continued to build and gain noticeable market share in the powerboat markets and in 1997 a strategic move to Harbor Town Marina in Dania Beach, Florida made AYS one of the very few water front yacht brokerages located in a full service marina. Our strategic vision was to locate our firm in a full service marina; clients want to see boats and a waterfront location with full services available to them.

The majority of mainstream brokerages were located in land-based office building on 17th street with no waterfront dockage or inventory. Sales skyrocketed and staff increased substantially, operating now with 15 sales representatives at the Dania Beach Location. In June of 1995, Arpad Papp retired and the company was entirely owned by Joe Marino.

In April of 1997, AYS hired Mack Carroll, a top performing yacht broker from Berry Boger Yacht sales in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. In March of 1999, Mack Carroll advanced to the top sales position and purchased half of AYS from Joe Marino.

In November of 1999, Rick Obey was hired as a sales representative from National Yacht Sales, Fort Lauderdale-yacht sales continued to be strong throughout the early 2000’s and AYS gained additional market share.

In January of 2002, Ed Biggie, formerly top sales representative of HMY Yacht sales, was invited to become AYS third partner and purchased shares. Ed brought to the company a very diverse background in sales and also a substantially strong service reputation. That April Rick Obey completed the AYS partnership team by purchasing a one-quarter share in the company, heading up the New York operation, and became the Sunseeker distributor.

AYS continues to diversify and build a solid sales staff, with many long-term employees who continue today. In 2004, AYS opened a waterfront service company Dockers Marine Inc. located in Dania Beach Florida which was later renamed Atlantic Yacht Services. Now in complete control of the needs of our clients, Atlantic Yacht Services offers complete marine service.

Opportunities continue to surface and AYS now operates offices in three states: Florida, New York, and South Carolina. Rick Obey oversees the NY office, Mack Carroll oversees the South Carolina office, and Joe Marino oversees the company headquarters in Fort Lauderdale. We are currently staffed with 40 sales representatives and additional support staff.

AYS began as a humble 4-person operation on 17th street in Fort Lauderdale, and has now grown into a regional operation in three states. AYS has truly grown with the yachting times. Approaching 50 years of uninterrupted service to the yachting community, AYS has a rich history and a track record in customer service second to none! AYS continues to expand with strategic alliances in Europe, Asia, Australia, and beyond, now with an international reputation and a clear vision for continued growth for the next 50 years.