Afleveringen
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Vagelis Moutafis has been in ship sale and purchase since 1994. He did not start at the top. He started as an assistant to a secretary — and closed his first ship deal six months later. Thirty years on, he is Sales Director at George Moundreas and Co., one of the oldest shipbroking houses in the world, a certified executive coach, and someone who has founded and built multiple shipbroking firms from the ground up.
In this episode of Maritime Dialogues, Manasi sits down with Vagelis for a conversation that moves between deal making, human psychology, market cycles and what it actually takes to survive three decades in one of the most volatile businesses in the world.
In this episode:
→ How the S&P market has changed since the telex days of the early nineties — and what has stayed exactly the same
→ Why he founded and co-founded multiple firms instead of just climbing the ladder at one
→ What brokers miss when they evaluate a vessel beyond the price and the survey
→ Why deals fall apart even when both sides are willing — and what he has seen kill a deal at the last minute
→ What made him become a certified executive coach after 25 years in shipping
→ His BRAVE framework — the acronym he built from his own career to guide anyone entering this industry
→ What 30 years of S&P teaches you about people — ship owners with 200 vessels and ship owners with two are chasing the same thing
→ How Indian buyers approach deals compared to Greek and Chinese buyers
→ India in shipping — five years or ten? He gives a straight answer
→ And the story of his first ever ship deal — told exactly as it happened"You are born. You die. Between these two points we are playing a game. Be yourself. Enjoy it."
Maritime Dialogues is produced by Gujarathi Empire x RBB Ship Chartering, in partnership with BK3 Studios.
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Kaptan Singh is the Managing Director of Varamar India, a COA specialist and one of the most experienced voices in breakbulk, heavy lift and project cargo operations in the country. He has spent years moving cargo that simply does not fit in a box, oversized, overweight, and operationally complex in ways most people in shipping never encounter.In this episode of Maritime Dialogues, Manasi sits down with Kaptan for a conversation that goes deep into a world most people know nothing about.In this episode:→ What breakbulk, heavy lift and project cargo actually mean and why the difference matters→ The engineering process behind moving a 500 tonne piece of cargo that cannot be dismantled→ How vessel selection works when standard ships simply cannot do the job→ What seafastening really involves and what happens when it goes wrong→ How naval architects and marine engineers fit into a heavy lift operation→ The most complex project he has ever worked on and how close it came to falling apart→ How relationships are built and held in one of the most trust driven businesses in shipping→ What India's infrastructure boom means for breakbulk and heavy lift demand over the next decade→ Where Varamar is headed and what the ambition looks like from here🎧 Maritime Dialogues is produced by Gujarathi Empire x RBB Ship Chartering, in partnership with @bk3studios Subscribe for conversations with the people who keep global trade moving.
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Zijn er afleveringen die ontbreken?
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Ravi Shankar has been negotiating ship sale and purchase deals for over 25 years. More than 200 transactions across tankers, dry bulk, and everything in between. Co-founder and Chief Commercial Officer of Shipfinex — the world's first regulated blockchain-based ship tokenization platform. And a Vice Chair and tutor at the Institute of Chartered Shipbrokers.
In this episode of Maritime Dialogues, Manasi sits down with Ravi for one of the most practically rich conversations the show has had — breaking down exactly how ship deals happen, why most of them fall apart, and why the future of maritime investment is about to open up to everyone.
In this episode:→ How a single deal in 2002 taught him everything about ship sale and purchase→ The step-by-step breakdown of how a real ship deal actually happens — from first call to final delivery→ Why only 10 to 20% of deals ever actually close — and where the rest fall apart→ What separates a smart buyer from a conservative one in this market→ Why trust closes the deal and contracts protect it — not the other way around→ The fastest deal he ever closed: 7 days, brokerage in the account on day 10→ The longest deal he ever worked: one full year, same buyer, same ship, same seller→ What Shipfinex is building — and why ship tokenization could change maritime investment forever→ Where to put your money in shipping for the next five years
"Keep it simple. Keep it clear. Keep it transparent. That is the only trick."
Maritime Dialogues is produced by Gujarathi Empire × RBB Ship Chartering, in partnership with BK3 Studios.
Subscribe for conversations with the people who keep global trade moving.
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Capt. Virendra Mishra has lived shipping from every angle. Merchant Navy officer for 37 years. Master mariner. Executive MBA from IIM Calcutta. CEO and MD of Ashma Group. Founder of The Shipping Tribune, Dricon, and TST Headhunters. And somewhere in between all of that — a singer, composer, and music video creator with several lakh views.
In this episode of Maritime Dialogues, he sits down with us for one of the most wide-ranging conversations we have had on the show.
In this episode:→ What 37 years at sea teaches you that no MBA or boardroom ever could→ Why seamanship can never be replaced by technology — no matter how advanced→ The real reason India ranks 19th in ship ownership despite producing 12% of the world's seafarers→ What maritime institutes are not teaching cadets that they desperately need to know→ Why the captain on the bridge will still exist in 2050 — just not the way you imagine→ The uncomfortable truth about the maritime industry that nobody says out loud→ How he built an entire media and recruitment ecosystem inside one of the most relationship-driven industries in the world→ And why he started making music — and what it has to do with the sea
"90% of the world's cargo moves by sea. It runs the world — silently, without making noise. And it is better that way."
🎧 Maritime Dialogues is produced by Gujarathi Empire × RBB Ship Chartering, in partnership with BK3 Studios.
Subscribe for conversations with the people who keep global trade moving.
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Adv. (Capt.) Rahul Varma has done what almost no one in any industry has managed — he has been the seafarer, the operator, the DPA, the legal mind, and the consultant, all in one career. Today he sits down to break down what captains get wrong about lawyers, what lawyers get wrong about captains, and why the contracts that destroy companies are never the ones anyone negotiated.In this episode:→ How Rahul went from ship captain to maritime lawyer — and why it was never planned→ Why Indian companies don't read their contracts — and what it costs them→ The most misunderstood principle in shipping: General Average explained→ What really happens when an incident hits the press (and who leaks first)→ ALANG and the Hong Kong Convention — what's actually changed on the ground→ Why a CFO who hears no problems should be the most worried person in the room→ What EY and KPMG actually hire maritime experts for→ A surprise: buying a submarine for tourism in Maharashtra"The contracts that cause the biggest problems are not the ones that were negotiated — they are the ones believed to be normal."Maritime Dialogues is produced by Gujarathi Empire × RBB Ship Chartering, in partnership with @bk3studios Subscribe for conversations with the people who keep global trade moving.
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In this episode of Maritime Dialogues, we sit down with George from iMagellan — a maritime professional with over 30 years of experience in chartering, ship owning companies, and now maritime technology.George started his journey at just 15 years old, walking into a chartering office during his high school summers to absorb everything he could about the industry. From studying shipping and economics in London, to travelling aboard ships for a year to understand port operations firsthand, to leading chartering departments at major ship owning firms — his story is a masterclass in what it takes to build a career in global maritime.Now, he has channeled three decades of on-the-ground expertise into iMagellan — a chartering platform built not just for data, but for the way chartering professionals actually think.This conversation covers everything — the transformation of freight markets, the real impact of decarbonization on shipping costs, why relationships will always matter more than algorithms, what AI can and cannot do in chartering, and why George would bet on India becoming a major force in global shipping within this decade.In this episode:- How dry cargo chartering has evolved since the mid-80s- The role of real-time data and voyage estimation platforms- AI in maritime — co-pilot or replacement?- India's rise in global shipping and supply chains- Decarbonization, IMO regulations and rising freight costs- What iMagellan offers and why user-friendliness is everything- Advice for the next generation entering the maritime industry- Rapid fire round — trends, skills, books, and moreProduced by @bk3studios
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Most people in India know about going to sea. Almost nobody knows what happens behind the ships.In Episode 2 of Maritime Dialogues, Manasi sits down with two professionals who made the leap from the deck to the commercial side — and built careers that most maritime professionals don't even know exist.Meet Samkit Mehta, COO at Gujarati Empire, who entered the industry with zero shipping background and built everything from scratch under the mentorship of Ashutosh Gujarathi. And Chinmay Naik, Head of Chartering at Gujarati Empire, who went from sailing as a deck officer to negotiating million-dollar cargo fixtures — and passed his ICS UK exams while working full time.This episode is raw, practical, and full of things nobody tells you before you enter this industry.🚢 In this episode, we cover:→ What a chartering head actually does every single day→ How a single overlooked email caused a vessel to go on demurrage→ The real salary truth about switching from sea to shore→ How Gujarati Empire builds trust with charterers from Day 1→ What PSU contracts vs private sector deals actually look like→ Why technical knowledge on board makes you a better ship broker ashore→ The process behind a cargo fixture — from cargo order to vessel fix→ What the younger generation gets completely wrong about this industryIf you are a seafarer thinking of switching, a fresher exploring maritime careers, or an entrepreneur curious about how global commodity trade works — do not miss this episode.Subscribe to Maritime Dialogues for new episodes every week.Want to enter commercial shipping? Visit: gegroupcareers.com#MaritimeDialogues #ShipBrokering #CommercialShipping #GujaratiEmpire #MerchantNavy #MaritimePodcast #BK3Studios #SeafarerCareer #ShipChartering #MaritimeCareer
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What does it take to go from selling milk bags and newspapers to handling 1 million tons of coal in a single year?In the very first episode of Maritime Dialogues, Manasi sits down with Ashutosh Gujarathi — marine engineer, entrepreneur, and CEO of Gujarathi Empire — to unpack one of the most unconventional journeys in Indian commercial shipping.From a middle-class family in Pune's Peth area, through Merchant Navy training in Kolkata, failed restaurant chains, rejected export ventures, and 18 months without a single ship fixture — Ashutosh shares the unfiltered story of building India's fastest-growing ship brokering company.🚢 In this episode, we cover:→ How GE went from zero revenue (2016–2021) to 100+ ship fixtures→ What ship brokering actually is — and why India is still sleeping on it→ The "Train to Hire" program making commercial shipping accessible→ Why Ashutosh refuses to micromanage his team→ Geopolitical volatility, Red Sea risks & human judgment vs. AI in shipping→ The leadership philosophy behind Gujarati Empire's growthWhether you're a seafarer looking to switch careers, an entrepreneur navigating uncharted waters, or simply curious about how global trade actually moves — this episode is for you.🔔 Subscribe for new episodes of Maritime Dialogues every week.#MaritimeDialogues #Shipping #ShipBroker #GujarathiEmpire #MaritimePodcast #IndianEntrepreneur #MerchantNavy #CommercialShipping #BK3Studios #Podcast
