Born in Spetses in 1934, Dinos Korakis became fascinated by the island’s wooden boats. He left school at 11 to become an apprentice kaiki builder for Margetas and followed Margetas to Koilada. But Korakis soon returned to Spetses, where he worked with Petroutsis until being called up for military service. After a brief sailing career he also worked with Delimitros. In 1979, Master Dinos started his own boatyard. His first kaiki was a 12.5m clipper schooner commissioned by the Niarchos family in Spetsopoula. Over a long career he built more than 200 kaikia, all distinguished by their beautiful lines and good sea-keeping qualities. Dinos Korakis kept on building boats until his last days, assisted by his son Pantelis, who now carries on his father’s work.