Issue date
Dear members
I’m thrilled to announce 76 of our 109 clubs have signed up to the Yachting New Zealand app and member’s club card. Our aim is to have every club on board but to have 70 percent signed up only 18 months since the card was created is a terrific result.
The card has proved more useful than we initially envisaged and it will continue to evolve as we add more member benefits and enhance the app. The app and club card have made it easier for us to access information and savings, which we can pass on to members, and we are happy to talk to clubs who would like to use the app to help benefit their own sponsors.
Around the Aon club insurance scheme, there’s a definite benefit to our member clubs and their members with building, boat and travel insurance and further potential for corporate insurance. The relationship we have with Aon has enhanced a number of our programmes, like the Aon Fast Track programme, and their support and sponsorship of the Aon 2016 Youth Sailing World Championships was hugely appreciated and made a significant impression in the United States and with World Sailing and opportunities are presently being explored for further relationships.
The app has been a terrific addition to regattas, evidenced by how well it operated at the youth worlds, Opti nationals, Yachting New Zealand youth trials and World Masters Games.
Some clubs struggle with the idea of sharing information but I want to reassure them Yachting New Zealand won’t take advantage of membership information, and we are also very confident that potential breaches of privacy are well covered. It has proved very beneficial to the organisation and our efforts to process and understand club information as well has made it very easy to invoice club levies. On top of that, it has proved very useful as an identification card, especially at events where proof of membership to an affiliated club is required.
Not only do the app and club card help support clubs but in time we hope they will provide revenue back to Yachting New Zealand so we can keep the affiliation levy to a realistic level.
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Like me, I’m sure many of you are excited to see how the 35th America’s Cup unfolds. It’s been great to see Emirates Team New Zealand on the pace and we wish them well in Bermuda.
Also heading to Bermuda next week will be the NZL Sailing Team to contest the Red Bull Youth America’s Cup. Of course, we won the inaugural event in 2013 and aim to do the same this time around.
Last weekend we held a very successful fundraising event for the team at the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron when Conrad Colman was guest speaker. Conrad, who recently overcame huge odds to become the first Kiwi to finish the Vendee Globe solo non-stop round the world yacht race, is an inspirational figure and a great role model for offshore sailors. I really admire what he is trying to achieve environmentally and look forward to working with him in the future.
I would like to thank Conrad for his time as well as his contributions to the auction. And I would also like to thank the parents of the NZL Sailing Team who made the night such a great success.
Kind regards
David Abercrombie
Yachting New Zealand chief executive
