Shipping Registry advancing despite ‘serious decline’ in business

As the BVI Shipping Registry experiences a decline in maritime activity because of COVID-19, the Registry is now positioning to tap into new markets through international certification, among other things.

This is according to the Shipping Registry’s Director, John Samuel who said earnings have dipped from its core revenue base — recreational maritime activity.

“There is not a lot of recreational maritime activity and that is the bulk of our business now. We are working to transition and expand into commercial shipping in a big way. But currently, the bulk of our business is recreational vessels and COVID has put a serious damp on recreational activity. So there is not as much purchasing happening of recreational vessels, of mega-yachts, and yachts. There is not a lot of purchasing happening so there is a decline on registration. We expected that,” Samuel explained.

“There is a lot of movement in terms of persons selling vessels. We have to process those transactions as well because we hold the title to the vessel, so there is a little more of that happening,” he added.

Samuel, however, said these declines are “maintained to some extent” since the Shipping Registry still earns revenue from other sectors.

He further said the Registry expects to bounce back when the pandemic subsides. However, the Shipping Registry is not waiting idly for the indefinite return of its core business.

“We are positioning ourselves and preparing ourselves to be even more prominent in that market and new markets so we expect our numbers to rebound significantly,” he explained.

Internationally certified

In that vein, the Shipping Registry has set out and successfully received certification from the International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO).

The ISO is an international non-governmental organisation made up of national standards bodies that develop and publish a range of proprietary, industrial, and commercial standards.

In January and February of this year, the Shipping Registry was audited to see whether it met ISO’s requirements. 

“The audit was completed over a two-week period, during which our entire management system was reviewed. This involved a (INAUDIBLE] review of all the Shipping Registry’s manuals and procedures, and interviews with key Line Managers to verify knowledge of the systems and commitment to quality standards and organisational growth and compliance,” Samuel said.

He added that the BVI Shipping Registry met all the requirements and is now considered ISO 9001 Certified under 2015 standards.

“We are now one of the BVI’s industry leaders and equivalent to our peers and flags globally; having in place an internationally accredited management system. This guarantees our clients in the BVI and globally efficient service, customer satisfaction, consistency, and quality across our various products and services,” Samuel explained.