Matt Cumming: Our handyman with a big heart

Get to know a little bit more about our Sales Team, meet Matt Cumming

A very handy guy and a big heart! Our Matt Cumming is a very capable sailor, he is also a very talented photographer, and we are lucky to have him but that’s just on the surface. The truth is that Matt just loves fixing things; be it a boat, a house, an old compass or a computer in the office.

He just loves to spend his time working things out and more importantly, to be helpful to his clients, family, friends and colleagues.  That’s the sum of Matt, not just our sales guy: he strives to make sure everyone and everything is all right!

And we all recall that saying…. “choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life”, well it applies perfectly to him! Guess what he does on his free time? Goes boating! Actually he’s spent a lot of his free time in the past two years fixing things on boats. And now he’s gone and bought a charter cat and spends his summer weekends hosting birthday parties on the water.

He has a great family; two girls, a wife and a schnauzer called Bear so there is lots happening at home too, but we guess that Matts wife likes that he has a “focus” to keep him occupied.

Now, read our interview with Matt Cumming:

• How did you start your career in the yachting industry – tell us a bit about your life prior yachts as well?

I’ve done Saturday racing for like 20 years on a succession of folk boats – both fibreglass and timber. Not real fast, but great sailing boats. Always as crew.

I worked as a creative in advertising all that time. When I gave away that career, I finally told myself, I’m going to work at Rushcutters Bay on a marina, do whatever I can find, have my own boat down there and spend time on it. After two days I’d landed a job with Vicsail photographing boats, writing inventories and online listings and updating the database.

• Do you bring your previous experience as a differential to your current job?

Absolutely. 30 years as an ad creative I learnt a lot about cameras and writing copy.

I know what works online and offline. My experience lets me showcase boats to their best through my lenses and makes it easy for me to promote a boat. Also, by working in advertising, I have always had to manage my clients and my team, so, I also have good “people skill”.

• When & how did you discover your passion for yachts?

I used to race a Flying ant when I was 12. And then crewed on something very 70’s called a ‘Super Swinger’. I loved being on the trapeze and the feeling of speed. Later on the folkies, it was the feeling of the weight ploughing forward and the solid reliable heel of the boat. Who would have ever thought that 6 miles an hour could be so exhilarating?

• Photography – how do you tie passions between yachts and photography?

Way before this job, I always took my camera whenever I went sailing. I’ve got hundreds of pics of boats on Sydney harbour. I’ve had plenty of skippers yell at me to put that %#$% camera down and get on with crewing.

• What is your role at Vicsail – describe what you offer.

I went from data entry, to photography and video, to listing boats and then to Sales. And I still do all these roles. I think I’m a crap salesman but people seem to appreciate it. What I do is to try to be honest about the boats and we have a policy about service to our sellers and our buyers.

So I let the boats sell themselves and try and help the buyer get through the process easily. So much of the buyers’ decision making is made online it is now essential to show a boat in great detail on websites. We have sold boats sight unseen except for the pics provided, and that’s when I know I’ve done a good job.

I work on the inventories, photographs, videos, listing on the website, finding up-to-date information and getting feedback from vendors to market their yachts as best as possible.

• What are your favourite yachts from our portfolio?

OK, So I am a classic cruiser or gentleman’s day sailer kind of guy, so I most of all love the Eagle Yachts that we have recently secured the Australian rights for.

From the brokerage, we are just about to list two metre boats, both timber. One is a recent build, Juana and the other from 1945, Plym.

I would look good on either of those.