As boat builders and their suppliers hire more employees in an effort to ramp up production, they are contributing to a trend that is helping to lower the nation’s economic stress, according to an Associated Press article published today. Read more >>
For more than two weeks, the average price of regular gas in the U.S. has been dropping, according to USAToday.com. As of yesterday, the average price of a gallon of regular gas was $2.76, the newspaper reported in an article today, and some analysts are predicting it could drop further, perhaps even as low as this time last year, which was about 30 cents per gallon cheaper. Read more >>
Tags: Boating, Economy, gas prices, Memorial Day
I had a dream a few nights ago that I was working a boat show for a dealer. It’s not unusual for me to dream about work these days. When we’re on deadline, I often find myself trying to write articles or headlines in my sleep. It’s too bad the outcome is never as brilliant in the light of day. Read more >>
Tags: Marine Dealers, Top 100
It’s Monday, and I’m traveling to Elkhart, Ind., today to interview the top executives of Nautic Global Group: Bob Moran, Jim Orbik and Rick Gasaway. Last night, as part of my preparation, I visited its new corporate website, www.nauticglobal.com, and while I expect the article will ultimately be determined more by what I hear and see today and tomorrow than the brief overview of the company that was provided online, it made the right first impression. Read more >>
Tags: boat builders
A week ago, I was on the phone with Fred Pace, managing director of Destin, Fla.-based dealership Legendary Marine, who said something that surprised me. He’s seeing a return of first-time buyers in his local market place. Read more >>
One of the most popular topics of discussion in the industry this year seems to be Internet technology. Whether it’s SEO, mobile marketing, social networking or e-commerce, marine professionals want to know how to expand and improve their online efforts to drive efficiencies and increase sales in their businesses. Read more >>
When the Boating Industry team recently got into a conversation about how the industry is performing so far this year, there were some varying opinions. It turns out that we were each looking at the data to which we have access – from Spader Business Management and Info-Link Technologies Inc. – a little differently. Here are the conclusions we reached. Read more >>
I recently bought a new book, “The Mom & Pop Store: How the Unsung Heroes of the American Economy Are Surviving and Thriving.” Because I have two other books I have to finish before I start this one, I’ve contented myself for now with only reading the introduction, which has sent me down memory lane. Read more >>
This past Saturday was my five-year-old’s birthday party. Nine boys and their parents had pledged to join my husband, son and I for a two-hour romp at a warehouse full of inflatable slides, rock climbing walls and even a basketball court. Read more >>
A few weeks ago, a former boating industry executive contacted me, asking about the state of marine business in the U.S. He is a friend who left the United States a few years ago to take a position within a different division of his company based in another country. Since his e-mail, I’ve been thinking about how to answer him. Read more >>
