With the International BoatBuilders’ Exhibition & Conference cancelled because of Hurricane Ian, organizers yesterday held the annual state-of-the-industry breakfast in a virtual format.
In opening remarks, director Anne Dunbar said the goal for this year’s show was straightforward.
“Our goal for IBEX 2022 was simple: to get the show back to normal after two challenging years,” she said.
More than 8,500 attendees were preregistered, and on the day the management team made the call to cancel the event, more than 80 percent of the show was set up. “It looked wonderful,” Dunbar said.
She explained that the safety of all involved left no choice but to cancel the show, adding: “We are the boating industry, and we are no strangers to weathering storms.”
National Marine Manufacturers Association president Frank Hugelmeyer laid out plans for the boating industry to maintain the momentum it has experienced during the past three years.
“We were in an extraordinary market with little to no competition for the consumer’s time and wallet,” he said. “That competition is back, and so is more uncertainty.”
Hugelmeyer said consumers have embarked on “revenge travel,” packing airports and resort destinations, attending sporting events and sending kids to sleepover camp. Market segments have been investing in campaigns to win back customers, and the boating industry must do the same.
“Boating, travel and hospitality are all down from highs seen earlier this year, as inflation, a volatile stock market and talk of a global recession have broke,” Hugelmeyer said.
However, he said some of things that were seen as negatives could put the boating industry in a better place moving forward. Supply-chain challenges were by no means a good thing, but they also kept boatbuilders from overproducing.
“Marine-dealer inventories remain fairly lean, signaling that pipelines are still being refilled and profit margins should hold,” he said. “We’ve still sold 160,000 new units in the first six months at retail, and we’re on track to sell another 1 million preowned boats.”
Hugelmeyer said that the key to moving forward is to continue to focus on expanding market share beyond the core audience. “The first crucial aspect is through our advocacy efforts where we’ve been focused on areas that will help the industry prepare for the future,” he said.
Those efforts include working closely with Congress and the Biden administration to ensure that boating is included in the actions to improve the country’s aging infrastructure. “Communities with waterways, marinas and boat ramps will be better-equipped to get more people on the water,” Hugelmeyer said.
Also on the political front, the NMMA’s efforts during the last two years came to fruition when the European Union and United Kingdom revoked the 25 percent retaliatory tariff on exports. And with most of the global supply of semiconductor chips manufactured in Taiwan, NNMA is supporting efforts to bolster U.S. production.
Hugelmeyer also addressed the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s proposal to protect right whales by imposing speed restrictions along the East Coast.
“The proposal would all but prevent boating during prime fishing season in the most popular waters along the entire Atlantic Seaboard,” Hugelmeyer said. “No boater wants endangered right whales harmed, and NOAA’s attempts are supported by our industry, but this untenable rule must be stopped.”
Another NMMA objective is to expand the industry’s market share through the Discover Boating campaign. “This work is important because we went into the pandemic with a 16 percent diverse market share, and two years later, despite all of our growth, we still have a 16 percent diverse market share,” Hugelmeyer said. “It’s evident that the industry is comfortable selling to the same already-captured audience, but this leaves money on the table because demographics show that we now live in a country that is 40 percent diverse.”
Hugelmeyer stressed the need to “reach the right audiences in the right places,” and Discover Boating has engaged a next generation that’s younger and more multicultural. Last year’s Miami International Boat Show was sponsored by Discover Boating, and this year, all NMMA-owned shows will be under the Discover Boating umbrella.
Hugelmeyer said Discover Boating typically has spent about $7 million a year on marketing. “Once our shows and their marketing and PR investments are under the Discover Boating umbrella, that triples to $20 million to $25 million annually, all focused on the Discover Boating brand,” he said. “This puts us on par with the Go RVing campaign.”
Hugelmeyer said this new direction will give the industry a “much bigger reach” than other segments in outdoor recreation.
In closing, Hugelmeyer praised the boating industry for its ability to work together.
“It’s something that’s sorely needed in the world these days, and we’ve played an extraordinary role in the health of our nation these past few years lifting up families,” he said. “We face headwinds, but considering the vital role we have played and continue to play, the future for recreational boating remains incredibly bright.”
