The 2019 edition of IYC Excellence Awards were held on 28 March at Bonnet House, a historic artists’ beach residence, in Fort Lauderdale. Members of the international IYC team gathered to enjoy an elegant soiree and reflect on the successes of 2018 and the busy start to 2019. There was much to celebrate, with IYC’s recent accolades including ranking as the top brokerage house by sales figures in 2018, and counting the third largest charter fleet in the world. But of course, none of these impressive records are possible without a hard-working team. Stefanos Makrymichalos, CEO of IYC, gave a speech to all attendees, paying tribute to the role that IYC’s people have played in achieving the company’s impressive expansion.

The awards ceremony saw three main awards presented: Yacht Sales Excellence Award, Charter Retail Award, and Employee Excellence award.

Nominees for the Yacht Sales Excellence Award were: Michel Chrissycopoulos, Frank Grzeszczak, and Michael Rafferty, with Michael Rafferty announced as the winner. Based out of the IYC Palm Beach office, Michael Rafferty is a hugely experienced broker and has worked in the yachting industry for over 30 years. Growing up on the water, he later qualified as a ship captain and worked offshore before returning to land to start his long career as a broker. Michael is a font of knowledge for IYC’s clients and provides valuable support and insight on all aspects of the sales and charter sectors, including service and new build.

Nominees for the Charter Retail Award were: Mark Elliott, Katya Grzeszczak, and Barbara Stork Landeweer, with Barbara Stork Landeweer announced as the winner. Barbara is a repeat winner of this award thanks to her tireless commitment to excellence for her charter clients. Highly respected by her peers, Barbara is one of the charter industry’s most well-known and talented brokers, having worked with some of the most decorated and successful charter yachts. Pairing knowledge, a skill for pairing the right yacht with the right client, and passionate enthusiasm is a winning combination for Barbara, with her many numbers of repeat clients a testament to the success of her award-winning approach.

And finally, nominees for the 2019 Employee Excellence Award were: Paulina Grzeszczak, Vicky Kostara, and Arianna Piccone, with Vicky Kostara announced as the winner. This special award is presented to the IYC employee who consistently and substantially exceed the expectations of the position, performing at a level above and beyond normal job requirements and expectations, and has made important and significant contributions to IYC globally.Vicky Kostara is an integral member of the IYC Greece team, where she works as office manager and sales co-ordinator, providing exceptional support for the IYC team and clients.

Congratulations to all the finalists and winners for their achievements over the past year and their commitment to IYC. “It is a pleasure to recognise excellence within our team, and honour those who are providing market-leading examples for the rest of us to follow,” says Stefanos Makrymichalos.

Learn more about IYC’s team by clicking here.

For more information on IYC’s range of services please contact the IYC office most convenient to you. IYC has offices in Fort Lauderdale, Palm Beach, Miami, Nantucket, Great Lakes, London, Monaco, Greece, Russia, Croatia, Montenegro, Scandinavia, Malta and Corfu. To contact an IYC office click here.