Roy Rudd, a familiar shipping industry face from the 1960s and 1970s, has died at 90.
Shipbroker son Mike Rudd, who founded Vortex Shipbroking in 2018, said his father died on 25 May having had “a fantastic life”.
He spent over 50 years in the shipping industry.
Roy Rudd joined what was then shipbroker Simpson Spence & Young, after cutting his teeth with paint specialist Hempel Marine and a forerunner of oil company Mobil.
At SSY, he worked alongside other well-known broking names such as Roger Hadden and the late Peter Kitching, who also died in May.
Rudd was then hired by Greek shipowner Aristomenis Karageorgis, who ran a large tanker fleet, and worked for over 25 years as his managing director and right-hand man from offices in London’s Covent Garden.
Son Mike described his father as “a legend” who was approachable and happy to talk to all brokers who would come and meet him at lunchtime at one of Roy’s “favourite watering holes”. “He will be missed,” the younger Rudd said.
In the same week his father died Vortex celebrated its first year of operations.
Mike Rudd said the company now has six full-time staff working on tanker projects and period business and expects to expand further over time with “the right people”.
He is anticipates the market could remain relatively quiet over the summer but added: “Sentiment is that the market is building as we move towards the end of the year.”
