By Chad Tokowicz, Government Relations Manager, Marine Retailers Association of the Americas (MRAA) If there was one clear takeaway from state level advocacy battles in 2025, it’s this: recreational boats remain an attractive revenue target for lawmakers. Across the country, legislators introduced proposals to increase sales taxes, impose new “luxury”
• How a Dealer Management System Makes the Difference By Ryan Kloppe – Associate Director, OEM Business Development, Lightspeed DMS, an MRAA Strategic Partner In the marine industry, cash flow is the financial lifeblood of your dealership. It’s what keeps the lights on, the service bays spinning and your team
• Implementable Goals for Your Dealership to Get Your Cash Flowing with Force By Bernie DeGraw, MRAA Senior Education Developer Isn’t it amazing how obstacles rarely stop water? Water finds a way, around, over, sometimes under and sometimes right straight through. Obstacles usually don’t stop water. Flatness — a plateau
Why 2026 Must Be the Year We Reinvent the Dealership Business Model.
Trying to predict the future is futile, but these strategies can help you prepare for the ride
• Plan Your Experience at the MRAA Conference in Tampa It’s not easy leaving your dealership behind and planning to fully immerse yourself — and perhaps many of your teammates — into the Dealer Week 2025 event. It can be challenging to corral and stay on top of all the
Find the Relaxation Station inside the Tampa Convention Center Expo Hall During Dealer Week
Plan Your 2026 Boat Show Strategy Now; Discover Boating Insights You used to be able to jam a bunch of boats into a booth space and count on people rolling in to check out the new inventory and deals. More often than not, this strategy worked out OK. At the
• A marine dealer celebrates employee tenure, turns retention into a competitive advantage Alpin Haus was founded as a ski shop back in 1964 by Bud Heck and John Daly. By 1987, boats were added to the outdoor recreational dealer’s inventory. From that point on, whether it’s RVs, pools, snowboards
Going deeper — impactful marine-specific education By Liz Walz, MRAA Director of Learning Vision & Impact As a marine dealer, your time is precious, and your challenges are complex. You’re not looking for theory — you’re looking for training that delivers real results, tailored to your team and your business.
