Veteran industry trade association executive David Ray has announced he has handed over his top spot at the Marine Industry Association of Central Florida to a newly appointed executive director Cathy Case. But he won’t be disappearing from the action anytime soon.
“We are fortunate to have the talent of Cathy Case available now to take MIACF leadership,” Ray says. “For the foreseeable future, I will continue to oversee our association’s two boat shows we produce four times each year. And I’m certain MIACF will continue to grow and serve all its members well, too.”
Ray is widely recognized in the industry, particularly in state and regional associations across the country. From being a long-time participant in the National Marine Trades Council to developing successful boat shows, he’s been chalking up a record of accomplishments for nearly two decades.
More than 15 years ago he served as executive director of the Marine Industries Association of Florida. Meanwhile, a group of dealers in central Florida persuaded him to take on an additional task of leading and building up MIACF which, at that time, had no boat shows and little revenue. For years Ray concurrently served as head of both associations.
Under his watch, MIAF focused heavily on becoming recognized by Florida lawmakers as a strong industry voice, while consistently advocating before state regulatory agencies on issues from permitting to conservation. If that wasn’t enough, donning his MIACF cap, he began creating or expanding key boat shows for central Florida.
An existing Daytona show was first to be expanded into a major event. It now successfully runs twice a year, in January and September. About nine years ago, Ray created MIACF’s two big Orlando shows. The largest shows in central Florida, they are held in the Orlando Convention Center every March and August, and include nearly every major dealer from the middle of the state.
Case is expected to bring new energy and growth to MIACF. She has decades of association and leadership experience with a solid record of producing sustained revenue and membership in dynamic and changing markets.
With an extensive business background in association management and leadership development, she will focus on MIACF’s mission to elevate professionalism in the industry and increase awareness of boating’s economic impact to the public, and elected and regulatory officials at the local, state and federal levels.
“I look forward to the next era of MIACF to ensure the growth and success of the recreational boating industry, to support our members and be a thought leader for our local communities and the environment,” case says. “Our marine industry in central Florida is big and important, and we want to be sure that’s widely recognized everywhere.”
She emphasized the industry’s impact in Florida:
• a $4.1 billion annual economic impact in central Florida, including manufacturers and suppliers, sales and services, boating activities and business tax revenue
• more than 15,600 central Florida jobs: 10,276 direct jobs and 5,365 indirect
• 198,594 registered boats in central Florida
• more than 2.4 million central Floridians go boating each year
In typical show-manager fashion, Ray concluded the official announcement by reminding the industry the 2023 Orlando Boat Show will be held March 17-19 and Aug. 18-20 at the Orange County Convention Center. Forthcoming will be the announcement of dates for the two Daytona shows, one at the Daytona International Speedway in January and the other in September at the Ocean Center.
