It all started when a pair of childhood friends had a simultaneous mid-life crisis and decided to buy a small marina in southeastern Wisconsin. Harold Johnson and Tom Shallcross grew up together in suburban Chicago, stayed in touch through the years and in 1971 leapt at the chance to ditch their 9-5 jobs for life on the lake.
Tom went on to say his plan began to take shape at a 20 Group meeting in the early 2010.
Figuring out whom Tom would pass his ownership stake to was the easy part. Jason Shallcross, the grandson of Tom’s original business partner, says he was “born into the business” and was identified early on as Tom’s likely successor.
“It’s a little bit of a strenuous process to come together when you have multiple people and lots of different concerns,” Tom said. “Even though we were a willing buyer and seller, it still took us over three years — and that’s in a friendly situation.”
Marine retailers who participate in the MICD Program closely examine each segment of their dealerships as part of their Certification process. An experienced MICD Consultant is assigned to each dealership upon enrollment in the program, and the successful ownership handoff at Reed’s Marine has helped craft a template for other dealerships to follow.
A key cog of a smooth succession centers on properly preparing the incoming owner or GM for their new role. The MICD Program has helped map that learning process, and Jason says he recognizes the position requires constant demands.
With their service site two miles away from the marina, Jason says Certification has helped sync the Reed’s Marine team and streamlined workflow between the two locations.
The Proper Use of Cookies
“We don’t do it every year, but we hire a company that calls the customer and discusses in-depth their experience,” Jason said. “They can spend much more time talking about what was good and not so good. We’re given a detailed transcript of what was said during the call, and the feedback is extremely valuable.”
Tom’s trust and confidence in the MICD Program can be traced back to a small gathering of industry leaders and premier U.S. dealers that took place more than a decade ago. Their collective mission: to establish a standardized program that would help marine retailers improve business practices, enhance customer satisfaction and map overall operations — all while maximizing profit.
Tom, who literally helped write the rules for Certification, went on to say Reed’s Marine enjoyed immediate results.
While the Certification program has gone through several evolutions since that first meeting, Tom insists the value and practicality of the MICD curriculum has played a pivotal role in his dealership’s ability to string together many successful, profitable years.
So is Certification status worth the required time, effort and monetary resources? Both Jason and Tom respond with an emphatic, “yes.”
Tom adds the MICD Program made him a better owner, a better leader and a better salesman.
OSHA Penalties Increase 78 Percent Starting Aug. 1, 2016
All information provided by KPA
OSHA PENALTIES INCREASE 78 PERCENT STARTING AUGUST 1, 2016
On June 30, 2016, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) announced an increase in monetary penalties for violations of OSHA standards and regulations.
The increased penalties are the direct result of a provision in the 2015 Inflation Adjustment Act which gives OSHA the authority to increase penalties to adjust for inflation. This new law requires agencies to publish “catch up” rules to make up for low penalties over the past three decades, and directs agencies to adjust their penalties moving forward based on the Consumer Price Index. OSHA has not adjusted it’s penalties since 1990.
HOW DOES THIS AFFECT ME?
Type of Violation
Current Maximum Penalty
New Maximum Penalty
Serious – High probability that serious physical harm may occur
Other than Serious – Probably would not cause serious physical harm
$7,000 per violation
Up to $12,471 per violation
Failure to Abate – Did not correct a prior violation
$7,000 per day beyond the abatement date
Up to $12,471 per day beyond the abatement date
Willful – Employer intentionally and knowingly violates a standard
Repeated – A substantially similar violation is identified as noted in a previous inspection
$70,000 per violation
Up to $124,709 per violation
STATE PLAN STATES
States that operate their own Occupational Safety and Health Plans are required to adopt maximum penalty levels that are at least as effective as Federal OSHA.
info@kpaonline.com.
How Lynnhaven Marine Keeps the Conversation Going
Like most boat dealerships, Lynnhaven Marine in Virginia Beach wants each and every customer to have both a positive buying experience and return time and again for service, accessories and their next boat.
What makes Lynnhaven Marine a bit different, however, is the way owner Chuck Guthrie and his entire team goes about accomplishing this mission.
“Every single customer who buys a boat from Lynnhaven Marine gets to meet Ryanne,” Chuck said. “She tells customers, ‘I hope I don’t bother you, but I’m going to call you every month just to see how things are going.’”
Having a dedicated employee responsible for placing these monthly calls began about two years ago after Chuck noticed his sales team was spending too much time dealing with service issues, warranty concerns and other chores detracting from their primary job of selling boats. Chuck concedes the idea seemed a bit much to him at first, but it didn’t take long to see results.
Chats with Ryanne began to trigger chain reactions that would ripple throughout the dealership, and evidence the friendly conversations were adding to Lynnhaven’s bottom line started to mount.
“The customers were saying, ‘Thank you, I don’t have any warranty issues, but I’ve been thinking about upgrading my stereo system’ or ‘Can we talk about ethanol?’ It generates other service or boating questions,” Chuck said. “That happens quite often.”
All dealerships participating in the Marine Industry Certified Dealership Program create their own versions of follow-up processes — typically centering on 30, 60 and 90 days after purchase and at the beginning and end of each boating season.
For Chuck, completing the Certification process and subsequently re-Certifying highlighted two key pillars of success: the long-term impact of high CSI scores and the importance of keeping the sales team focused on selling boats.
“I think the Certification process began driving our mind toward starting to think of how we could avoid dealing with the same problems over and over again, day after day,” he said. “We started to think there had to be another way to look at things.”
All customer follow-up calls follow a similar template, and answers to a standardized set of core questions have been documented and shared with Lynnhaven Marine’s various departments.
“We have three service writers, but Ryanne is the primary boat sales customer contact,” Chuck said. “She first asks how they’re liking the boat, if there’s anything she can do to help and encourages them to fill out warranty information.”
These topics are followed by requests to complete customer feedback surveys and explanations on why they are so important to the dealership. Ryanne emphasizes that she wants to hear if there is any reason why the customer can’t submit the highest score possible.
Calls are also customized depending on purchase. Yamaha Boats, for example, gives customers completing surveys a coupon for $25 off their next boat service, so Ryanne makes a point to remind customers of the incentive.
“We find something to talk with the customer about, even if they didn’t know they wanted to talk about it before we called,” Chuck said. “People love to talk about their boats, and we’ve found learning their first names, what they enjoy and how they use their boat has been beneficial and well worth the required time and effort.”
Member Spotlight: Gage Marine
The lunch crowd’s last stragglers offer a wave and nod as Bill Gage walks swiftly through his restaurant and selects a seat inside a plush corner booth with a picture window view of Lake Geneva. He sits down, inspects the silverware for spots (there were none) and jokes about how he inherited an eye for detail from his dad.
Bill’s first job was scrubbing boats and pumping gas at Gage Marine. As a teenager he diversified to learn other areas of the family business — all under the watchful, tutoring eye of his father. After earning a business degree and spending more than a decade in the corporate world working in New York, LA and London, Bill returned to eastern Wisconsin for what he insists was a life opportunity — not money.
“I told my dad I hope it’s the best pay cut I ever take,” Bill laughed. “I’m kidding, of course. Wisconsin is a great place, and the Midwest values are something wholesome and simple and I’m glad to be from here.”
Unexpectedly losing his dad to cancer soon after taking the reins of Gage Marine suddenly left Bill with more questions than answers, but a well-trained staff, support from fellow dealers (even “competitors”) and a drive to carry on the family legacy provided the three-legged stool he needed to succeed.
“There were responsibilities I didn’t have my dad’s mentorship, guidance and leadership for,” Bill said. “Joining a 20 Group was helpful, and as MRAA came along I found it useful to help with processes and to make things that aren’t just forgotten — but can be repeated.”
Today, business at Gage Marine remains strong: boat sales are up north of 12 percent year-over-year, and Bill’s outlook for 2016 and beyond is “very optimistic.”
But Bill stresses Gage Marine does far more than “just” sell boats. The sprawling lakefront property boasts an award-winning restaurant, modern service center, inviting gift shop and complete pier services. Slip vacancy has been extremely limited, and the Pier 290 Restaurant has become one of the area’s best places to find a fresh meal and welcoming company.
Oh, and lest we forget the USPS mail boat moored at Gage Marine and which this year celebrates a century of delivering parcels and packages to lake residents — 75 of which still rely on the The Walworth for their “snail mail.”
Gage Marine recently hosted a 100th birthday party for the historic vessel, and Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo visited Gage Marine after the celebration for a special celebrity jump. (click here to see more)
Gage Marine has been a member of MRAA since 1988, and Bill stressed the online resources, professional network and “having someone answer the phone when you call” make the annual decision to renew one of the easiest he makes during the course of a year.
“Joining MRAA may not guarantee your success, but I believe it’s a great part of it,” Bill said. “We find, through MRAA, resources that we can fall back on and help train our staff, stay in business and ultimately being as successful as we can be.”
Protective Asset Protection Attains Platinum Partnership Status with MRAA
Offering protection for stern drive, inboard, outboard, diesel and personal watercraft such as Jet Skis, Protective Asset Protection serves thousands of marine, automotive, power sports and RV dealerships throughout the United States. The company was recently recognized with a 2016 Dealers’ Choice Award by Auto Trader Today, and hosts a full menu of interactive training.
With more than 30 years of providing customized F&I solutions for marine retailers, Protective Asset Protection has paid out more than $2 billion in claims and has 3.3 million active customer contracts. Currently carrying a dynamic portfolio of marine protection plans, guranteed asset protection and tire and wheel protection, Protective Asset Protection is focused on helping marine dealers’ customers enjoy greater peace of mind.
Protective Asset Protection joins a continually growing roster of boat manufacturers, vendors and suppliers that have chosen to support the dealer community through partnership with the MRAA. Find a full menu of partner benefits here.
