Sharon Geary Harwood, MD at Drascombe Boats and Adventure Boats UK, has died after a short illness.
Sharon began her Drascombe journey as a finance and office administrator for Churchouse Boats, former builders of the Drascombe sailing boat, joining the company in January 2010.
The Drascombe brand had been established for more than 50 years, with her father-in-law Stewart Brown the driving force, having started building Drascombes in 2002 when he was given permission by the Watkinson family to build the boats designed by Drascombe founder, John Watkinson.
In 2006 Stewart launched a proto-type Drifter 22 – the first new Drascombe for 20 years. Three years on, with illness affecting Stewart, Sharon joined the company, supporting him in the office and moving the company forward to not only build the sailing boats but also build parts and spares alongside running a brokerage section.
On her LinkedIn page, Sharon stated: “We sell our boats worldwide, and are very proud of the name, along with the product we build.”
She added: “I come into this company knowing very little about boats, sailing, and running a business, however I feel I have made a good contribution to the way the company is now progressing and moving forward, this is only by hard work and dedication.”
Sharon was a self-confessed ‘people person’; her parents were newsagents and in Sharon’s words: “I grew up with a newspaper in my hand, helping deliver them from an early age.”
It was this background which made her relish her hands-on-role at Drascombe which covered everything from being the first point of contact to delivering customers’ orders.
And Sharon’s belief that ‘everyone has a story to tell’ cemented customer relationships and loyalty. With more than 6,000 Drascombes sold worldwide, Sharon considered each customer as a family member.
When Stewart retired in 2013, Sharon and his step-son Simon jumped at the chance to buy the business.
“We loved our jobs and the boats and didn’t want to work for anyone else,” she explained in an interview.
And she also explained that with Drascombe being such an iconic brand, it was a privilege to ‘caretake’ it for the Watkinson family with one of her career highlights being finding and buying the first Drascombe prototype ‘Katharine Mary’ and carrying out a refurbishment project on the craft.
Sharon openly stated that she didn’t like water very much, however this didn’t deter her and at the end of 2014 she set my New Year’s Resolution to learn to sail, enjoy being on the water, attend a rally and live aboard on a boat for one night.
Writing in her blog, Sharon stated: “Not too much of a challenge, but a very big one for someone who does not like the water very much.”
Her 2019 challenge was to sail a Drascombe Lugger on her own.
In 2021 Sharon and Dick Pizey, who runs the brokerage section at Drascombe, bought the moulds for the nesting dinghies from Nestaway Boats and formed a new company to market these dinghies. Adventure Boats UK received its first order for a craft within weeks of the company being set up.
In 2023, Sharon was forced to make the difficult decision to liquidate Churchouse Boats and begin again as Drascombe Boats which she stated caused her many sleepless nights.
But she said praised her suppliers for working with her and continuing to support her with the new company and highlighted the fact that all customers received the goods they had paid for.
Tributes have been paid to Sharon from both customers and the marine industry.
Jeff Webber, commercial officer at Barton Marine, had known Sharon for a number of years and explained: “Sharon was more than a customer. She was a voice in the industry for small British marine manufacturers. Having spent time with her at shows and rallies, Sharon was part of what made Drascombe Boats the community and class it is.”
He added: “I am fortunate to have spent time with her and call her my good friend.”
Among the family Sharon leaves behind are her two daughters, Hannah and Lauren, who have taken over running the company.
