Dealer sentiment on current conditions improved slightly in March (41 versus 35 in February) but remained negative. The three- to five-year outlook was flat at 39, according to this month’s Pulse Report survey. A neutral outlook is 50.
Rates, affordability, tariffs and the economy remained key headwinds for boat dealers. One noted that he was “concerned about the status of the economy. Feel customers are holding back on purchasing major non-essential items at the moment.”
Again, dealers reported that new-boat inventory was higher than they prefer. In March, 62% of dealers reported new-boat inventory was “too high” compared with 3% who reported “too low.” In a more positive trend that started earlier in the year, many dealers reported that used-boat inventory was near optimal. Some 36% of dealers reported that used inventory was “too low” compared with 28% who responded “too high.”
One dealer said, “Our inventory is in pretty good shape, but the clock is ticking, so we are getting more uncomfortable each day. With earnings being reported for public companies, it seems like everyone is being affected by the economy. What will it take to get sales going again?”
For this month’s Pulse Report, Soundings Trade Only, Baird Research and the Marine Retailers Association of the Americas asked 89 retailers to assess recent trends in North America. More dealers reported retail declines (45%) in March than growth (27%).
One dealer noted “being aggressive and taking any deals that make any sense at all when a buyer is willing to buy.” Another said, “Retail traffic, sales, service and boat shows were far below our expectations for March. Seems like the hope we had in January is on hold. Last week of March is a bit better.”
When asked what was working regarding sales, the themes of hard work, patience and good communication came through in comments. One dealer said, “We are doing a weekly promotion by text message, and seeing it prompts customers to think about service on their boat, shoot us a text message with a question about the product being offered, or something else.” Another said that successful tactics included “being open seven days a week, staying in touch, social media outreach, events.”
Some respondents wondered if used-boat sales were happening because of economic challenges, saying: “Used seem much stronger earlier in the season than normal. Are these new-boat buyers opting to go a more affordable route?”
Other dealers also reported continuing challenges. “Rates and prices too high,” one said. Another said, “Still too much aged inventory in the pipeline. It is crushing margins and changing buyer behavior to shop by price. Manufacturer reorder-based promotions are not working.”
Yet another dealer said, “The majority of our customers, even the wealthier ones, are extremely cost-conscious of everything lately. It is not getting better even as we approach spring.”
The March survey also asked about customer engagement and retention. Dealers listed competing family priorities as the most common hurdle to customers using their boats. The next-highest percentage of responses was “lack of clear follow-up or retention strategy.”
To help retain boat-buying customers long-term, one dealer said his business needed a “more rigorous follow-up schedule and robust CRM system. Frankly, our sales team is not great at using it. We are working on it, but it is still far from satisfactory.” Another said, “more customer-appreciation events.”
Workforce shortages also remained prominent. One dealer said there’s a need to “increase the number of employees with quality candidates able to intentionally grow relationships with the customers. This is key in any sales position. Relationships. We’re currently facing challenges locating multiple candidates with such qualities in certain districts.”
