Founder & Partner
42 years ago, Jens Cornelsen founded what has become a premier yacht consultancy firm, Cornelsen & Partner. Born in the small coastal town of Glückstadt in Northern Germany, Jens grew up sailing on the Elbe River & North Sea. The sea and all it represented became Jens’s passion long before it became his career. As an ambitious racer, he left home to sail and race worldwide. Taking part in prestigious international events such as the Admiral´s Cup, One Ton Cup and the Sydney to Hobart Race, and with six starts in the legendary Fastnet Race, Jens fully understands what the sea can demand of individuals and yachts. For over a year he stayed in New Zealand sailing with the Kiwi’s where he learned not only the rigors of the sea, but also many words in English best not repeated here. During this time, he connected with a small but close-knit international community of hard and fast sailors. Through this network, Jens gained an appreciation for the need to establish an independent office to represent the growing trend in private yacht ownership. Soon after, in the early 70s, Jens established a relationship with Nautor Swan where he represented the owners and their interest during the building and commissioning of 15 of the famous Sparkman & Stevens designed SWAN 65. With project management, inspection and customer care of this unique line in hand, the foundation was set for a business that has evolved over the past 42 years into Cornelsen & Partner.