Spotlight: Unplugged Yacht Charters Makes a Business Out of Sailing in Exotic Locales


Spotlight: Exotic Sailing Company Unplugged Yacht Charters Makes a Business Out of Sailing in an Exotic Locale

Plenty of entrepreneurs dream about jetting off to exotic locations and running their businesses from scenic beachfronts. And that’s exactly what Lisa Roland and her partner, Flair, get to do on a daily basis. Their company, Unplugged Yacht Charters, provides scenic yacht charters for visitors to Antigua. Read about their journey and the business in this week’s Small Business Spotlight.

What the Business Does

Offers exotic sailing experiences.

Roland says, “We are a catamaran charter company, offering week long sailing charters in Antigua, West Indies. Our beautiful Lagoon 450 is fully crewed with a Captain and a chef, and specialize in all things ocean!”

Business Niche

Going the extra mile for every customer.

Roland says, “Whether it is sailing through the night to make sure our guests get to that extra special destination they dreamed of, arranging specialized outings, or working in depth to ensure all travel goals are met, the most common theme in our client reviews is that we have always gone above and beyond. Some times it comes down to picking up that sweet treat a guest mentioned in passing!”

Spotlight: Exotic Sailing Company Unplugged Yacht Charters Makes a Business Out of Sailing in an Exotic Locale

How the Business Got Started

Because of a lifelong love of sailing.

Roland grew up sailing, then joined the yachting industry, along with Flair.

Roland explains, “After building excellent client rapport and a million ideas on how we would do things we finally decided to take the leap into entrepreneurship and launch our very own company.”

Biggest Win

Receiving positive feedback from customers.

Roland says, “Being a new company, our biggest win so far was when we reached out to our past clients and asked them to leave a little testimonial. The response we got was overwhelming, and the things they said were so heartwarming, it was an instant confirmation that we were doing the right thing.”

Biggest Risk

Investing in a long-term lease.

Roland says, “We have decided to lease a boat for the full season, with confidence that we will be able to fill bookings. Stay tuned for the result!”

Spotlight: Exotic Sailing Company Unplugged Yacht Charters Makes a Business Out of Sailing in an Exotic Locale

How They’d Spend an Extra $100,000

Starting a community outreach program.

Roland explains, “Of course there is an endless list of gear, equipment, water toys, money to go towards advertising, and general expenses, but one thing we are working towards is developing community outreach programs for all of the incredible places we are so fortunate to operate.”

Namesake

The family boat.

Roland says, “We got the name Unplugged from my family boat growing up. When we were getting ready to launch, I had to call my parents and ask them if I could carry on the family name!”

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Find out more about the Small Biz Spotlight program

Images: Unplugged Yacht Charters, Flair and Lisa Roland

3 Comments ▼

Annie Pilon Annie Pilon is a Senior Staff Writer for Small Business Trends, covering entrepreneur profiles, interviews, feature stories, community news and in-depth, expert-based guides. When she’s not writing she can be found exploring all that her home state of Michigan has to offer.

3 Reactions
  1. This is great for closing the best business deals. It is not just for relaxing. You can also connect with a network better if you go on vacation together.

  2. May be good for team building. But $100,000 may be a bit too much for a small business.

  3. If you will use it to close a big business deal then go. But you need to rethink if you really need to spend that much.