Dealer Week 2022 Education Lineup Released

MINNEAPOLIS, August 19 — As boat dealers continue to adjust to the post-pandemic marketplace and create their plans for the year ahead, the Marine Retailers Association of the Americas has introduced a powerful Dealer Week educational lineup that aims to help them accomplish that very task.

MRAA's Dealer Week 2022 Education Lineup

Bolstered by more than 20 training and educational sessions, Dealer Week, the MRAA’s annual conference and expo, is the marine industry’s only event focused on aiding dealer success. The courses and educational deliveries are the cornerstone of Dealer Week, and the entire event is constructed around the delivery of ideas, insights, strategies and best practices to help dealers strengthen their business.

Organized into three separate pathways:

The Dealer Week educational lineup helps dealers concentrate on the topics that matter most to them. It also helps them prioritize which staff members should consume which content.

“Our goal with Dealer Week’s courses is not to just use talking heads to deliver a message,” explains Liz Walz, MRAA’s Vice President of Education. “Our goal is to give dealers a direct path to implementing the ideas, insights and inspiration they collect at the event when they return to their dealerships. Without that implementation, we don’t fulfill our mission.”

The Dealer Week Sales and Marketing Pathway will be led by Marcus Sheridan, a highly sought-after international keynote speaker, known for his unique ability to excite, engage and motivate a live audience with his simple-yet-powerful transformational business approach. Dubbed as one of Forbes’ magazines 20 “Speakers You Don’t Want to Miss,” Sheridan will kick off the pathway with a session titled, “7 Selling Strategies Your Dealership Will Need in 2023.”

His course will be followed by others, such as:

The Dealer Week educational sessions within each Pathway run concurrently, and each pathway will add another session — a Panel Discussion with industry dealers will be held from 11:30 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 7 — to the lists of courses found here. Event attendees can select specific sessions they want to attend, sticking within one pathway or bouncing between pathways in order to enjoy the session and topics they determine will have the biggest impact for their business.

Sam Dantzler Wheelhouse College, Garage Composites, Dealer Week Speaker and Leadership Pathway Host
Sam Dantzler will host the Leadership Pathway at MRAA’s Dealer Week 2022 Conference & Expo December 5-8, in Austin, Texas.

Dealer Week favorite Sam Dantzler, a speaker driven by adventure, immersive interactions and continuing education, will host the Leadership Pathway, helping to initiate conversations and connect the sessions to one another for a deeper learning experience. Dantzler, the Owner of Wheelhouse College and President of Garage Composites, is known for his “seize the day” personality, winner’s mentality and devotion to dealerships of all sizes. In Texas, he will help anchor the Pathway with his session titled “Prepare Your Dealership for the Disruption Ahead.”

Other topics in this Pathway will include:

Jim Million, aka the facilitator’s facilitator and trainer extraordinaire, will host the Service & Parts Pathway helping dealers understand how they install and implement key processes within their service and parts departments to improve operations and achieve their goals. Owner of Million Learning, Jim has been involved within the automotive industry in multiple roles, from salesperson to developer to speaker. His diverse background and familiarity with dealership procedures makes him an invaluable professor of sorts within the marine industry. Millions will conclude this pathway with his session titled, “Reduce Service Dept. Pain with These Workforce Tools & Strategies.”

Other topics in this Pathway will include:

Dealer Week 2022 is held Dec. 5-8, at the Austin Convention Center in Austin, Texas. Registration is open, so marine dealers have three convenient ways to join their peers at Dealer Week to learn, implement and grow their business.

  • To fully immerse yourself and your non-attending teammates in the full experience of Dealer Week, consider attending the event in person and the online event that follows. With the steeply discounted combo package, you can gain great value from learning in-person and revisiting the content anytime you’d like for up to three months after the live event.
  • The OPTIMAL CHOICE is to join the MRAA in Austin, the live music capital of the world, where you gain direct access to speakers, exhibitors and other dealers to maximize your learning and experience an array of additional events, including MRAA’s 50th anniversary celebration.
  • MRAA will also hold Dealer Week Online, allowing you to watch 15 expert-led courses at home or in your dealership starting in December, for those who cannot attend the Texas conference.

About the Marine Retailers Association of the Americas
At the Marine Retailers Association of the Americas, we believe that for the marine industry to thrive, the retail organizations that interact with the boaters in their community must thrive. With that in mind, MRAA works to create a strong and healthy boating industry by uniting those retailers, providing them with opportunities for improvement and growth, and representing them with a powerful voice. For more information, visit MRAA.com or contact us at 763-315-8043.

About Dealer Week

For 50 years, the Marine Retailers Association of the Americas has delivered world-class educational programming to dealers, retailers and service operations that power the boating industry and serve today’s boaters. Dealer Week exists to engage, energize and empower the dealer community. The MRAA envisions a brighter future for marine retail, and Dealer Week is the preeminent means for bringing that vision to life. Learn more at DealerWeek.com.

Boating Business: Expectations vs. Reality

Halftime Review of 2022; Dealers’ Second-Half Outlook

It’s easy to feel beat up and exhausted, especially when faced with long, hot summer work days with uncontrollable influences putting chinks in your amor! Throw in the inescapable change that keeps peeping around the corner, and it’s no wonder operating a dealership can be as challenging as it is rewarding.

Here’s an example: “It seems negative consumer reaction to the tremendous increase in boat prices is starting to have an effect. Our customers are in total shock about new boat prices. The manufactures we represent have raised prices over 35 percent in three years! We are heading to major recession I am afraid.” — Anonymous marine dealer response.

While some may describe this quote as a “The sky is falling” outlook and mindset, one has to listen earnestly to understand not all dealers are experiencing the exact same things, nor are they set up to harvest the same level of success or take the same approach to managing these challenges and their customers’ demands.

That’s why in the July Pulse Report — a monthly look into the health of the marine retail and industry trends with Baird Research & “Trade Only” — the goal was to call a timeout to gain some perspective from you! After all, July is month seven in the 12-month calendar, so it made sense to do a halftime review, find out what’s working, or not working. Here’s a highlight of some responses on each.

Working:
• “Manufacturers who are able to deliver what they say when they say are winning.”
• “Web based marketing continues to provide solid leads for follow up. Web page generating solid leads.”
• “Service is performing at an all-time high and we are still four weeks out.”
• “Pontoons.”
• “Taking time with the customer. Getting back to a slower, personalized, relationship-based sales approach.”
• “We strive for high CSI and customer service above what customers expect. That is paying off on us and we are doing very well.”

Not Working:
• “Unrealistic pricing.”
• “Supply.”
• “Lack of qualified and willing applicants makes it impossible to fill open positions.”
• “If staffing issues can be resolved, we could increase revenue over last year. If staffing stays the same, we will continue to have more demand than we can satisfy.”
• “Aluminum fishing, fish-n-ski, used aluminum fish.”
• “Gas prices aren’t working, interest rates aren’t working, inflation isn’t working, this administration isn’t working. The legislative branch, both sides, isn’t working. That should about sum it all up.”

Dealers also contributed their in-the-trenches feedback to the question: “How did the first half of 2022 compare to your budget and expectations?” Nearly two thirds of responding dealers reported that the first half met their expectations or exceeded them. However, 36 percent indicated the first six months of 2022 were below expectations. (See chart)

“We still have significant backlog from pre-sold units that will deliver in the second half that will impact our budget, but the new activity will be more challenging moving forward.”

Some dealers also shared openly about their wins, struggles and concerns moving forward through ’22 and into 2023, when responding to our request for their outlook for the second half of the year. The marine retailer sentiment index actually saw a slight uptick in June, but didn’t raise above the 50 percent neutral line, hinting that opinions and view for the near future and 3-to-5-year outlook remain negative. Retail demand factors (weather, access to credit, OEM promotions, government action/inaction, et al.) all continued their negative trend as well.

Dealers responses also showcased an ongoing concern moving forward, with inflation taking hold and the disposable income diminishing. “The glory days of COVID and unrelenting demand are now over. We started noticing demand dropping about 120 days ago and, sure enough, we are back to normal business.”

One dealer painted a clearer picture that this is simply the cycle of the boat business. They predict the market will have less buyers and therefore less demand as supply rebounds and grows. This, they add, will impact pricing and margins and rather naturally “weed out” dealers unprepared for a slowdown. To learn more about the changes in the boating customer, be sure to read the Kevin William’s (NMMA) guest blog here. 

Despite the somewhat negative or authentic viewpoints from some dealers who point to continued marketplace uncertainty, some of them remain optimistic and carry a positive mindset in the latter portion of the year.

“Expect continued demand for new and used boats, but perhaps not at the rate we’ve seen over the past two years. We will remain busy delivering boats that are retail sold but not to the dealership yet. Continued parts shortages and lack of engine availability are keeping the pace from going any faster than it currently is. Overall, business levels may not be as strong as last year but still very respectable all things considered.”

If you’re team is unsure about your second half or wants to give your dealership a mid-season check up, be sure to download this resource: MRAA Guide – Dealership Owners: “Time for a Mid-Season Checkup”

Regal Boats Becomes an MRAA Education Champion

MINNEAPOLIS – The Marine Retailers Association of the Americas announced that Regal Boats committed to continuing its support of MRAA’s world-class educational programming by partnering as an Education Champion member.


Regal Boats, founded by Paul and Carol Kuck, has been dedicated to innovation ever since its inception in 1969. As an Education Champion, Regal directly supports MRAA’s educational programming, which is provided to dealers in an effort to generate a more innovative and successful industry. Regal Boats has been a long-time supporter of the MRAA and now shows its commitment at MRAA’s second-highest level of Partner Membership.

“We committed to becoming an MRAA Education Champion because we know how impactful MRAA’s educational programming and resources are for our dealers,” said Jake Kuck, VP of North American Sales and Marketing of Regal Boats, “Because of these resources, our dealers are better prepared for the future and are set up to be the best dealerships in their market place.”

Headquartered in Orlando, Fla., Regal Boats positions itself as not only being in the business of selling boats, but giving families enriched lives with deep connections through boating. Regal designs a versatile range of sport boats, Sports Activity Vessels, Express Cruises and yachts from 20’-42’. Through excellent customer service and continued innovation, Regal Boats has seen more than 50 years of success. The Kuck family and Regal leadership team continue to commit to the growth and success of the industry through alignment of their beliefs with the MRAA’s mission.

“Our Education Champions are really the backbone to our educational programming. Their support provides us the capabilities of delivering world-class education,” said Allison Gruhn, Vice President of Business Development, “We are grateful to have Regal Boats in support of our education, as it shows they align with making this industry as successful as possible.”

About Regal Boats
Regal Boats is a world leader in designing and manufacturing luxury performance boats from 20’ to 42’. Founded in 1969 by Paul and Carol Kuck, Regal operates as a privately held, debt-free, family-owned and operated company. Based in Orlando, FL, Regal distributes products through a dedicated dealer network worldwide.

About the Marine Retailers Association of the Americas
At the Marine Retailers Association of the Americas, we believe that for the marine industry to thrive, the retail organizations that interact with the boaters in their community must thrive. With that in mind, MRAA works to create a strong and healthy boating industry by uniting those retailers, providing them with opportunities for improvement and growth, and representing them with a powerful voice. For more information, visit MRAA.com or contact us at 763-315-8043.

Barletta Pontoon Boats President Bill Fenech to Retire; Jeff Haradine Promoted to President

EDEN PRAIRIE, Minnesota – August 4, 2022 – Winnebago Industries, Inc. (NYSE: WGO), a leading outdoor lifestyle product manufacturer, today announced the planned retirement of Bill Fenech, President, Barletta Pontoon Boats, effective August 26, 2022. Bill Fenech founded Barletta in 2017 with a focus on innovative products, superior quality and a relentless passion for customer satisfaction and quickly built the company into a significant presence in the popular pontoon boat market segment. Barletta was acquired by Winnebago Industries in August 2021, joining the family of premium RV and marine brands including Winnebago, Grand Design RV, Chris-Craft, and Newmar.

Under Fenech’s leadership and with the strong contributions of the extended team and dealer partners, Barletta Pontoon Boats has continued to grow market share and aspires to be a top three pontoon brand in the U.S. in the future. To enable further product line growth, Barletta recently announced a major capacity expansion project in Bristol, Indiana that will come online in mid-2023.

“I would like to thank Bill for his incredible insight and leadership at Barletta and his service as a valued member of the Winnebago Industries Executive Leadership Team,” said Winnebago Industries President and Chief Executive Officer Michael Happe. “Bill’s demonstrated commitment to quality, innovation, and service in addition to developing strong dealer relationships fueled Barletta to become the fastest growing pontoon boat manufacturer in the industry.”

Fenech will be succeeded by Jeff Haradine, who is being promoted to President, Barletta Pontoon Boats, from his current role as Vice President of Sales. Haradine will report to Chris West, Senior Vice President, Enterprise Operations and Barletta, who has driven successful results as the lead integration manager for Barletta’s first year under Winnebago Industries ownership. All other Barletta senior leadership team members will remain in their current roles.


Haradine has been a key member of the Barletta leadership team since the brand’s inception and has played an instrumental role in the tremendous growth of the business over the last five years. He brings nearly two decades of business and marine experience as the former president and owner of WakeSide Marine in Elkhart, IN, with previous roles in residential land development and homebuilding management

“I am extremely pleased to appoint Jeff to lead the Barletta business with the support of Barletta’s proven leadership team,” Happe stated. “Jeff has been a key contributor to Barletta’s success, having built an industry-leading sales team and dealer network from scratch, as well as playing a significant role in product development and marketing. Jeff’s demonstrated ability to lead others and his deep knowledge of the Barletta business will enable him and the Barletta leadership team to continue Barletta’s growth trajectory to be one of the industry’s top pontoon brands. Dealers and retail customers can look forward to the same unwavering commitment to quality, innovation, and service they have come to expect from Barletta for years to come.”

About Winnebago Industries
Winnebago Industries, Inc. is a leading North American manufacturer of outdoor lifestyle products under the Winnebago, Grand Design, Chris-Craft, Newmar and Barletta brands, which are used primarily in leisure travel and outdoor recreation activities. The Company builds quality motorhomes, travel trailers, fifth-wheel products, pontoons, inboard/outboard and sterndrive powerboats, and commercial community outreach vehicles. Winnebago Industries has multiple facilities in Iowa, Indiana, Minnesota, and Florida. The Company’s common stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange and traded under the symbol WGO. For access to Winnebago Industries’ investor relations material or to add your name to an automatic email list for Company news releases, visit http://investor.wgo.net.

MMTA Workforce Solutions Amendment Passes in the 2023 MA State Budget

Randall Lyons, MMTA Release — FOXBORO, MASSACHUSETTS — Last week Governor Baker signed the 2023 state budget, which included $150,000 in funding for workforce development and career technical education initiatives within the recreational boating industry. This funding will continue the successful initiatives and progress that the Massachusetts Marine Trades Association (MMTA) has made over the last five plus years to meet the workforce challenges within the industry.


The funds were introduced via Budget Amendments sponsored in the House by Representative William Straus of the 10th Bristol District and in the Senate by Senator Patrick O’Connor of the Plymouth & Norfolk District, joined in leadership by Representative Susan Gifford and Senator Paul Feeney, the four Co-Chairs of the 60-plus member Legislative Boating Caucus.

Co-Sponsors in the Senate included:
Senators DiZoglio, Gobi, Lovely, Montigny, Moran, Moore, Pacheco, Tarr, Timilty and Velis

Co-Sponsors in the House included:
Representatives Barrows, Cabral, Capano, Chan, Cutler, Elugardo, Ferguson, Fernandes, Giannino, Haddad, Haggerty, Hendricks, Jones, Jr., Kane, Kelcourse, Madaro, Meschino, Muratore, Peake, Philips, Robertson, Sabadosa, Tucker, Viera, Whelan & Xiarhos

The MMTA would like to express our appreciation to Representatives Straus and Gifford and Senators O’Connor and Feeney for their leadership on this budgetary funding. We would also like to thank the 10 co-sponsors in the Senate and the 26 co-sponsors in the House for their support for this very important amendment for the recreational boating industry in Massachusetts. As well, we would also like to thank the six members of the 2023 budget Conference Committee: Representative Aaron Michlewitz, Representative Ann-Margaret Ferrante, Representative Todd Smola, Senator Michael Rodrigues, Senator Cindy Friedman, and Senator Patrick O’Connor. Last but certainly not least, thank you to Governor Baker for signing the final budget for the state and supporting workforce solutions within our industry.

The recreational boating industry in Massachusetts has an economic impact of approximately $4.4 billion dollars and employs over 20,000 men and women in the state. The industry is currently facing a substantial workforce shortage both in Massachusetts and on a national level. Here in Massachusetts, there are hundreds—if not thousands—of jobs currently available. We have the jobs & careers; we just need the people to fill them. This amendment will go a long way in continuing to help with the MMTA’s efforts on workforce solutions here in Massachusetts.

ABOUT THE MMTA
Established in 1964, the Massachusetts Marine Trades Association (MMTA) is the non-profit statewide, representative body for approximately 1,000 marine trades businesses in the Commonwealth that employ approximately 20,000 men and women. The mission of the Association is to further the interests of the marine trades and the boating public through the promotion of boating, participation in legislation and professional improvement programs. WWW.BOATMA.COM

Boating Market Report: Demand Continues to Move Inventory at a Record Pace

● Strong consumer demand continues to move boat inventory faster than before the pandemic
● Global average boat value is 28.9 percent higher than 2019
● Boats sold in the first half of the year total over $6 billion globally
● Average price of boats in the 26-foot range continues to rise, up 71.5 percent in the US and 140.6 percent internationally

MIAMI, Fla., August 1, 2022 — Boats Group, a global leader in online boating marketplaces, today announced findings from its latest market report, analyzing the first half of 2022 while comparing pre-pandemic trends alongside pandemic-driven growth. The rising value of boats has yet to affect consumer demand, with listed boats moving off the market faster and sales remaining higher than before the pandemic in 2019.


Consumer demand coupled with lower-than-normal inventory levels is driving these historic spikes in boat values as the global average boat price is now $182,900, an increase of 28.9 percent from 2019. This is further reflected in how quickly boats are moving off the market, selling 32 days faster than last year and 83 days faster than in 2019.

“The continuous and strong growth we’ve seen from our marketplace data is a key indicator of the overall health of the boating market,” said Courtney Chalmers, Vice President of Marketing at Boats Group. “As we compare pre-pandemic numbers to the current market conditions, we’re looking for shifts in consumer behavior that will further provide insight about what we can expect in 2023.”

Throughout the past year, budget-friendly options have become increasingly popular for buyers looking to get out on the water. Boats in the 26-foot range saw an average price increase of 71.5 percent in the U.S. and 140.6 percent internationally compared to pre-pandemic values. The overall market driver for unit sales from 2019 to 2022 were boats in the less than 35-foot segment.

“As we head into the second half of 2022, we’re closely tracking the volume of boats listed for sale. Early indicators show inventory making a comeback and becoming more consistent compared to the peaks and valleys we saw in 2020 and 2021,” said Chalmers. “This very positive trend will help boat builders, dealers and brokers to be well-positioned for the strong consumer demand that doesn’t appear to be going anywhere.”

For a comprehensive view of the boating market, visit boatsgroup.com/ne ws to download the  2022 Midyear Market Index from Boats Group. 

​

About Boats Group
Boats Group owns and operates the world’s leading online boating marketplaces, connecting the largest global audience of boat buyers with top sellers and manufacturers. Boats Group’s portfolio includes a variety of industry-leading brands like Boat Trader, YachtWorld, boats.com, iNautia, Cosas De Barcos, Botentekoop, Annonces du Bateau, Boats and Outboards, Boatshop24, Click&Boat and Trident Funding.

For nearly three decades, Boats Group has helped marine retailers sell more boats faster and convert more shoppers into buyers than any other source. Through a comprehensive suite of digital business solutions, including proprietary web-based contract management tools, and premier digital marketing strategies and services, Boats Group delivers unmatched value to its industry partners and optimizes the virtual path to boat ownership.

Owned by Permira, Boats Group is headquartered in Miami, Florida, United States, with co-headquarters in Fareham, England, and additional offices in Padova, Italy and Barcelona, Spain. For more information about Boats Group, visit www.boatsgroup.com.

MRAA Grows its Partner Members by Three in July

MINNEAPOLIS — The Marine Retailers Association of the Americas announced the addition of three Partner Members to its list of supporting organizations that make delivering education, resources and tools to its dealer members possible.

Marine manufacturers, suppliers and service providers that become Partner Members of the MRAA align their brands with the MRAA and the success of the North American dealer body. Because of this support, MRAA has the ability to expand its offerings and make a greater impact on dealer success.

These three new Partner Members, Radian, Unishippers – Creative Control and MDS Brand, help fuel the success of dealers in unique avenues. Radian aims to provide enterprises with the most powerful data in the marine industry. Unishippers commits to providing higher quality shipping and transportation for the marine industry. MDS Brand intends to become a resource for businesses wanting to make transitions into the digital marketplace. All three of these companies provide unique support to the industry, making it a natural progression to join the MRAA as Partner Members showing a greater level of support to dealers across the US and Canada.

·      Unishippers – Creative Control: The Shipping Company That Works For You.

·      Radian: Supply Chain Optimization, Intelligent Logistics & Asset Management Solutions.

·      MDS Brand: Digital Solutions With A Human Touch That Generate Leads.

“As the number of MRAA Partner Members continues to grow, the MRAA becomes better equipped to successfully serve our dealer members” says Allison Gruhn, Vice President of Business Development. “Each of these new Partner Members provide a unique perspective and expertise needed by many of our dealers. We’re grateful to welcome them to the MRAA family.”

Visit https://mraa.com/page/mraapartners to view the entire list of companies who actively support the MRAA across four levels of partnership.

About the Marine Retailers Association of the Americas
At the Marine Retailers Association of the Americas, we believe that for the marine industry to thrive, the retail organizations that interact with the boaters in their community must thrive. With that in mind, MRAA works to create a strong and healthy boating industry by uniting those retailers, providing them with opportunities for improvement and growth, and representing them with a powerful voice. For more information, visit MRAA.com or contact us at 763-315-8043.

Priority One Dealers Simplify Retail Financing with DealerRock DMS Integration

St. Petersburg, FL (July 27, 2022) – Priority One Financial Services, a full-service finance company offering flexible, business-ready finance and insurance solutions for marine, RV and trailer dealers, recently announced a groundbreaking partnership with DealerRock, a modern, cloud-based dealer management system (DMS). The new system integration instantly connects customers with the financing they need and simplifies information sharing between dealers and Priority One.

Dealers can now send – with the customer’s permission – customer and collateral information directly from DealerRock to Priority One. With a single click, a dealer can initiate a text to a customer containing a pre-filled credit application with information already received by the dealer. The streamlined process reduces data entry errors and condenses the application timeline to a matter of minutes.

“Today’s customer expects efficiency and ease,” said Nicole Armstrong, Vice President of Corporate Initiatives, Priority One, “and the demands on a dealer’s time are higher than ever. Streamlining the way we gather and share information is a win for all of us.”

DealerRock owner, Jason Haines, also owns and operates Current Watersports, a multi-location marine dealership based in Cincinnati, Ohio. Priority One identified DealerRock as a preferred partner because of Haines’ industry expertise.

“Haines understands the nuances and demands of running a dealership, and the DealerRock system reflects that,” said Armstrong.

“We saw an opportunity to make the financing process easier and more efficient,” said Haines. “We are excited to expand our partnership with Priority One and simplify processes for our dealers.”

Operating primarily in the marine industry, DealerRock recently expanded to include DMS capabilities for RV’s.

Dealers already working with DealerRock will see the new features immediately. For a limited time, DealerRock will waive onboarding fees for Priority One dealers interested in signing up with the DMS.

For more information, visit p1fs.com/dealerrock or call your account executive at (800) 419-1341.

About Priority One Financial Services, Inc.
Founded in 1987, Priority One Financial Services, Inc. offers flexible, business-forward finance and insurance solutions for marine, RV, horse trailer and commercial equipment dealers. A division of Forest River, a Berkshire Hathaway company, Priority One’s knowledgeable team brings full-service financing to every customer, helping dealers improve business and move inventory.

Headquartered in Saint Petersburg, Florida, the company also owns and operates Priority One Equipment Finance and Veritas Insurance Group. A 2019 One Tampa Bay and 2017 Business of Pride honoree, Priority One values its diverse community of employees, customers, dealers and the surrounding Tampa Bay neighborhood.

About DealerRock
DealerRock provides an all-in-one, cloud-based dealer management software system that helps dealers simplify their day-to-day operations and operate more efficiently in today’s competitive marine environment. Leading dealerships use DealerRock to run their operations because of its huge focus on usability and responsive design at an affordable price. It allows them to save money, operate more efficiently and manage their business from anywhere in today’s mobile world. For more info visit: www.dealerrock.com.

Change in the Boating Customer

The Future Does Not fit Into the Containers of the Past

To be successful in today’s competitive marketplace, businesses must understand how to market to each generation and what motivates them. There are four major generational shifts happening in society today: Generation Z (born 1997-2012), Millennials (born 1980-2000), Generation X (born 1965-1980) and Baby Boomers (born 1946-1964). These groups have things in common as well as some key differences.

Today’s boat owners are whiter, wealthier and more male than America as a whole
They’re older than the average American, with a median age of 54 and are six years older than the US median age. They are high-income and high net-worth compared to the average American and more likely to be male than the average American and much more likely to be white (92%) than the average American.

Demographic trends show that the Next Generation of boating prospects will most likely be more diverse and less likely to come from boat owning families than previous generations.


This diversification is even more pronounced among younger generations, with the “post millennial” generation predicted to be “the most diverse, best educated generation yet.” The future of boating will not look like the past. So, it’s imperative for the boating industry to appeal to a younger, more diverse group of potential future boaters to show them how boating can include them.

But, to include them, you must first understand them.

  • Understand Next Generation consumers in real-time
  • Identify new opportunities brought about by new needs and wants
  • Scale with technology to extend business reach
  • Enhance capabilities to find and act upon new opportunities in a pre-emptive way — look into the future
  • Invest in human capital to get it done
  • Customers & Consumers create brands — Today more than ever!
  • Yesterday: interruption, one-way, follow the leader
  • Today brands must involve consumers, connect with them, own, share, advocate (remember … the consumer decides)

    Rebooting the business to realign it with the new consumer environment is critical to its long-term health & growth
    NMMA commissioned a research study to find the groups to target who will be open to boating throughout the broader society. We developed a segmentation study of the potential target universe using two factors: participation in sports and outdoor activities and income.

This study defined potential target groups based on their participation in the same outdoor activities that boat owners often pursue. This allowed us to target a much larger base of future boaters with interests that overlap with today’s boat owners.

Three key segments emerged from the research: Traditional Boaters, Growth Segment and Emerging Segment. The Traditional Boaters are who their name suggests — they most closely resemble the current boat owner, while the Growth and Emerging Segments are opportunities to expand the market for recreational boating, representing 91 million people and more than 1.5x the Traditional Boater segment size.

  • Traditional Boaters: This group looks most like today’s boat owners and has the highest penetration of boat ownership and participation in boating activities. They are older and more suburban/ex-urban than other groups.
  • Growth Segment: This group pursues boating-adjacent activities at high rates, including powersports, biking and hiking and is younger. In fact, they are younger than current first-time boat buyers. They are more ethnically and racially diverse and more likely to live in denser areas.
  • Emerging Segment: This group is a large, dynamic and affluent segment of the potential future boat owner population. In their daily lives, while they are not pursuing the outdoor activities predictive of future boating, they are doing those activities on vacation with a potential “pull” via rental activity. They are the most diverse, most affluent segment.

Shared characteristics of the Growth and Emerging Segments include:

  • Likely to attend events like auto shows, food/beverage festivals and music festivals.
  • Consider themselves more environmentally conscious.
  • Are heavy users of social media including Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn, TikTok.
  • Enjoy foreign and domestic travel.
  • Participate in outdoor recreation activities, including golfing, cycling, running, tennis and yoga.
  • Watch sporting events online.
  • Own autos from brands including BMW, Jeep, Tesla and Subaru.

Lastly, the Next Generation of boaters are not a large monolithic group. Each generation is valuable in the marketplace, and one is not better than the other. Generation Z and Millennials for example are disrupting the way products and services are advertised by rejecting conventional marketing methods. They are more likely to be swayed by what their peers have to say about a product or service, which means that digital and social media sources such as Yelp reviews and online testimonials can make or break marketing campaigns.

Engaging diverse consumers as buyers and employees for instance is simply a good business strategy. Targeting potential boating lifestyle enthusiasts from the three largest ethnic groups in the US (African American, Asian and Hispanic), as well as women and LGBTQI audiences is essential to the growth of the boating industry. What’s more, these segments will only grow in importance in the years to come as their buying power increases. There is enormous potential to market to these consumer groups in almost any sector and industry, and with a focus on reaching and engaging them where they live, work and play digitally and experientially.

About the Author
Kevin Williams is the Vice President, North American Marketing for the National Marine Manufacturers Association. He has more than 25 years of marketing experience, and most recently co-founded Fortitude Interactive Inc., a marketing technology consulting firm focused on brand strategy, content development and syndication, as well as intellectual property in the digital, social and mobile age. He has also served as head of multicultural marketing and diversity and inclusion initiatives for BMW of North America, LLC., where he facilitated multicultural marketing strategies and initiatives designed to reach, engage and motivate diverse consumers for BMW, MINI Cooper and BMW Motorrad brands.

Discover Boating to Detail ‘See You Out Here’ Campaign in Industry Webinar

Discover Boating, powered by NMMA and MRAA, will host an webinar* Thursday, Aug. 4, for all industry stakeholders, to showcase the “See You Out Here” campaign and how it’s working to attract the next generation of boaters while helping retain the influx of new boaters entering the marketplace over the last couple of years.

The 60-minute webinar will outline the Discover Boating strategy and key elements of this year’s campaign across media, PR, digital and more.


Date: Thursday, August 4
Time: 12:00 pm EDT / 9:00 am PST
Reserve your spot today, by registering here.

*This webinar is open to all industry stakeholders. Space is limited and registration is needed to join the webinar live on Aug. 4.
https://www.youtube.com/embed/6XL4z3acbdw?rel=0