A private members' app for superyacht owners.

An international yachting media group wanted to give the owners in its audience something no magazine could: a private space of their own. Superyacht owners already know one another — at regattas, in the same marinas, through the same brokers — but there was nowhere to see who is cruising nearby, to be introduced properly, or to trade a fortnight in the Aegean for a Caribbean window in winter.

The brief was a members-only digital club that feels as considered as the yachts themselves: discreet, invitation-led, and useful every week of the season rather than once a year. Before committing to a full build, the client wanted to see and click the product — something concrete to put in front of owners and to shape the first release around.

We ran it the way we run every discovery: agree the few moments that matter, build them properly, and put them in front of real users early. Our team mapped the owner's season — where the yacht is, who is nearby, what is on, what is for sale or charter — and turned it into nine modules that share one data model.

Two decisions shaped the design. First, privacy by default: every member controls whether their position shows on the map, introductions go through requests, and the boat exchange is approval-based rather than an open listing. Second, one product, two surfaces: a desktop concierge dashboard for owners and their offices, and a mobile app for use aboard, built from the same components.

To help the client choose a look, the app ships with seven switchable visual directions — from dark nautical-chart tones to a daylight theme — driven by design tokens rather than repainted screens.

What we built

• Home — a concierge dashboard. Owners nearby, unread messages, the next event and live yachts underway at a glance.
• Global yacht map. Members' yachts plotted by cruising ground — Western and Eastern Mediterranean, Caribbean, Bahamas, Adriatic, Northern Europe, Indian Ocean, South Pacific — with underway, at-anchor and position-hidden states.
• Member directory and profiles. A private register of owners with yacht, length, builder, home marina, interests and mutual connections; introductions on request.
• Private messaging. One-to-one conversations between members, reserved for premium membership.
• Events. Owners' dinners, regatta weeks, expedition briefings and tastings, with places remaining, RSVP and who else is going.
• Yacht marketplace. Curated sale and charter listings with filters by type, builder, length, price, location and year.
• Boat exchange. A discreet, approval-based way to offer a yacht's availability and arrange reciprocal use between members.
• Recommendations. Anchorages, marinas, shipyards, restaurants and services rated by members.
• Membership. Tiers and entitlements, with space for tasteful partner placements from luxury brands.

Planning a members' app? Talk to the team and we will take you through the project.

The project gave the client something to use rather than something to imagine: a working product that owners can use on a laptop or a phone, a module-by-module basis for scoping the first release, and a single component system to build it from.

It is the approach we recommend for any MVP or membership platform: discovery first, so every build decision is made on evidence. The names, yachts and data shown here have been changed, and the client is not named.