Global Entrepreneurship celebrations |25 November 2020

Students run boat charters for a day

Aguas Claras and Bat O Bleu, two boat charters, teamed up on Saturday November 21, 2020 to share resources, time and experience so that five students from public and private schools experienced a day in the running of a boat charter.

Aguas Claras has been in operation in Seychelles since 2018. It caters for different maritime activities such as fishing, snorkelling, cruising and Island hopping. Bat O Bleu on the other hand has a mission to give their clients the ultimate island hopping experience which individuals can cherish as the holiday of their lifetime.

All five students met at the Angel Fish Marina at Eden Island early Saturday morning to start their day which initiated with a theoretical preview of the day ahead.

They were briefed about the different services both boat charters offer to their clients, preventive maintenance and care taking procedures of the boat, the standard operating procedures designed in accordance to the specificities of their operation that will allow better adherence to the set guidelines to prevent the spread of Covid-19.

Last but not least they got in-depth details of how to plan an event.

In the afternoon the students had to take charge of booking their clients, meeting them and making sure all their needs are met from the time they are booked to the time they depart from the boat late in the afternoon.

At exactly 1.30pm Kinzy Estico, a student from Plaisance school, took a call from a client wishing to book an excursion with five other friends. Miss Estico had the task of meeting her clients, welcoming them and giving them a brief of what to expect for their afternoon. This exercise aims at developing the student’s customer handling skills for her career in the future.

After picking up her clients, Miss Estico and her team briefed them on the safety and care taking procedures to be followed on the boat including the standard operating procedures learned ealier.

Shane Hermitte, also from Plaisance school, who had been posted as the boat’s engineer, took to the radio to inform the Seychelles port control his trip plan which included the name of his boat and the number of passengers aboard so as to receive the clearance to safely leave port.

All five students performed multiple tasks on the boat such as hoisting the anchor and letting it down when they arrived at their snorkelling destination, piloting the boat itself and at the same time making sure their clients are comfortable and attended to.

During the trip, clients had the chance to go snorkelling and visit an island in the vicinity of the Sainte Anne Marine Park, keeping in mind the timing for each activity, which again teaches them the value of time management.

At exactly 4pm, the group of students headed the boat back to port to end their busy day out at sea.

Miss Estico, who had been responsible for customer handling and contact stated that running a business is not as easy as everyone thinks it is.

“The trip today was more than I expected. I felt a lot of pressure upon arriving at the marina, but after the anchor was let down I directed my clients to go snorkel and I later joined them in the sea which allowed me to relieve myself of some pressure and I realised that your mindset can prevent you from performing certain duties and giving the best of yourself when pursuing your goal in life. The best part of my day was the fact that I learned that it was okay to go in the water and have fun like a client would. I will definitely participate in the Global Entrepreneurship Week next year as I view it as an opportunity to experience the career path I imagine myself doing,” she stated.

Mr Hermitte shared a similar view by stating that: “Nothing in life is easy, that is why you always have to push yourself to go out of your comfort zone. Your mindset is key to achieving what you want in life. Every minute of this trip was memorable and I would like to thank my mentors who have been responsible for choosing me to take part in this opportunity of a life time.”

Upon disembarking at the port, a client expressed that the experience was very refreshing.

“They were very informative and very organised. I felt very relaxed, and I applaud this initiative to encourage young entrepreneurs. I would love to see more young girls participating in such activity though.”

Christopher Lespoir, from Aguas Claras Charters, expressed that an activity such as this one should become a permanent annual event.

“I am pleased with how the day developed and I feel that we have achieved our goal for today, but more importantly I feel that everyone who came on this trip benefitted one way or another by learning something new as even the camera crew actively participated in the theoretical sessions that was held in the morning.”

To end the day a student showed his interest in coming on other trips whenever time permits him to develop himself further in this career path.

This activity was conducted in conjunction with the Global Entrepreneurship Week which is the largest and most visible one-week campaign affiliated with entrepreneurship, which occurs annually every November and celebrated among more than 170 countries with approximately 10 million people across the globe.

This year, Seychelles hosted the GEW and secured multiple participants such as Aguas Claras and Bat O Bleu to assist in promoting the values of entrepreneurship in Seychelles.

The accompanying photographs show some highlights of the students’ experience in running boat charters.

Contributed by the department of Entrepreneurship and Industry