About

An Owner's Rep and an Expedition Vessel Restomod Specialist — not a marketing department.

Xplorer Yachts is the practice of one principal, Paul M. Madden, supported by a tight network of naval architects, surveyors, project managers, and the European and American shipyards we have personally worked with across twenty-five years.

Paul M. Madden — Founder, Xplorer Yachts · Newport, Rhode Island
Principal

Paul M. Madden

Founder & Principal · Newport, Rhode Island

Paul has spent twenty-five years at the highest levels of luxury and expedition yacht sales, new builds, and commercial-to-yacht conversions. He has generated more than $200 million in first-year shipyard sales and has been involved in over a billion Euros in lifetime brokerage and shipyard transactions.

He advises The International SeaKeepers Society on donations and is a former Vice President of the International Superyacht Society. A lifelong sailor, he has competed in the SORC, Newport-Bermuda Races, and trans-Atlantic crossings.

He produces The Yacht Channel — one of the most-followed independent maritime channels, with more than 4.5 million cumulative views — and is Chief Executive of WindVoyage, the joint venture with VPLP Design and Norse Shipyard delivering 80- to 120-metre wind-powered expedition yachts.

MBA, Boston University (Brussels, with Honours) · BA, University of Colorado (CU Ski Team Member)

Career Track

Twenty-five years — inside the yards, not adjacent to them.

  1. Xplorer Yachts — Newport, RI · 2010 to present. Principal — expedition yacht specialist. Active projects underway in Turkey, Louisiana, Argentina, and France. Producer of The Yacht Channel; CEO of WindVoyage. In 2017, secured a US Treasury Department licence authorising logistical services for yachts visiting Cuba — one of three operators authorised at the time.
  2. CRN — Ferretti Group · Ancona, Italy / Americas. Americas Representative. Represented the CRN megayacht brand across North and South American markets, serving as the primary point of contact for UHNW buyers and brokers. Built and maintained relationships with tech executives, family offices, and established yacht owners across the Americas.
  3. Blohm+Voss / ThyssenKrupp · Hamburg, Germany / North America. North American Representative. Engaged directly by the Board of Directors to relaunch the Blohm+Voss yacht brand after a 13-year hiatus from yacht building. In partnership with Bruce Wilmot (London), led all marketing, client development, and sales efforts across the Americas — generating over $950 million in new yacht sales in the first year of relaunch.
  4. Camper & Nicholsons · Monaco / Palm Beach / Mexico City. Management Consultant to the Board; Broker and Regional Manager in Mexico. Originally retained as Management Consultant to develop the company's North American Business Plan. Subsequently managed the Sunseeker dealership and full-service yacht brokerage operations in Mexico.
Structure

A private practice — no house listings, no in-house sales team, no conflicts.

Xplorer Yachts is a private advisory and Expedition Restomod practice based in Newport, Rhode Island. We operate without an in-house sales team, without house listings we are pressured to push, and without conflicts between commission income and owner advocacy.

Our revenue comes from three sources, agreed in writing on every engagement: acquisition commissions (paid by the seller), owner-representation retainers (paid by the owner), and project-management fees (paid by the owner on Restomods and new builds).

“The structure is straightforward, the disclosures are in writing, and the alignment is with the principal. That is the whole product.”

Affiliations & Credentials

The professional network behind the practice.

Industry

Former Vice President — International Superyacht Society (ISS)

Multi-year tenure on the ISS executive, the principal global industry body for superyacht professionals.

Marine Science

The International SeaKeepers Society

Active advisor and facilitator on the SeaKeepers yacht donation programme — connecting yacht owners to ocean-science research, and channelling retired vessels into productive use.

Sail Training

Former Board Member — Tall Ships America

Former board director of the American Sail Training Association, the US national organisation for sail-training and tall-ship preservation.

Club

Member — Royal Thames Yacht Club, London

Long-standing member of the Royal Thames, the oldest active yacht club in the world.

Media

WGA · IMDB nm0534631

WGA-affiliated screenwriter and documentary filmmaker. Producer of The Yacht Channel — 4.5M+ cumulative views, 19,000+ subscribers.