To be or not to be — in a boat show? It’s a tough question for many dealers when viewed in light of costs and inventory issues. But neither Covid, the weather or inflation headlines are keeping crowds from the winter boat shows, and dealers who may be taking a pass on their local events might have reason to reconsider.
Virtually every show so far has seen the return of enthusiastic attendees who are eager to experience the creative ways managers and dealers are filling their displays with products and a variety of other experiences. Here are some examples.
Minneapolis
Minnesota may have been in a deep freeze, but the Jan. 20-23 Minneapolis Boat Show wrapped up with more than 21,000 attendees ignoring the ice and snow. In addition, many dealers reported continued strong sales and solid leads from face-to-face time with serious prospects.
St. Petersburg
Held on the same dates but in a much warmer location, the St. Petersburg Power and Sailboat Show was drew steady crowds to the city waterfront. Space in a 40,000-square-foot accessory tent was sold out for equipment displays, and hundreds of boats were displayed on land and in the water on an extensive dock system installed for the show. The move from its traditional early-December dates to mid-January proved popular.
Seattle
All eyes turn to tomorrow’s opening of the Seattle Boat Show, the largest show on the West Coast and celebrating its 75th anniversary. The outlook is that it will also rack up big success as it returns to an in-person format.
The show is staged in two locations: the Lumen Field Event Center and the Port of Seattle’s Bell Harbor Marina. The latter site replaces Chandler’s Cove because it’s closer to Lumen for the convenience of attendees.
A trademark of the Seattle show is the extensive program of boating and fishing seminars, the largest such lineup in the industry. However, this year there’s a new, industry-first format for the more than 70 scheduled seminars.
First, all of the seminars continue to be free, but this year, every seminar will also be recorded and made available after the show, on demand, in a new Seminar Library. Anyone who can’t attend the seminars they desire will be able to watch them from the comfort of home. The library will be available for three months after the show. A $99 seminar ticket package (including multiday admission and other incentives) grants unlimited access to the library.
The Seattle show runs through Feb. 12 and will feature such special events as Dogs on Deck, the Long Putt Challenge, Sails and Ales, Career Day, History of Boating in the Pacific Northwest, an Uncorked wine fest and more.
Miami
Boating is all about the experience, and show managers across the country have been adding experiential features to their event formats. The Discover Boating Miami International Boat Show (Feb. 16-20) will tie up in five locations this year, including its return to the renovated Miami Beach Convention Center and adjacent Pride Park.
The Pride Park site will boast the new “Progressive Boat Show Experience” featuring a collection of experiential lifestyle activities, live entertainment, innovative cuisine, educational seminars and a marine accessory pavilion.
Examples include:
• AquaZone, boasting a 40,000-gallon freshwater pool for demos, hands-on testing, contests and prizes
• Charged! Electric Pavilion, featuring electric propulsion, battery powered boats and similar products
• Wake Sports Experience, with professional wakeboarders and wake surfing simulators, and more
Fox Sports will produce a one-hour special about the Miami show for television audiences across the country. In addition to the convention center and Pride Park sites, in-water portions of the show will be at Sea Isle Marina, One Herald Plaza, Museum Park Marina and IGY Yacht Haven Grande at Island Gardens.
Boat shows are back, boaters are attending, dealers are finding creative ways to build exhibits, and organizers are adding pizzaz to put exhibitors face to face with thousands of customers and prospects. It’s a good time to be in a show.
