Professionals working within the charter industry need a magazine of their own. So, starting with the Winter edition, Charter Index will now be that magazine – in addition to remaining the already well known charter reference tool.

The new editorial content is going to be different from what you see in other magazines. There will be no amateur reports of charter experiences, no marketing-style reviews of yachts, and no news that appeals only to crew. Instead, Charter Index will be the primary business-to-business editorial resource for the charter industry’s key players: Charter Agents and Brokers, Central Agencies, Yacht Management companies and charter yacht Captains. The plan is to address the issues facing the industry, and to provide thought-provoking, informative, and – from time to time – controversial opinions from our industry’s leading figures.

To help us achieve this goal, we are delighted and proud to welcome Kim Kavin, our industry’s leading and award-winning journalist, as Charter Index’s Editor. In the first edition, Kim dives head-first into current issues such as discounting and booking trends. In future issues, she will turn the Charter Index spotlight on such things as the confusing nature of charter pricing, the control of central agency database information, and the question of whether charter brokers should be licensed.

The Charter Index will now also feature two regular columns. In “Three Views,” Kim will ask one Retail Broker, one Central Agent, and one charter Captain for their opinion on a single question. In the first edition, the question is about the nature of appropriate crew gratuities—a hot topic, to be sure. Charter Index’s other new regular column is “Web Smarts,” in which Kim will offer information and advice that will be useful to anyone promoting charters online. In this edition is offered “10 Things You Can Learn With Google Analytics,” a free tool that provides a wealth of data and information for even the most basic websites.

We are excited about the new editorial direction for Charter Index, and can’t wait to hear from you about how we can improve even further. The goal is to represent the charter industry fairly and responsibly, as a neutral publisher with no alliances to any particular companies or organizations. We want to hear your views, your thoughts, and your ideas for topics that you would like Kim to tackle in future issues – Kim will be fearless in her coverage, combining her extensive experience with their broad reach.

Regards,

Christopher Webley,
CEO, Charter Index Ltd