Meet The Team – Jonas Renlund

Over the coming days and weeks, we thought it would be nice to introduce ourselves in a little more detail. The Grabau International team is a close-knit group with many decades of experience between us. We all have an interesting story to tell about how we got here and what we get up to away from the office, so we have put 10 questions to each of the team.

In this instalment, we talk to Grabau International Scandinavia’s – Jonas Renlund.

1.) What is your position within the business?

Together with my brother Matias, we are one of the newest members of the Grabau International team. I am based in Helsinki, Finland Sweden and I look after brokerage of both sailing and motor yachts. I mostly work with Nordic built yachts as I know them well. I am a competitive sailor so you can see me at different regattas as well as many of the boat shows.  I also have a love for motor yachts thanks to the rough seas and tight Archipelago in Finland.

2.) When did you first get into boating?

My family has always been into sailing and boating. I started sailing Optimist when I was 6 years old at our local yacht club although one of the first pictures of me is aboard our family Coronet 21 when I was just 2 months old. My first sailing memory was sailing aboard our classic 6 Metre. I later went on to race with the Finnish national team before moving into offshore racing, including competing in a trans-Atlantic as helmsman.

3.) Your favourite yachting moment?

I have a few great sailing moments to recall. One of my favourites is when I climbed the mast to the top in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. Thanks to the big swell this was quite the experience.  My Second was winning the last race in the 6mR Europeans and by that finishing on the podium. Also having the King of Spain salute you at the end of the race was something I never forget.

4.) How did you get into the yacht brokerage industry?

I think that this is something I was meant to do. All my childhood was about boating. Getting older I started working at our family’s boatyard. This has progressed with the years and together with my studies in Economics and Political Studies at the university I now have the knowledge to sell yachts globally which through our new partnership with Grabau International, I am able to do.

5.) What would you do if you weren’t a yacht broker?

I think I would have pushed harder to be a professional sailor. Maybe as a competitive sailor but also working on superyachts would be interesting. Nevertheless, I don’t see myself working with something that does not include yachts.

6.) What sailing/boating are you doing at the moment?

Our busy family-owned boatyard presents plenty of opportunities to get out on the water delivering yachts to our loyal clients. I also continue with my racing, having recently switched from 6 Metre racing to the super-competitive world of J/70 racing. In the middle of summer, by tradition, I usually try to fit in a week or sailing with my girlfriend which helps me reset and refresh.

7.) What do you get up to away from the office?

Like all of my colleagues, I am always on standby, working 24/7. When I do escape from the office, I enjoy going to the gym, reading books, sailing (of course!), and travelling with my girlfriend. Every year we try to visit somewhere new and exotic. Last year we made it out to Bali and had a wonderful time avoiding the tourist traps and taking in the local culture.

8.) If you were to ‘sell up and sail away’, what boat would you choose?

I love the lines of an older Sparkman & Stephens Swan. An also being from Finland this is in my blood. My choice would be a Nautor Swan 65 such as ‘FORCE 9’ which we have for sale at the moment. For a longer trip around the world, my obvious choice would be the new Ocean Explorer 64 catamaran, fully self-sufficient with electric motors.

9.) Pick five of your favourite current GI listings and tell us why?

My favourite listing is the Ocean Quality Sytems built Ocean Explorer 60 ‘CYGNUS CYGNUS’. Everything is so well made and the performance is extremely good. This is a yacht that I could do anything with! A true dream. Another favourite is the Baltic Yachts 73 Pilothouse ‘NEURATH’. A truly wonderful design I like her a lot! For speed, I would go for the Rizzardi CR – 73 HT. With her, I could explore the Mediterranean area and enjoy life. For fast cruising and some racing, my choice would be the Ice Yachts ICE 52 ‘SKIDBLADNER II’. Super performance, yet comfortable. With her, I see myself winning regattas and enjoying some nice cruising. My final choice is ‘ADA’, a Liberty offshore 48. Just because she is so beautiful. With her, I would enjoy an easy life looking at the sunset and not worry about the World.

10.) What is your plan for the rest of 2020.

To echo the words of my brother, we are enjoying working with the Grabau International team who bring together an enormous wealth of experience from different sectors of the industry and different parts of Europe. While the current COVID-19 presents unprecedented challenges for us all, we are using our time effectively to ensure that we can continue to provide the very best level of professional service. As Europe starts to slowly open back up, we expect to be very busy as buyers and sellers race to move ahead with their 2020 yachting plans.

If you would like to discuss your yacht sale or purchase plans in Scandinavia, Jonas would be delighted to hear from you. He can be contacted at jonas@grabauinternational.com or tel +358 40 809 8688.