We left our boat in Grenada Marine for the 2016 hurricane season, having in the past hauled at Prickly Bay.  We were tempted by the offerings of Clarkes Court Marina but were put off by the amount of building work in progress at the time, though we believe this work is now finished.

We found Grenada Marine a mixed offering.  Being able to stay at La Sagesse resort at discounted rates was a big plus factor, and being taken to the yard each morning, and collected in the afternoon and returned to such beautiful surroundings in time for a swim in their lovely bay, was just magic.

As far as the work undertaken by the yard is concerned, the rigging, electrical and woodworking skills were all good.  The work undertaken on the hull was a big disappointment, with lack of control leading to an expensive tin of antifoul being left open to the elements and then filling with rainwater, as well as other unsatisfactory factors.  The yard owner never introduced himself or showed any interest, and the end of our stay left us feeling we would not return under any circumstances.

When there is significant competition for business in Grenada, we found this very unfortunate, as the other managers tried so hard to please.

Bob Hazell

SV Pipistrelle

Response from Grenada Marine

Thank you Noonsite for sharing the feedback reported by Mr Hazel of SY Pipistrelle which we take seriously.

Regarding the paint; regrettably, it was the case that a small amount of antifouling paint became spoiled as it was accidentally left open to the elements. There was a sudden rainstorm during which rainwater entered the tin of paint. This was an unfortunate accident.  We took Mr Hazel’s complaint seriously and replaced the lost paint shortly after he complained.

That our yard owner/manager did not meet this client is not to say that he showed no interest in him. His complaint was taken seriously and responded to.  The yard owner/manager authorised his employees to purchase a gallon of paint (at his cost) so that Mr Hazel’s paint could be immediately replaced. This seemed the right thing to do and it was done to appease Mr Hazel.  That the yard owner/manager did not deliver this personally is perhaps regrettable though we point out that Grenada Marine is a large organisation (75 employees) with multiple departments situated across a 10-acre site. The response was given by him, we believe, was proportionate and rational given his role and commitments on the day. If Mr Hazel felt uncared for then again, we apologise for this.

We would like to emphasise that Mr Hazel describes the work done by our rigging, electrical and woodwork as ‘good’. He has also positively referred to our team supervisors. We are pleased to hear this as we agree. We are very confident in our technical abilities and services which we have developed over 18 years in business. We employ skilled technicians from Grenada and beyond so that we can continue to build and raise our standards to ensure quality work.

Of course in every organisation, mistakes happen and there can be room for improvement. We take on board all the points raised by Mr Hazel going forward. Customer service is an important area in any service industry. We take this seriously and we do hope that Mr Hazel will accept the apologies we have made and see that our response to his complaint was positively motivated and designed to remedy the situation.

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