Dom is one of the world’s leading sales brokers in the large yacht market with a career spanning three decades. Of the 80+ large motor yachts he has sold since joining Burgess in 2003, 11 have been over 70m and four over 90m. He joined the Burgess Partnership Scheme in 2018 and is one of six senior sales brokers regularly providing pastoral and supervision to the younger members of the brokerage team.
Dom came to yachting following a 10-year career in the Royal Navy where he specialised in oceanography and meteorology. His time serving as a Warfare Officer in the Mediterranean, West Africa, Hong Kong, Gulf and Caribbean on aircraft carriers, frigates and destroyers gave him a solid foundation on operational pressures and requirements at sea, as well as the self-discipline and people management skills that are intrinsic to yachting.
He joined Burgess at a time when the yacht market was undergoing rapid expansion, including the rise in popularity of new construction projects. 'Within a year of joining the company I met a client who wanted to build a yacht but was unsure of what he wanted,' he says. 'We went on a fantastic three-year journey together touring seven different shipyards and viewing more than 70 boats before he ended up building 63m LADY BRITT, a beautiful De Vries at Feadship.’
Throughout his 20-year career at the company, Dom has represented an even balance of both buyers and sellers, including the sale of 95m INDIAN EMPRESS (twice), 71.7m KOGO (twice), and 86m SUNRAYS. The sales of the 108m 5,844 GT LUMINOSITY, custom-built 92m explorer TATOOSH, and 74m ELANDESS in a matter of months in 2022 remain memorable highs. Just this year, in 2024 he has already represented the buyer and seller of KOGO as well as the buyer of the hugely successful 74m CRN ANDREA.
'Buyers are looking for someone with knowledge, expertise and influence, and I believe it’s having those qualities, along with a strong track record for getting deals over the line, that sets me apart,' he says.
Dom boasts a global client base that spans the east and west coast of Northern America, Europe and Russia, with a concentrated hub in Hong Kong following his time as managing director of the Burgess Asia office. In his spare time, he enjoys cruising aboard his Hanse 400 sailing yacht with his family and friends.
