Name Wes Sanford, broker, Northrop & Johnson

CV I grew up in Juneau, Alaska. To this day, the only way in or out of Juneau is by boat or by plane, so boating has always been a big part of my life. My hobbies all seem to revolve around the water: fishing, diving, sailing. It was in California, after I had graduated from Stanford University, that I discovered competitive sailing. Even though I had a great job right out of school in the aerospace industry, I knew I wasn’t going to be happy unless I was able to work around boats. So after a few years, I got my captain’s licence and worked aboard yachts for 12 years before becoming a broker in 2005. I’ve now been with Northrop & Johnson for four years and look forward to many more.

My most memorable deal Representing the buyer I recently closed on a 57-metre Abeking & Rasmussen, now named Dream. This one will be memorable, not just because Dream is a spectacular yacht, but because I have total confidence that we made a great choice putting this buyer together with this particular boat. The owner is astute, savvy and meticulous, and he wanted high quality as well as great value. This was no impulse buy, as we spent over two years trying to find the right combination of space, capability, quality and price. And to be honest, we had a lot of fun travelling around the world looking and learning over those two years – both of us truly enjoying the process.

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