With over a decade of experience spanning the maritime and yachting industries, Erika Boruff brings a distinctly comprehensive perspective to yacht and charter sales and operations. As former professional yacht crew, she developed hands-on expertise in vessel operations, guest services and the practical realities of life at sea. Combined with her work in yacht management, charter program development and new build consulting, Erika has cultivated a deep understanding of both the operational and financial dynamics that drive the yachting market.

Erika's professional credentials include a USCG Master 100 GT Captain's License, NAUI Scuba Instructor designation, RYA Day Skipper and a 200-hour Yoga Teacher Training certification. She also holds a second degree in Culinary Arts, underscoring the versatility that distinguished her during her years as a charter chef. Her global cruising experience includes an Atlantic crossing and with more than 25,000 nautical miles logged as delivery crew, her seamanship and familiarity with international cruising grounds are well established.

Erika's charter yacht broker license was earned through CYBA and she is licensed in the State of Florida to operate as a sales broker. A believer in continuing education, Erika is an MBA candidate and will graduate in 2027. As crew, she was recognized with the prestigious Best Crew in Show and Best in Show awards. Erika was the youngest member voted onto the NAUI Board of Directors and also served on the VIPCA Board of Directors as a member, VP and President. In 2020 Erika co-chaired a contract committee that brought together professionals from every sector of the charter industry. Providing language and industry standards that are currently used in the CYBA contract and in practice today.

In 2023, Erika transitioned to land after the birth of her daughter while her husband continued to work as a rotation captain. The Yachting Professionals was founded because Erika was not done with the industry she fell in love with. Turns out being crew for your entire 20s ruins the desk job for you so she created a space where she could use her skills, network and knowledge to help others. Erika will begin a circumnavigation with her family in 2027 on a sailing catamaran, because she missed the water too much.

Clients value Erika for her operational insight, logistical precision and her ability to recognize what makes a yacht truly exceptional. Whether for private use or charter success she is there to make the process understandable and accessible. Her multifaceted background allows her to advise not only on the purchase itself but on the complete ownership journey. Her experience on the water makes her a formidable charter yacht broker and a solid manager that programs can rely on.

Jennifer joins The Yachting Professionals as Chief Financial Officer and Charter Broker, bringing over 25 years of accounting, finance and yachting experience aboard. Jennifer’s diverse background lends itself well to the fast-paced yachting industry. Jennifer is a Certified Public Accountant and has a Masters in Taxation. In addition, she has her USCG Master 100 GT Captain’s license with towing and sailing endorsements as well as her charter yacht broker license through CYBA.

Jennifer has always had a love of the water and grew up on weekends at the lake and summers at the beach with her family. Over the years, she and her family have enjoyed a cabin at the lake and an old-school beach house in South Carolina. Their love for the Caribbean goes back decades and began with a trip to St. John where they discovered the vibrant catamaran charter industry. From 2013 to 2017, they chartered a variety of catamarans from crewed to bareboat in the USVI and BVI. Fast forward to 2017 when they purchased Hypnautic, the first catamaran they sailed on back in 2013. In 2018, they purchased Viramar in Mallorca, Spain, and Chapman Yachts LLC was born.

For 5 years, Jennifer ran Chapman Yachts LLC from the US thanks to amazing help from people in the islands like Tyler and Erika Boruff. Jennifer’s first-hand knowledge of the charter process allows her to ensure that all financial aspects of a client’s charter run smoothly. Jennifer knows that some charters are “trips of a lifetime” and strives to ensure that clients’ expectations and reality align and that there are no surprises on the numbers side of the charter. In addition, with her experience on the water and in the charter yacht industry, Jennifer is well-positioned to be a Charter Broker as she has seen all sides of the transaction, from guest to owner. She loves to help guests find their dream charter yacht.

Before joining The Yachting Professionals, Jennifer founded and operated numerous entrepreneurial ventures including a charter catamaran company, a packaged snack food company, a retail cupcake bakery and a boutique accounting and consulting firm. Prior to this, Jennifer spent 10+ years with Big Four Accounting firms, providing accounting and payroll consulting services to clients in all industries. Her experience allows her to streamline the financial process and accounting operations to ensure that all financial transactions flow smoothly for guests, crew and yacht owners.

In 2022, Viramar retired from her charter career and now enjoys her golden years along the east coast of the US with Jennifer and Randy on board. Jennifer and Randy have two grown daughters, Annie and MaryOwen. The family loves to spend time on the water, whether on Viramar in NY, at their house in Pawleys Island, SC or their favorite spot on Water Island.

Amber Hoerl has more than a decade of hands-on experience across every layer of the luxury charter industry, from the galley and the deck to full-scale crew recruitment and fleet operations.

Born and raised with roots across South Africa, the British Virgin Islands and Germany, Amber built her career on a foundation of formal training matched by real seatime. She holds a Super Yacht Chef Culinary Certification from the Super Yacht Training Academy in Cape Town, a Charter Broker Course certification through CYBA, a Super Yacht Management & Charter Broker diploma through the Maritime Training Academy in partnership with the University of Portsmouth, and a degree in Entrepreneurial Business Development from Cape Town University of Technology. This combination grounds her industry instincts in crew, operations and sound business fundamentals.

Amber’s yacht career began at sea. She sailed the Mediterranean before moving into the British Virgin Islands charter scene as working crew, where she also took on the role of Head Chef for a charter fleet and developed training programs and handbooks for incoming crew. She went on to serve as private and charter chef aboard larger luxury vessels up to 80ft, earning industry recognition at the VIPCA Boat Show with an overall win in the 65ft+ category and third place in the Chef Culinary Competition.

That firsthand experience aboard gave Amber a rare vantage point when she moved into crew recruitment and operations, sourcing, interviewing and vetting top-tier crew for high-end luxury vessels across the Virgin Islands. In a single season, she placed fully new crew across the majority of a managed fleet. Those hires went on to win the majority of that year’s BVI Boat Show awards while forging strong broker and owner relationships built on dependability, high standards and consistent guest satisfaction. She has overseen crewing and fast-turnaround operational placements for fleets of more than 40 managed vessels, with an unbroken record of never losing charter revenue to a staffing gap, and has also been directly involved in hiring and operational decisions for shoreside office staff and marine technicians.

As Co-Founder and President of The Yachting Professionals, Amber now brings this full spectrum of experience as chef, crew, recruiter and operations lead to the leadership table, with a hiring philosophy centred on building crew dynamics that protect a vessel’s reputation, retention and long-term success, backed by a deep, well-earned network across the Virgin Islands charter industry. Operationally, she understands what makes a program successful for an owner and crew, in reputation, dependability and, most importantly, financially.

Maddy Tupper has catered to charter guests as crew, lived through the vacations she now sells, and built a career on knowing exactly what makes a charter work. Drawing on firsthand experience, real-world yacht operations knowledge and a genuine passion for the ocean and yachting, Maddy gives clients a full, 360-degree view of the charter experience.

Her path into yachting started with a love of scuba diving, a pull toward remote islands and a genuine interest in people from all walks of life. Repeated trips to the Caribbean as a guest taught her that the best way to see the islands is from the water, where each day can bring a new destination or adventure. Wanting more than a week at a time, she entered the industry in 2024 as professional crew.

Over the following 2.5+ years, Maddy served as Chief Stewardess aboard a luxury sailing yacht running a high-volume Caribbean charter program. She continuously delivered five-star service to groups of up to 12 guests across more than 40 charters. That work gave her a firsthand understanding of what makes a charter succeed and, just as important, what can make one fall short.

Her knowledge of the region runs equally deep on the water. More than 2,500 nautical miles of offshore passages and 12 open-ocean deliveries throughout the Caribbean have given her a practical, lived-in understanding of the charter grounds. She is also invested in her own development, earning her NAUI Divemaster and NAUI Scuba Instructor certifications while on board and completing her RYA Day Skipper qualification, deepening her knowledge in ways that translate directly into a better guest experience.

Maddy’s dual perspective of guest and crew sets her apart as a broker. Rather than matching a client to a yacht on paper, she evaluates the full experience the way she has actually lived it: the vessel, the crew, the itinerary, the service style, the activities, the logistics and the destination. That is the difference between a booking and a genuinely informed recommendation.

Her Bachelor of Commerce in Finance rounds out the picture, pairing her operational and hospitality background with a sharp business sense. Every charter she arranges is not just memorable, but well-planned.

From guest, to crew, to broker, Maddy has experienced this industry from every angle. Her goal is simple: get to know each client personally and use that firsthand knowledge to build a charter that is seamless, memorable and entirely their own.

Maddy is currently in broker training. Having just transitioned off yachts as crew, she is learning and assisting with charter administration and serves as our dedicated stew trainer for yacht programs that need a special touch.