On the anniversary of the 60th year celebrating Windjammers Days and maritime history, we pay homage to our founder, Captain Marion Dash for her contribution as a female role model in our maritime community. It is her legacy that has inspired the Friends of Windjammer Days to celebrate the women who are working on the waterfront today who in turn inspire young girls and future maritime generations to come.

Six generations of a successful family business is quite a legacy. Audrey Hodgdon is the newest member of the Hodgdon family to carry on that heritage. Audrey currently serves as Managing Director of Sales & Marketing for Hodgdon Tenders, Hodgdon Yachts, and Hodgdon Yacht Services. This involves driving global sales, developing and monitoring marketing programs, customer relations, helping to establish new product lines and contract negotiation.

Audrey is a native of the Boothbay Region, attending local schools and graduating from James Madison University in 2007 with a B.B.A. in Marketing. Her first job out of college brought her to New Zealand, initially working as a sales & marketing assistant where she organized trade shows in New Zealand, Australia and China. Since then, she has assumed numerous roles in marketing both inside and outside the company before assuming her current role in 2016.

In the words of Tim Hodgdon, “As president of Hodgdon Yachts and Audrey’s father, the significance of having a sixth generation in our 206-year-old company in such a prominent leadership role is not lost on me. The fact that she is the first female is especially gratifying and timely.”

Travel is one of Audrey’s favorite pastimes having already been to every continent except Antarctica. Luckily, the nature of her work brings her to various locales around the globe to attend annual trade shows.  The larger trade shows take her to Fort Lauderdale, Amsterdam, and Monaco. The Monaco show is held every September and brings in customers and businesses from all over the world. The Prince of Monaco personally visits at the start of each year’s show.

When asked what the most fun part of her job is, Audrey reports that seeing a new boat launched never gets old. So far Hodgdon Tenders has launched over 25 Superyacht tenders, each of which take about one-and-half-years to design and build and range in length from 30-40 feet. The most recent tender was launched in April of 2022.

Aside from travel, Audrey enjoys hiking and backpacking in the spring and fall with her friends and husband, and dog. She and her husband also enjoy completing DIY projects around their house and, of course, she also loves exploring the coast of Maine by boat.