The Marine Retailers Association of the Americas’ recent The Future of Marine Retail webinar attracted 590 registrations and more than 400 attendees, showing strong interest in understanding and responding to the forces reshaping marine retail.
Led by MRAA president Matt Gruhn, the webinar explored the evolving boating marketplace and the adjustments dealerships may need to make to remain competitive. Webinar participants also engaged in a live question-and-answer session focused on the real-world obstacles facing marine retailers.
“Marine retail has reached an inflection point, a time when incremental adjustments are no longer enough,” Gruhn said in a press release. “Dealership leaders must look beyond the demands of day-to-day operations and begin thinking like architects of their businesses. That requires a shift in mindset and approach, a clear focus on the needs of the next generation of boaters, and the willingness to make transformational changes that protect the business today while building a stronger foundation for its future.”
The discussion reflected many of the themes influencing dealership decision-making, including how dealers can strengthen customer relationships, improve sales processes, leverage technology more effectively and identify new opportunities for growth. Opportunities to capture a larger share of the preowned market and provide buyers with a higher-quality purchase experience were two additional discussion points.
“The registration and attendance figures make this one of MRAA’s most successful webinars in recent years, but the bigger takeaway is what that level of engagement says about our industry,” marketing manager Gunnar Davies said in the release. “Retailers and other recreational boating stakeholders are actively seeking answers, guidance and meaningful conversations around the challenges and opportunities currently reshaping marine retail.”
MRAA said many themes discussed in the webinar relate to the educational content at its annual Dealer Week conference, scheduled for Dec. 6-9 in Tampa, Fla.
A recording of the webinar is available here.
