SailTime said it was included among Entrepreneur Magazine’s Top Global Franchises for 2017.
It is the fourth major honor in the last year for the fractional boat membership program, following its inclusion in the INC 500/5000 in August 2016, Entrepreneur’s recognition in 2017’s “10 Hottest Franchise Categories” in December 2016 and Entrepreneur’s “Franchise 500” in January 2017.
“Great things are happening in the sharing economy, so we’re very excited to be expanding SailTime’s footprint on the global stage,” SailTime CEO Todd Hess said in a statement. “We’ve had a strong presence in Australia for years now and are optimistic that SailTime bases will be coming to Europe soon.”
SailTime has 29 bases in the United States and five in Australia. This year, the company has set its sights on expansion in Europe, where it hopes to leverage its partnership with the French boatbuilder Beneteau.
The partnership provides SailTime franchisees with the opportunity to offer Beneteau boats for the membership and boat ownership programs. For Beneteau dealerships, the SailTime program allows sailing enthusiasts to try its sailing yachts through fractional ownership without the cost and time commitment of full boat ownership.
Last month, SailTime announced a new strategic alliance with the marine financing specialist LH-Finance. The partnership allows customers to finance purchases of boats from SailTime dealers using consumer loans that LHFinance issues.
“Partnerships with leaders in the marine industry like Beneteau and LH-Finance will help us open more SailTime bases around the world. We’re making it easier for people to purchase high-quality sailing yachts and make money on them through SailTime’s fractional membership program,” Hess said.
SailTime said Entrepreneur compiled the Top Global Franchise ranking by taking its annual Franchise 500 formula and adjusting it to give extra weight to international size and growth. Other areas the formula evaluated include costs and fees, franchisee support, brand strength, and financial strength and stability.
