Fort Lauderdale, FL
Christine Buttigieg / Yacht Broker
Christine Buttigieg brings her extensive sailing experience as well as boat maintenance and charter management operations experience to our team. Her first-hand involvement with living aboard, daily operations of luxury charters, and boat ownership make her the perfect choice for yacht buyers looking for guidance on what boat will best serve their plans.
Email: christine@catamaranguru.com | PH: 1-954-817-4777
Christine spent her childhood on the west coast of France, in Brittany. Sailing school and later racing sailboats were her passions.
In 1985, when she met her husband, a captain, she joined him to explore the oceans. She began as first mate and cook aboard a 70′ aluminum ketch preparing for a world cruise after extensive sea-trials around the North Sea.
From those adventures, she continued to grow the breadth of her knowledge and experience working for a boat maintenance/refit company in Florida and the boat show circuit for Perini Navi as well as sailing with a deluxe charter operation in the Grenadines and her and her husband’s own day-charter operation on a 100′ 3-masted schooner.
After discovering the joys of sailing catamarans, they bought a Privilège 48 to operate as a deluxe crewed yacht.
Returning to Florida years ago, Christine now offers the benefits of her extensive experience to yacht-buying clients. Her comprehensive advice helps boat buyers confidently narrow their choices to find their dream boat.
Her mastery of both French and English as well as her having lived in various countries makes her indispensable for assisting yacht buyers in the French West Indies of the Caribbean as well as the other side of the Atlantic.
Her Testimonials are Amazing
...selling our Bali 4.0, Can it get any better?...
From start to finish, Stephen and his team delivered flawlessly. At times, I had issues to keep up with the speed things got done! To start with. They got me a slip within two days of contacting Stephen by email in the very busy Hollywood marina where Catamaran Guru is located which is a big plus for selling a boat. Stephen was even there helping to dock my boat when I arrived. Christine Buttigieg of the Catamaran Guru team became my broker. Within a day she contacted me, told me what she needed, we met the following day for 45 minutes and the boat was listed two days later and sold 35 days after that.
This is only possible when you have an absolute professional, experienced, and dedicated team of experts on your side. Christine is an accomplished sailor, experienced long-time boat owner herself, and, on top of that, she is an excellent businesswoman. What impressed me right from the start is her concise, efficient, and yet friendly communication style. She knows what she is talking about and at every step of the process let me know what needed to be done, asked for my opinion, gave me options where appropriate, then we agreed on a path and she followed up and through. It also doesn’t hurt that her mother tongue is French, keeping in mind that the majority of cats are manufactured in France.
Another important benefit of the Catamaran Guru team: They are connected! Providing a single point of access to all kinds of services: mechanical, electrical, fiberglass, cleaning, rigging, haul-out, surveys…you name it. Without Christine’s connection to a documentation services company, her understanding of the processes and regulations, her persistence and skills, it would have been very difficult, if not impossible, to import our boat into the US (a precondition to sell to a US-based buyer).
Last, but not least, her negotiation skills were crucial to sell the boat in short order and at the expected price. Except for providing boat documents and signing paperwork (online), it was almost a hands-off process for me. Christine and Catamaran Guru did all the heavy lifting in the background. Did I tell you Stephen sold me my boat 7 years earlier as part of a charter company ownership program?
For me, Catamaran Guru is hands-down the go-to company for buying, owning, managing, and selling cruising catamarans of all sizes. As Stephen puts it: “We are a community and partners for life.”
Christine, Estelle, Stephen, the whole team, thank you. We appreciate everything you did for us over all these years.
Horst Merkle
...this from the stitts...
JUST THE FACTS
- As we were coached about the high activity in catamaran sales, our 2014 Lagoon 400 S2 Makai sold on the first day in May 2021.
- While at first skeptical of the recommended listing price thinking it may be too high, the boat sold very close to full asking price.
- Can’t promise this, but we had front row service/visibility at Loggerhead Marina, where Catamaran Guru’s office is located. The marina staff are all very helpful and professional.
- They had a spot for us at the secure, beautiful, and newly refurbished marina. They may be able to accommodate you while you sell your boat in Ft. Lauderdale – the yachting capital of the world – and close to everything.
- It was clear to us that from the top Guru (Stephen) down to all staff including our broker Christine Buttigueg (who talked Jim off the ledge a few times) are among the world-class professionals in the luxury yacht industry.
- There are many things to do during a boat sale: Necessary repairs, a haul-out, a survey, bottom cleaning. Christine had two numbers and two first names for any needs. We never had to call a second person to get it done.
In short, the pros at Catamaran Guru are responsive, detail-oriented, and a pleasure to work with. All in all, it was pretty smooth sailing selling Makai!
Jim & Linda Stitt
