about becket & company

Becket & Company is founded on more than 10 years of marine industry experience, including 5 years in the boat building industry. Our nationwide network of yacht industry professionals are screened and required to display mastery of their area of expertise before receiving Becket & Company certification.

 

President James B. Strohacker spent much of his youth on the water, running lobster yachts and sailing Sunfish and Lasers along the shores of coastal Maine. While a student at Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine, he apprenticed at renowned wooden boat builder Richard Pulsifer's shop, working on 15 boats and building two boats of his own. After three years working alongside Pulsifer, Strohacker possessed a solid understanding of naval architecture, but also a strong appreciation for Pulsifer's commitment to detail and craftsmanship. These are the key tenets from which Becket & Company operates.

 

After Bowdoin, Strohacker joined The Hinckley Company, working in a number of roles as Demonstrator Boat Fleet Manager, Senior Trainer, and Sales Event Manager. Strohacker educated and trained hundreds of new Hinckley jet boat owners, teaching them how to operate and maintain their new purchase, while also managing the maintenance of all demo boats.

 

While at Hinckley, Strohacker spent more than 7,000 hours running boats, providing vital feedback on new products, managing sales events, and collaborating with service, engineering, and production departments to meet customer needs and expectations — and meet them on time. Working in this position enabled Strohacker to make dozens of connections within boatyards and marinas along the East and West Coasts, as well as in the Great Lakes region.

 

In 2007, Strohacker returned to school to study business, attaining an M.B.A. in May 2009 with an emphasis on entrepreneurship from Babson College in Wellesley, Massachusetts. While at school, he continued to work as an independent contractor in the boating world – managing yacht refits, new purchases, maintenance and training.

 

Strohacker brings this broad base of experience to Becket & Company, an organization of skilled, certified boating professionals dedicated to representing boat owners as a true advocate and partner. We guide and work alongside our clients at all levels of boat ownership, from purchasing the perfect-for-you boat and managing an on-time delivery, to on-the-ocean training and maintenance supervision.

 

Whether you're an experienced yachstman or a novice to the boating world, Becket & Company will work with you to make boat ownership the enjoyable and rewarding activity it was always meant to be.