In 1982, Budget Marine opened in Sint Maarten. Robbie Ferron saw a clear need for essential boating items in the region. While the need was obvious, it took someone involved in yacht maintenance and repairs to identify and deliver on the full extent of that need. And once these necessary items had been identified, sourcing them proved to be a real challenge.
That was 43 years ago. The early needs were identified and met, but then there was yet another new challenge — keeping pace with the times. The landscape of chandleries in the Caribbean had evolved.
The range of products demanded by boaters has expanded significantly. There was once a time when just a handful of polishes could meet the needs of the market. Now, there’s a polish for nearly every aspect of every boat, and new product lines continue to emerge regularly.
Back then, solutions to boating problems were few and far between. Today, there are far more options available and though many of the newer products have validity, it can be challenging for the average yachtsman to keep up with the many technical nuances and choices.
While it’s easier than ever to find information about products, getting them onto the shelves of the right island when they’re most needed remains daunting. The solution? Software and data management, which Budget Marine continues to invest in to ensure we meet the needs of our customers.
Making the right choices remains key. Budget Marine’s unwavering focus has always been to be the best technical chandlery in the region. While some chandleries around the world have shifted their focus to clothing, we’ve stuck to what matters most: the products essential to keeping your boat running smoothly. While our customers might wear less clothing in the Caribbean, when we do offer apparel, it’s always focused on what’s functional for sailing — UV protection, non-slip footwear, and fast-drying materials.
The basics any boater needs are in all our shops, although our product range may be limited by the size of certain markets. Like all chandleries, we understand the frustration of not finding the exact technical product necessary for a particular boat, especially when there are many similar items available. Whether it’s a hinge that doesn’t quite fit or a lightbulb that doesn’t match, we understand the problem and we are here to meet it.
While the range of chandlery products continues to grow in complexity, Budget Marine’s commitment to identifying and offering the most in-demand and necessary items remains as strong as ever.
Our Budget Marine Racing Team competes in the region’s top regattas and consistently finds itself on the podium, showcasing our commitment to excellence and passion for the sport!
Budget Marine also proudly supports and actively participates in these premier Caribbean events:
- Christal Clashing Dive Record
- Antigua Optimist Championship
- Antigua Sailing Week
- Antigua Classic Yacht Regatta
- Aruba International Regatta
- Bonaire Aquatics Federation
- Caribbean Multihull Challenge
- Grenada Round Island Regatta
- Grenada Grenfin Swim Club
- Heineken Regatta
- Spice Island Billfish Tournament
- St. Maarten Optimist Championship
- Trinidad & Tobago National Dinghy Sailing Championship
- Windies Multihull Trophy
“To be the Caribbean’s most trusted and innovative technical chandlery, offering a wide range of essential products paired with expert technical support. We aim to deliver exceptional service that inspires trust, fosters loyalty, and enhances the boating experience for all our customers.”
| Some Important dates in BUDGET MARINE History | |
| 2025 | Budget Marine Colombia is opening a new store on Muelles Marina in Santa Cruz |
| 2023 | Budget Marine opens new store in Colombia – Cartagena |
| 2020 | Budget Marine opens new store in Carriacou, linked to Grenada for Fast deliveries and Sevices |
| 2015 | Budget Marine opens new stores in Antigua North South and Trinidad & Tobago Yacht Club Budget Marine BVI and Bonaire move into new buildings Budget Marine Grenada expands its building to 1.5 times its sizeFor the second time, Budget Marine partner David De Vries is chosen as an Olympic International Judge for the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil |
| 2014 | Budget Marine receives Raymarine 2014 Dealer of the year award.Budget Marine Melges 24 wins Boat of the Year. |
| 2013 | The Budget Marine 2014 Marine Equipment Catalog tops 750 pages packed with products, pictures and technical information. Budget Marine Antigua opens second location in Falmouth English Harbour to service the booming yacht industry in that area. Budget Marine Antigua moves to a new custom built building in Jolly Harbour. |
| 2010 | Budget Marine Aruba opens. Tony Waldron is manager and the company is affiliated with the Varadero boatyard. The company starts trading to begin one of the most consistent growth paths experienced in the Budget Marine Group. Budget Marine St Maarten adds a third floor to the building and gains 11,000 square foot in storage space making it easily the largest distribution facility in its category in the Caribbean. Budget Marine Grenada becomes title sponsor of the biggest fishing tournament in the Caribbean, the Budget Marine Spice Island Billfish Tournament, with the first event taking place in January 2011 |
| 2009 | Budget Marine sponsors another innovative event, the inaugural Match Racing event as part of the Heineken Regatta, making history in the Caribbean. This event extends the St. Maarten Heineken Regatta to almost a full week of sailing fun. Participants include Peter Holmberg, previous skipper on Alinghi when he won first prize at the America’s cup, teams from Russia, Brazil, the UK and the United States. |
| 2008 | The annual Budget Marine catalog expands to 500 full-colour pages. |
| 2007 | Budget Marine sponsors the inaugural Commodores’ Cup, as part of the Heineken Regatta. The ABN AMRO One, skippered by Mike Sanderson, winner of the Volvo Ocean Race 2006, wins first prize. Budget Marine Nautique moves from its Simpson Bay Yacht Club location to the St. Maarten main store sales floor, where a special marine style area is created to feature the Nautique collection. Further expansion of the Budget Marine St. Maarten facility adds 4,300 square feet warehouse space in the next door building, linked by a bridge to the main store and a large covered area for dinghy storage. Group office area and conference room are improved. Hardware and software upgrades substantially improve the efficiency of the IT system. Budget Marine Curacao, Parera, introduces a rigging service, swaging wire up to 10mm. |
| 2006 | Budget Marine St. Thomas moves to its new, custom built chandlery. In St. Maarten, Budget Marine’s Group Services expands, adding office space and a new Conference Center for meetings and customer service training. The dinghy dock is in Sint Maarten upgraded. Budget Marine Curacao opens a second store in the Curacao Marine facility. Budget Marine publishes first colour catalog with over 400 pages. |
| 2005 | Budget Marine Curacao introduces Free Shuttle that takes boaters from the marina to the chandlery daily. Budget Marine VI moves from Vitraco Park into an expanded store in the independent Boatyard St Thomas location. Robbie Ferron is honoured by the Queen of the Netherlands with a knighthood for his exceptional pioneer work in the yachting business and personal service to the sport of sailing on St Maarten and throughout the Caribbean. |
| 2004 | Budget Marine Curacao opens in Caracasbaaiweg. Budget Marine St Maarten expands the sales floor and warehouse space by 1/3. The building is painted in bright Budget Marine colours, clearly visible across the entire Simpson Bay Lagoon. |
| 2003 | Budget Marine Grenada store moves to its new building, ideally situated in the Spice Island Marine Services boatyard on the True Blue side of Prickly Bay. |
| 2002 | The Trinidad store moves to a bigger, custom-built facility and expands its wholesale and export business. The Independent Boatyard store in St Thomas is fully upgraded. |
| 2001 | Bigger dinghy dockage facilities constructed in Cole Bay, St.Maarten. New location opens in Bonaire, Kralendijk. New location opens in Grenada, Spice Island Boatyard. |
| 2000 | 3 new locations open. In St. Thomas Budget Marine takes over the chandlery ‘Marine Warehouse’ in Vitraco Park, which is now called Budget Marine V.I. and operates the Boatyard Store in the Independent Boatyard. Budget Marine switches to new software and away from the DOS program. |
| 1999 | New main store premises built in Cole Bay, St Maarten and Budget Marine Rigging started in Trinidad. |
| 1998 | Decision made to build new St Maarten store and do away with 28 storage containers. |
| 1996 | Budget Marine opens up in Trinidad in the old “Glastron” factory which was a wooden structure built by the US Armed Forces in the second world war. |
| 1995 | Budget Nautique opens its doors in the Simpson Bay Yacht Club. |
| 1994 | L’ile Marine opens up in Sandy Ground in French St. Martin. |
| 1993 | The store at Jolly Harbour, Antigua, opens to public just as the massive Jolly Harbour development with 500 waterside homes opens for the first time. |
| 1992 | Helene Eijkelenboom leaves her position of Sales & Store Manager having successfully established the company’s accounting, inventory and employee management systems. |
| 1991 | Alfred Koolen joins Budget Marine and adds a windsurf shop to the expanding business (A & A windsurfing). Budget Marine opens new facility upstairs in Priest Building in Philipsburg. |
| 1990 | Robbie expands his container collection. |
| 1988 | David de Vries joins Budget Marine. |
| 1987 | Budget Marine opens store in Lenny’s Building in Philipsburg. |
| 1983 | Robbie and Helene Eijkelenboom open stockroom in their house across the road and up the hill from Bobby’s Marina, Philipsburg. |
| 1982 | Robbie names his company “Budget Marine.” |
| 1981 | Robbie buys first container as workshop. |
| 1979 | Robbie Ferron arrives in St. Maarten. |
