• Great Dealership to Work For Spotlight: How a Certified Dealership in Regal & Nautique of Orlando is Making Quite a Wake in the Florida Boating Scene

Winning is often viewed as the definition of success by many. From sports to business, where you find winners, you regularly find strong leadership, purpose-driven tactics and people who understand that learning is also part of winning. But winning can also mean achieving great success on a personal and professional level, even if void of an authentic head-to-head competition.

American author, speaker and pastor John C. Maxwell explains one aspect of winning in his famous quote: “Wanting to win isn’t enough. You have to go through the process to improve. That takes patience, perseverance, and intentionality.”

Many of you have a winning mindset, can do great things and have had great wins in life and business. Jeff Husby, the outstanding Owner and GM at Regal & Nautique of Orlando, is one such dealer who has won consistently. He possess the desire to win and the discipline for supreme effort. His achievements have included making solid and successful business decisions to put RNO in a triumphant position in the marketplace and make a lasting impact in the recreational boating industry. 

Here are just a few of Husby’s/RNO’s outstanding recent accomplishments:

• Five-consecutive Great Dealerships to Work For (an MRAA Certification Program award).
• Repeat No. 1 Ranked Boat Dealer In North America (Boating Industry Top 100 Award winner).
• Water Sports Industry Association’s 2023 International Marine Dealer of the Year (a two-time winner in this category).
• 2023 Sea Tow Foundation’s National Boating Industry Safety Award – Top Marine Retailer category.
• Top CSI honors for sales and customer service including recognition from the National Marine Manufacturers Association for each of the brands it represents.
• Recognition from Nautique for top sales and service. 
• PCM Engines Overall Dealer Excellence Award.
• Orlando Style magazine names Jeff Husby as one of its “Men & Women of the Year” in Central Florida for 2023.

Husby hasn’t just rested on his successes, though. He has strived for more by proactively refining his business and reinvesting in his workforce and the boating community he serves. Regal & Nautique of Orlando has taken two extensive strides in February to expand its boating footprint, brand and compassion for its customers.

The first was opening its all-new Nautique Sales Showroom and Service Center in downtown Orlando, Fla. Nearly 500 customers and industry stakeholders attended the grand opening. That’s also where Husby received more recognition, as Nautique President Greg Meloon presented him with the 2024 Visionary Dealer Leadership Award. 

The new 19,036-square-foot Nautique showroom took more than 5 years to bring to fruition. The innovative, purpose-built sales and service facility puts customer experience at the forefront. Husby ensured every store component delivered the ultimate customer experience expected from a world-class establishment.

“We researched, studied and visited dozens of top marine and automotive sales-and-service showrooms regionally and throughout the country,” said Husby in an RNO release. “We have incorporated a winning series of intelligent designs, many of which are unique and set a new benchmark for our industry.”

The Nautique location also considered employee comfort and elevated customer experiences in service and parts as critical components of the new store. It features:

• Easily accessible Service Department for customers features a large circular drop-off area completely under-roof, with an adjacent service window.
• The 5000-square-foot service facility includes three interior and three exterior service bays, plus two inside and two exterior service bays for boat prep.
• The climate-controlled service facility includes a dedicated resource area housing an overhead bridge crane, computer and document storage, shop supplies, custom tech toolboxes, plus private tech restrooms and a wash area.      
• The new facility also features eight private offices, an employee kitchen/lunchroom, separate customer and employee restroom facilities.
• All interior doors include biometric digital security locks and facial recognition security cameras.
• A fully secured Parts complex features an automatic roll-up door that opens to the retail showroom, improving customer access. 

Second, Husby continued along the leadership and modernism pathway by lifting the veil off Wake United, a cutting-edge, professional pro shop dedicated to serving the global water sports community. Meeting its customers where they are and with determined customer service, Wake United delivers a seamless blend of virtual online and brick-and-mortar shopping convenience with extraordinary customized sales support to build trust, loyalty and enriching encounters.

“We believe that the pro shop sector is a critical component of the customer journey in boating and water sports,” said Husby in the release. “The pro shop is a vital element in the over-arching eco-system, providing products that excite customers and allow them to continue to progress in their water sports experience and better enjoy their time on the water. Our goal is to deliver the top brands in the industry and to provide exceptional service to our customers by leveraging the vast knowledge and passion of our team of highly experienced water sports professionals.”

Regal & Nautique of Orlando, an MRAA Certified Dealership and Gold Member, is dedicated to continuous improvement. Husby has taken RNO and the brand to new heights, helped foster a culture of accountability and trust, invested in employee development and committed to improving customer experience at every touchpoint. Along with his team, Husby and RNO, are making a royal effort to create a lasting legacy in Florida that rewards the marine industry and keeps customers boating for generations.

As accolades continue to roll in, Husby continues to put in the hard work necessary to keep winning. His team annually attends MRAA’s Dealer Week Conference & Expo. Through MRAA’s Dealership Certification and Continuous Certification, RNO continues to work on the fundamentals and seeks improvement every year. As MRAA Members, RNO staff gains access to world-class education and a library of continuous education to encourage growth and adaptability.

Not only has Husby’s commitment to excellence produced amazing recognition for him and his team, but also confident decision-making and resiliency have helped RNO stand out from the masses and withstand economic challenges.

MRAA Lead Certification Consultant Bob McCann reinforced this level of hardiness in a blog that included these words: “Dealer Certification is entirely focused on the customer experience – before, during and after the sale … the results are not only better customer experience, but also a more efficient, effective and profitable dealership with staying power. Case in point? If you were the average dealer heading into the Great Recession, you had about a 65 percent chance of survival. But if you were a Certified Dealer, you had greater than a 91 percent chance to make it through. Certification makes that much of a difference.”

Need help taking your dealership to the next level?  Explore these five things today:

1. The Guide to Dealership Improvement
2. MRAA Guide to Navigating 2024
3. Dealer Week Conference & Expo
4. Selling Value and Experience in the New Economy – MRAATraining.com course on March 1, 2024.
5. Redesign Your Showroom to Sell More – MRAATraining.com course