Marine Connection Makes First Acquisition, Adds Ninth Florida Location
January 11, 2021, West Palm Beach, FL – Marine Connection, named the Boating Industry #1 Ranked Marine Dealership for 2021, has acquired the majority interest in Boaters Exchange, a highly successful 20-year retail dealership with two Central Florida locations including Rockledge and New Smyrna Beach.
Effective January 1, 2022, Marine Connection now owns and controls 80% ownership of Boaters Exchange, with 20% split between former partners and co-owners Jerry Butz and Paul Berube, both of whom remain onboard to manage operations of the $30M retail dealership and its 42 employees.
“We have been focused to expand our Florida footprint in Central Florida because of its tremendous growth potential,” said Marine Connection co-owner Danny Goldenberg. “We have been very strategic and selective in this effort and are extremely pleased to have acquired an outstanding dealership organization with an impeccable reputation and strong management team in place.”
The acquisition brings Marine Connection to nine Florida locations, now with more than 100 employees and $100M+ in sales.
“We believe there are many distinctive advantages and benefits to this acquisition and expansion, both for our customers as well as for our team,” added Marine Connection co-owner John Kutuk. “Our customers statewide enjoy the benefit and resources of working with a top sales and service organization, with locations from Key West to the Central Florida and Daytona Beach area, with plans for continued future expansion into northern Florida. In addition, the Boaters Exchange team brings strong leadership to our organization, along with a wealth of experience in specific market segments including pontoons and jetboats.”
Boaters Exchange will retain its brand name due to strong customer awareness in the marketplace. It has ranked in the Boating Industry Top 100 for 11 consecutive years; earned the “Best Industry Advocate” in the 2020 Best in Class awards; and earned a 98 percent CSI rating. It is a Top 5 dealer for both NauticStar and Everglades, including a Customer Service Excellence award for the latter; other brands represented include Yamaha, Bennington, Avid, Maverick, Hewes, Pathfinder and Cobia. Boaters Exchange is also a Yamaha Key Dealer and is Five Star Gold Certified. The dealership has been nationally recognized as a “Best for Vets Employer” by Military Times Magazine, while earning local recognition by Florida Today including “Best of Brevard” for boat sales and service, and “Best Watercraft Dealer.”
“We are also very excited to combine forces with a strong, well-respected dealership like Marine Connection to take Boaters Exchange to the next level, while serving a wider range of customers in Central Florida,” added Boaters Exchange founder Jerry Butz.
ABOUT MARINE CONNECTION Marine Connection is a Florida marine powerhouse now generating $100M+ in sales from nine locations including its corporate headquarters in West Palm Beach; Aventura; Miami; Vero Beach; Stuart; Fort Lauderdale; Islamorada; and its two new Boaters Exchange locations in Rockledge and New Smyrna Beach. In business since 1987, it has been under current ownership since 2010; has 100+ employees statewide; and has earned top achievements including the current #1 Dealer of the Year ranking by Boating Industry Magazine; #1 Cobia Dealer for 2021; #1 Overall Maverick Dealer for 2021; and Top Blackfin Dealer for 2021. For more information, visit www.MarineConnection.com
• More than 1,000 marine industry professionals were reunited at Dealer Week this December in Austin, Texas. Next week, Jan. 11-13, the conference will build on that success and bring it to teams inside the dealership with Dealer Week Online.
MINNEAPOLIS — More than 520 dealership personnel from across North America attended the Marine Retailers Association of America’s Dealer Week Conference and Expo in Austin, Texas, last month. The event, MRAA’s first live conference in more than 725 days, hosted 1,022 total attendees at the Austin Convention Center in the Live Music Capital of the World.
For the first time ever, the conference will span two years, however, as the education continues with Dealer Week Online Jan. 11-13. Dealers who attended the in-person conference will be able to attend the online event as part of their registration, and those who were unable to attend can register for online-only attendance at DealerWeek.com.
The in-person portion of Dealer Week was a four-day gathering designed to provide education and best practices to boat retailers. It successfully reunited dealers, educators, manufacturers, service providers, consultants and more to focus on current hot-button topics and pain points within the marine industry. The conference generated discussions around tactics and strategies to strengthen communication, improve timeliness and advance processes in the face of inventory and supply issues as well as a growing customer base — more than 400,000 being first-time boat buyers — to maintain the industry’s current momentum. It also featured an Industry Celebration that took advantage of the setting in Austin with live music that lasted late into the night.
Dealer Week Online will premiere online versions of all the sessions that were presented in Texas plus nine new workshops with live Q&As. Utilizing the same platform as Dealer Week 2020, when the event went totally virtual, Dealer Week Online will include interactive features, including the ability to schedule video-based meetings with fellow attendees, as well as a full online exhibit area. Following the 2020 event, many attendees reported that they were excited to return to in-person gatherings, but that there were many aspects of the online event they didn’t want to give up. With the option of in-person Dealer Week as well as Dealer Week Online, attendees can get the conference experience that best meets their needs.
For three consecutive years, backed by outstanding industry support and continued engagement from dealers across North America, the MRAA has innovated and reinvested in its annual Dealer Week Conference and Expo. The inaugural and reinvented Dealer Week event in Tampa, Fla., in 2019 set attendance records for an in-person MRAA event with more than 600 dealers and 400 exhibitor attendees. The challenges of 2020 forced a pivot to a virtual conference, where once again the industry proved its resiliency, as it showed up in force and record numbers. With no flights or hotel rooms to worry about, the 1,047 total dealer attendance figure smashed the previous record of 650 participants at an MRAA Annual Conference, representing more than a 61-percent increase, and surpassed the total attendance at the inaugural in-person Dealer Week in 2019 by 77 percent.
With an ongoing pandemic and COVID-19 variants emerging, the 2021 Dealer Week event also requires reinvention, as MRAA combines an in-person, four-day conference Dec. 6-9, in Austin, with a three-day Dealer Week Online event happening Jan. 11-13. The new format allows registered dealers of all size and comfort levels to participate in both portions of Dealer Week, giving more potential to learn from all the educational pathways and expert speakers.
Dealers that attended the in-person Dealer Week in Texas can attend Dealer Week Online for free. Registration remains open and is encouraged for those who didn’t make it to Austin. The show kicks off at 9 a.m. (CDT), Tuesday, Jan. 11. The virtual event also features all-new content on Thursday, Jan. 13. Register now!
MRAA, celebrating its 50th year in 2022, will return to Austin in December for its fourth official Dealer Week Conference & Expo. We hope you will join us for boating’s only event focused on dealer success.
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.
MINNEAPOLIS, January 5, 2022 — The Marine Retailers Association of the Americas, in honor of its 50th anniversary, announces the launch of a Year of Dealer Resources. During 2022, the MRAA will focus on a new topic each month and release benefits, education and resources via MRAA.com. Monthly updates will include a mix of resources available to members and non-members, new education, and tools from the MRAA archives.
The yearlong program is designed to be timely and highlight the various ways MRAA can serve marine dealers across North America. In January, the year kicks off with a focus on resources related to Employee Development.
“We wanted to celebrate our 50th Anniversary by doing what MRAA does best: Helping dealers find success,” says Matt Gruhn, MRAA President. “This monthly program delivers very timely and very relevant education and resources to boat dealers, through MRAA’s events, such as Dealer Week (in-person and online), and programs like Dealership Certification, Training ‘N’ Tactics and our Mastermind Groups, as well as educational curriculums like that found in our Continuous Certification program. Our focus on a monthly theme gives us the platform to focus intently on the most impactful issues our dealers are faced with throughout the year, and it also allows us to showcase just how much educational content MRAA has to offer in our quest to help dealership teams learn, implement and grow their business.”
Industry studies, dealer surveys and direct feedback have revealed that workforce is a major concern for retailers, which is why it is the perfect topic to focus on in January. Dealers of all sizes need help with training methods, managing burnout, retaining quality employees and workforce enhancement. It also fits perfectly with the theme of Dealer Week Online, Jan. 11-13. The online conference spotlights employee development through the sharing of critical insights, trends and strategies within three specific pathways (Leadership, Sales and Marketing and Service & Parts) to help dealerships thrive in 2022. The virtual event is free to attendees of Dealer Week 2021 in Austin, Texas, and still open to new online-only registrations as well.
February’s subject of Lead Generation and Nurturing is well-timed because dealers need to make it abundantly clear they’re open for business, in spite of a lack of inventory and nearly empty showrooms. An influx of first-time boat buyers accompanied by massive industry demand prove that an investment in follow-up and nurturing is critical for customer retention. March will focus on Service Efficiency and, in particular, Repair Event Cycle Times. MRAA will share with dealers the resources they can implement to become more proficient in service. The first quarter of 2022 concludes with April’s theme of Pre-Owned Boat Buying and Selling, a topic that can help dealers put units on their showroom floor, appease customer demands and add to their bottom line.
The 2022 MRAA Year of Dealer Resources Schedule* •January: Employee Development •February: Lead Generation & Nurturing •March: Service Efficiency / RECT •April: Pre-Owned Boat Buying & Selling •May: Recruiting, Hiring and Onboarding •June: Customer Experience •July: Adaptability / Change Management •August: Service, Parts & Accessories •September: Dealership Operations and Facilities •October: Employee Retention •November: Marketing •December: Dealership Financials * Subject to change based upon market trends / conditions
“Between all the benefits, education and tools we’ve released over the years, we understand it can also be somewhat daunting to sort through,” says Mike Davin, MRAA Brand Director. “As we continue to release new resources in 2022, the themed months give us an opportunity to highlight what’s available in a more digestible way while also signaling to dealers that we’ve got relevant resources on a specific topic.”
MRAA will incorporate the monthly themes into its marketing and social media plans for 2022, presenting the content to both non-members and members to give them an opportunity to grow and strengthen their businesses. Resources available to both non-members and members will be delivered in the form of case studies, guides, downloadable one-pagers, data shares, exclusive new webinars, focused blogs and content, partner contributions, January’s Dealer Week Online and past conference recordings, Certification tools and templates, TNT videos, member benefits and other unique offerings.
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.
MINNEAPOLIS, January 4, 2022 — The Marine Retailers Association of the Americas has hired Wendy Mackie as its Director of Workforce and Foundation Development, appointing her in the lead role in operating the MRAA Educational Foundation, a 501(c)(3) charitable organization founded to provide financial support for education, training and professional development in the recreational marine industry.
Mackie brings to the MRAA a long history of workforce development expertise. Wendy’s roots are in youth and workforce development, non-profit leadership, alternative education and entrepreneurship. In 2006, Wendy aligned her work with the Rhode Island Marine Trades Association centering her work around the creation and implementation of best practice industry training programs for youth and new workers. In 2014, Wendy spearheaded the development of the Composites Alliance of Rhode Island to better serve the industry’s manufacturing sector and in 2018, the MRAA, along with its partners at the National Marine Manufacturers Association, turned to Mackie to author a marine industry strategy for growing its workforce. That “10+1” strategy included local, state and national tactics businesses can use to strengthen their workforce, and the “Plus 1” represented a recommendation that the industry appoint someone to lead the marine industry’s national workforce efforts.
“The hiring of Wendy Mackie is that strategy coming to life,” says Matt Gruhn, President of MRAA. “For years, our members have struggled to find, hire and develop their workforce – the most critical part of their business. Wendy Mackie brings the highest level of expertise in workforce development that our industry knows, and we are thrilled to have her join our team.”
The board of directors at the MRAA Educational Foundation, which is a separate entity from the MRAA trade association, has endorsed Mackie’s comprehensive workforce development plan, which calls for a focus on the development of regional sectoral partnerships to address our industry’s most pressing demand-driven workforce challenges, like the engine technician shortage. The creation of these community-based coalitions mirrors best practice programming currently being supported by state and national funding streams. By instituting this model in regions across the country, the boating industry will have access to the workforce they need, where they need it, when they need it.
“The key,” according to Mackie, “is to tap into the dedicated workforce development funding streams in each area to ensure the training programs developed are sustainable. The money is there; we just need to show there is demand for the workers and that our industry’s employers will hire them. That’s where MRAA’s focus on this front will give us the platform to be successful.”
“Wendy understands the nation’s workforce development system and the needs of the marine industry,” says Jeff Siems, president of the MRAA Educational Foundation. “Our industry is going to benefit from her ability to connect the two. The MRAA Educational Foundation Board is thrilled to have Wendy leading the workforce development charge for our industry.”
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 MRAA Educational Foundation The MRAA Educational Foundation, a not-for-profit 501(c)3 corporation, was founded in 2004 to provide financial support for education, training and professional development in the recreational marine industry. The Educational Foundation is dedicated to the growth of the marine industry through workforce development. For more information or to donate to support the foundation’s mission, visit MRAA.com/foundation.
MINNEAPOLIS — Dec. 22 — The Marine Retailers Association of the Americas is pleased to announce the addition of eight marine businesses as Partner Members during 2021.
Through the support of our Partner Members, the MRAA is able to deliver on our mission to provide education, tools and resources to marine dealers, and help fuel the success of the industry. Marine manufacturers, suppliers and service providers, through Partner Membership, commit to aligning their brands with the programs and opportunities that MRAA works to provide the dealer body. Support from these Partners allows the Association to expand its offerings and create a positive, long-term impact in MRAA members’ business.
MRAA welcomes these eight new members to the association, who deliver skilled proficiency in a variety of industry disciplines:
“We are very thankful to have accomplished so much in 2021, and much of that success can be attributed to all of our partners,” said Allison Gruhn, Director of Business Development. “We appreciate their combined support and the industry expertise they deliver to our dealer members and the industry as a whole. This recent list of new Partner Members has helped MRAA build a strong network of support in 2021, and will continue to drive our initiatives in 2022 for us to help dealers find greater success.”
Visit www.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.
Hagadone Marine Group announced that it has hired Bob Holloway as its Director of Sales. Bob was previously the Sales Manager of MarineMax in Dallas, Texas. The announcement comes at an incredibly exciting time for us as we head into our Annual Coeur d’Alene Boat Expo in January 2022, as well as for when we open our new Vertical Quick Launch Dry Stack Facility in April 2022.
With an impressive track record of over 30 years in the boating industry, Bob will bring extensive knowledge as well as personal and technical sales qualities that will be a great asset to our dynamic Sales Team.
“We are thrilled to be welcoming Bob to our strong, spirited team,” says Craig Brosenne, President of Hagadone Marine Group. “The appointment of Mr. Holloway in our Sales Director role represents a key part of our overall strategy to provide a strong customer focus. I truly look forward to working closely with Bob and taking our company to the next level.”
Bob will be overseeing our Sales Operations, including designing plans to meet sales targets, developing and cultivating relationships with our customers, evaluating costs and pricing, among many other items. Bob has recently relocated to Coeur d’Alene, Idaho from Dallas, Texas. Together with his wife, Kathy, they have four grown children: Wally, Danny, Nate and Gage. Outside of work, Bob enjoys jeeping, overlanding, camping and travel. His favorite quote comes from Russian writer Leo Tolstoy:“Truth, like gold, is to be obtained not by its growth…but by washing away from it all that is not gold.”
“I am excited to be joining one of the truly greatest dealerships in the industry,” says Bob. “I look forward to bringing a fresh point of view to Hagadone Marine Group. Let’s have some fun and move some product!”
His official start date was Monday, December 6. Contact information, Email: bholloway@hagadonemarine.com; Office Phone Number: (208) 765-2300, EXT 7504
About Hagadone Marine Group For anyone who loves the water, Hagadone Marine Group brings that dream alive. We maximize the fun on the water and minimize the hassle factor. Everything can be provided – with a smile. Follow our adventures! The Hagadone Marine Center, located on Blackwell Island on Lake Coeur d’Alene, is the largest on-water boat dealership in CDA, Spokane and the Pacific Northwest region. We offer the finest new and used yachts, pontoon boats, sport boats and wakeboarding boats in the Inland Northwest. Reach out to our team today at: 208.664.8274 / 866.525.3232; info@hagadonemarine.com
Customers Report Increased Sales, Time Savings and Improved Customer Experiences
FORT LAUDERDALE, FL (November 10, 2021) — Boatyard, the first customer experience platform designed for the marine industry, announced today the launch of a new suite of tools for its best-in-class customer experience software.
Boatyard’s newest features includes photo and video sharing, one-click status updates, integration with Outlook and Google Calendar and a fully-integrated web application to enable boat owners to place service requests 24/7 from any of its customers’ websites.
“Our goal is to eliminate unnecessary administrative work for service teams, while creating remarkable customer experiences for boat owners,” says Nathan Heber, CEO of Boatyard (pictured), “The release of our new dashboard and web app is the next step on our mission to transform the boat service experience.”
During Boatyard’s successful private beta, early users of the new platform saved an average of ten minutes per service order. Boat owners can now request service appointments, share scheduling preferences, securely submit payment info and upload photos and videos directly from the website of any boat dealer or marine businesses.
The web app is fully-integrated with Boatyard’s customer experience platform, so team members are immediately notified when a new service request is received. From there, it only takes a couple of clicks to send status updates, chat with a customer, share photos and videos, schedule service, assign jobs to team members, or process payments.
“Boatyard’s new platform has a lot of added functions that make our jobs easier and more profitable,” says Andrew Armao, Parts and Service Director for MarineMax Miami, “It has instant status updates, which take less than two seconds to send, and the upload capability of photos and videos. And the messaging capabilities of this new platform are amazing. Use it, no excuses!”
Boatyard offered a special Innovators Circle rate during the official platform unveiling at Dealer Week, The MRAA Conference and Expo.
ABOUT BOATYARD Headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Boatyard is the world’s first on-demand boat services marketplace. Boat owners can order fuel delivery, boat cleaning, service, captains, and more from qualified, vetted marine service providers through Boatyard’s award-winning mobile app. Boatyard’s Software-as-a-Service platform provides marine businesses with the digital tools to manage their service requests and deliver remarkable experiences to their customers. Boatyard currently services thousands of boat owners in the U.S. The company’s B2B customers and partners include industry leaders such as MarineMax, Lauderdale Marine Center, BoatUS, SeaTow, Madison Marine, VanDutch, and more. For more information, please visit www.boatyard.com.
Confident boaters use their boats more, have a better owner experience and are safer, too, says BoatUS Foundation
ANNAPOLIS, Md., December 14, 2021 – The nonprofit BoatUS Foundation for Boating Safety and Clean Water can help boat manufacturers, dealers and marina operators improve the customer experience and help make boating safer for everyone. A leader in boating safety for more than 40 years, the Foundation offers the nation’s only free online boating safety education course at BoatUS.org/Free.
Thirty-five states have approved the Foundation course to meet their education requirements for boat operators. The course is also approved by the National Association of Boating Law Administrators (NASBLA) to meet the requirement for mandatory boating safety education and is recognized by the U.S. Coast Guard. It goes above and beyond the minimums set for boating safety education – no matter which state, everyone gains by taking a course.
“It’s simple,” says BoatUS Foundation Director of Education Amanda Suttles-Pérez. “When boat owners are confident in their boating abilities, they have great on-the-water experiences and grow their passion for the water. Our free course builds confidence and makes our waters safer for everyone.”
Suttles-Pérez urges manufacturers, boat dealers, marinas and any boating businesses to share the Foundation online course link, BoatUS.org/Free, in customer communications and on social media.
“It will help grow the next generation of safe boat operators,” she added. More than 2 million boaters have taken the free BoatUS Foundation online course since 1997.
AUSTIN, TX December 9, 2021 — The Marine Retailers Association of the Americas today named this year’s marine industry Great Dealerships to Work For at Dealer Week 2021, the association’s annual conference and expo.
Twenty-one dealerships qualified for recognition by earning an overall score of 90 percent or better on the Marine Industry Certified Dealership Program’s annual Employee Satisfaction Survey. Administered anonymously through the MRAA, the survey asks employees of Certified Dealerships to answer 32 ranking questions about overall satisfaction regarding their unique dealership’s customer relations, employee satisfaction, leadership, management and reputation.
“Earning the acknowledgement as a Great Dealership to Work is no simple task. It means all these dealerships unequivocally invest in their employee’s satisfaction levels to cultivate an environment that is both motivating and morale boosting,” says Liz Keener, MRAA Certification Manager. “This past season produced many unforeseen challenges that required dealership personnel to meet extremely high consumer demands in spite of industry supply shortages and delays.”
Of those participating, 21 dealerships qualified to be named a Great Dealership to Work For. The 2021 recipients are:
1.Breath’s Boats & Motors, in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi*
2.Tracker Marine Boating Center, in Mitchell, South Dakota
3.Regal & Nautique of Orlando, in Orlando, Florida*
4.Clark Marine, in Manchester, Maine
5.Off Shore Marine, in Branchville, New Jersey*
6.Wakeside Marine, in Elkhart, Indiana
7.3A Marine Service, in Hingham, Massachusetts
8.All Seasons Marine Works, in Rowayton, Connecticut*
9.Tracker Marine Boating Center, Memphis, Tennessee
10.Mount Dora Boating Center, in Mount Dora, Florida
11.Desmasdon’s Boatworks, in Pointe Au Baril, Ontario*
12.Tracker Marine Boating Center, in North Houston, Texas
13.Action WaterSports, in Fort Worth, Texas
14.Tri-State Marine, in Deale, Maryland
15.River City Boat Sales, in Aurora, Oregon
16.Tracker Marine Boating Center, in Monroe, Louisiana
17.Action WaterSports in Mesa, Arizona
18.Buckeye Sports Center, in Peninsula, Ohio*
19.Tracker Marine Boating Center, in Harlingen, Texas
20.Tracker Marine Boating Center, in Longview, Texas
21.Tracker Marine Boating Center, in Islamorada, Florida*
* Denotes recipients/locations earning back-to-back (2020/2021) recognition
“This year especially in such a challenging workforce market, it’s evident that more Certified Dealers are committed to enhancing their employee satisfaction levels through the establishment of strong employee processes,” says Matt Gruhn, MRAA President. “We are inspired by the tactics these leading dealerships have used to nurture great cultures to become our industry’s greatest dealerships to work for.”
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.
MINNEAPOLIS, MN, December 4, 2021 — Today, the Marine Retailers Association of the Americas announced the launch the MRAA Certified Pre-Owned Boat Program, backed by industry partners Boat History Report and Titan Certified.
Over the past two years, the MRAA consulted with marine industry dealers, manufacturers and suppliers across the United States and Canada to create the MRAA Certified Pre-Owned Boat Program and help dealers capitalize on the $10 billion pre-owned boat market. The program’s criteria and deliverables offer marine dealers across North America proven processes and tools to help them overcome the obstacles in the pre-owned market. The MRAA Certified Pre-Owned Boat Program seeks to help dealers grow their pre-owned boat business and increase sales while providing greater confidence in their boat-buying and selling processes.
“The MRAA Certified Pre-Owned Boat Program offers a proven approach to delivering confidence in the boats that dealers buy and sell,” says Matt Gruhn, MRAA President. “Available to all dealers across North America and eligible for the majority of boat brands on the market, the MRAA Certified Pre-Owned Boat Program helps dealerships strengthen a much-needed profit center in their business, establish superior levels of trust with new and existing customers, and enjoy peace of mind at each step along the way.”
The MRAA Certified Pre-Owned Boat Program outlines, for dealers, a five-part analysis of each boat. It begins with age and manufacturing certification eligibility — the boat must be less than 10 years old and must have been originally Certified by the National Marine Manufacturers Association. Then, MRAA produced an all-new, comprehensive 130-point inspection form, offered in both hard copy and digital format. The inspection must demonstrate that the boat does not have any required repairs necessary.
If the boat passes those checkpoints, MRAA engages its two partners — Boat History Report and Titan Certified — to offer third-party validation of the quality and condition of the boat. Boat History Report provides an in-depth review of the history of the vessel, and in order to qualify for MRAA Certified Pre-Owned Boat status, the boat’s history must show “no negative incidences.” And the core of the program engages Titan Certified, which conducts a thorough fluid analysis, or DNA “blood test,” analyzing fluid samples from the engine and transmission to determine if they each independently achieve the “pass,” “fail,” or “pass with fluid change” designation. By achieving a “pass” or “pass with fluid change” designation, the boat becomes an MRAA Certified Pre-Owned Boat and is awarded a 55-hour or three-month, Limited Guarantee.
“The MRAA Certified Pre-Owned Boat Program establishes industry benchmarks within the pre-owned boat market to help dealers differentiate their pre-owned inventory and give them the ability to capture more business,” says Jason Walz, MRAA Director of Programs. “The trusted, third-party verification and approval process offers a win-win, providing dealers with an optimal program to find greater confidence and profitability in their pre-owned business, while offering customers peace of mind in the buying process, knowing they are working with a dealer that engages this proven MRAA Certified Pre-Owned Boat process.”
The new program has an initial start-up fee of $215 for enrollees, which includes fluid testing materials and supplies. MRAA Certified Dealers and members receive reduced rates for per boat/engine testing costs, but even non-members can participate for less than $300 per boat and one engine.
MRAA Dealer Week 2021 attendees can visit the MRAA Certified Pre-Owned Pavilion (booth #3060) featuring Boat History Report (booth #3060A) and Titan Certified (booth #3060B) at the in-person event Dec. 6-9, in Austin, Texas.
For more detailed information, complete pricing, warranty options and to enroll in the program, visit www.CPOBoats.com, or contact Jason Walz at 315-256-2878 or jason@mraa.com.
About MRAA Certified Pre-Owned Boat Program The MRAA Certified Pre-Owned Boat Program is owned and operated by MRAA Dealer Solutions, LLC, a subsidiary of the Marine Retailers Association of the Americas. Through a licensing agreement, the Marine Retailers Association of the Americas provides MRAA Dealer Solutions and the MRAA Certified Pre-Owned Boat Program with marketing and staffing support.
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 Titan Certified Formed in 1996, Titan Certified of Bellingham, Washington, has developed, for all industries, the ability to economically certify a vehicle that will comply with ASTM/OEM standards. We are the founder and leader in used vehicle lab testing for the automotive industry, with over 800,000 vehicles tested in the United States and over 20,000 internationally. Titan Certified Pre-Owned Testing Programs are the only programs in the United States and Canada that precisely determine the “real time” internal condition of an engine and transmission. For more information, call 360-334-9350; titancertified.com
About Boat History Report Boat History Report is the leading provider of boat background data and information, serving used boat buyers, sellers, dealers/brokers, marine surveyors, law enforcement and finance and insurance companies. Founded in 2005 and based out of Florida, Boat History Report has amassed over 120 million unique records and more than 1.4 million significant negative events. On average, Boat History Report finds that 1 in 17 used boats has a significant negative event in its history — a startling statistic that reinforces the importance of having this information. As the most trusted resource for watercraft history information, Boat History Report helps its clients make better lending and purchasing decisions and has become an essential step in the used boat buying process. For more information, please visit BoatHistoryReport.com or email us at info@boathistoryreport.com.
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