Tag: Boat

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Business

Boat maker Brunswick seeing massive demand as consumers develop into extra numerous, CEO says

Boat maker Brunswick seeing big demand as buyers become more diverse, CEO says

Boat maker Brunswick is rushing to keep up with demand as more and more people take an interest in boating, CEO David Foulkes said Friday.

The managing director told CNBC’s Jim Cramer that boat sales in Brunswick had risen in double digits for three consecutive quarters, adding that buyers were becoming increasingly diverse in terms of age, gender and race.

“The Freedom Boat Club now has 35% of its members women, which is a completely different participation in boating than it was a few years ago,” said Foulkes in a “Mad Money” interview, referring to the Brunswick member-only boating club acquired in 2019. “I think this is a very, very good time for us and for the industry as a whole.”

Braunschweig said on Thursday that first quarter boat sales were up 44% year over year. Boat sales, which accounted for a third of Brunswick business for the quarter, were up 12% from the pre-pandemic.

Foulkes said it marks the start of a new cycle for Brunswick, whose boat brands include Sea Ray, Bayliner and Boston Whaler. The $ 8.3 billion company also builds engines and other parts for watercraft.

Pandemic-time shutdowns spurred participation in outdoor activities as many Americans and people overseas looked for new ways to entertain themselves. More flexible labor trends also made it easier for many to spend time on the water outside of the weekends, adding to the value of a boat owner, Foulkes added.

Foulkes also said that dealer inventories in Brunswick were down about 41%, compounded by high demand in the US, European, Australian and New Zealand markets.

The company hired 1,000 more people in the last quarter. Foulkes noted that Brunswick would like to continue expanding its workforce as capacity in factories around the world.

“We believe it will be 2023 or 2024 before we can significantly rebuild that inventory, and we anticipate that we will be essentially in full wholesale production throughout the period, not just that historic retail demand but also to replenish our pipeline. ” all the time, “said Foulkes.

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World News

Extra Than 100 Migrants Are Feared Lifeless as Boat Capsizes in Mediterranean

More Than 100 Migrants Are Feared Dead as Boat Capsizes in Mediterranean

CAIRO – More than 100 migrants traveling to Europe are feared dead in a shipwreck off Libya, according to independent rescue groups.

The Libyan Coast Guard searched for the boat but could not find it due to limited resources, a service official said.

The humanitarian group SOS Méditerranée, which operates the rescue ship Ocean Viking, announced late Thursday that the capsized rubber boat, which originally carried around 130 people, had been sighted in the Mediterranean northeast of the Libyan capital Tripoli. The ship did not find any survivors, but the helpers were able to see at least 10 bodies near the wreck.

“We think of the life that has been lost and the families who may never be sure what happened to their loved ones,” the group said in a statement.

Migrant traffic has raised questions in the countries of the European Union and in Libya as to who is responsible for rescuing those at risk at sea.

SOS Méditerranée said the missing were expected to have died, adding to the 350 people who have drowned in the sea so far this year. She accused the governments of failing to conduct search and rescue operations.

In the years since the 2011 NATO-backed uprising, in which longtime Libyan leader Colonel Muammar el-Qaddafi was overthrown and killed, the war-torn country has become the dominant transit point for migrants escaping war and poverty in Africa and flee in the Middle East. Smugglers often pack desperate families on poorly equipped rubber boats that stop and sink on the dangerous Mediterranean route.

Eugenio Ambrosi, chief of staff of the International Organization for Migration, said in a tweet: “These are the human consequences of policies that fail to respect international law and the most basic humanitarian requirements.”

AlarmPhone, which provides a crisis hotline for migrants in need in the Mediterranean, said it had close contact with the distressed boat for almost 10 hours before it capsized.

A Libyan Coast Guard spokesman, Cmdr. Masoud Ibrahim Masoud said the service searched the sea for more than 24 hours, adding, “The waves were very rough.”

Mr Masoud said the Coast Guard received rescue alerts around noon on Wednesday from two different rubber boats in distress east of Tripoli. A patrol ship was dispatched immediately and rescued 106 migrants, including women and children, who had been on board one of the two boats.

Two bodies were also pulled out of the water near the capsized vessel. He said the coast guard ship finally returned to port so that rescued migrants could receive medical assistance.

In the meantime, the Libyan authorities have asked three merchant ships and the Ocean Viking to search for the other missing boat until the Libyan patrol ship can join them again.

In recent years the European Union has teamed up with the Libyan Coast Guard and other local groups to contain such dangerous crossings. However, right-wing groups say these guidelines are at the mercy of migrants to armed groups or imprisoned in miserable prisons where abuse occurs.

Categories
Business

Boat reveals are again and drawing large crowds amid strong demand

Boat shows are back and drawing big crowds amid robust demand

Queen of the Show from the Orlando Boat Show.

Source: Marine Industry Association of Central Florida (MIACF)

Boat shows are back!

For both new and avid boaters, boat shows are one of the most important ways customers connect with the boat market. Last year, many events were canceled by the pandemic and organizers turned to online platforms instead. However, personal events are experiencing a revival, giving visitors the opportunity to discover a variety of boat types, sizes, brands, and additional equipment.

As the boat shows return, organizers find they are attracting more than expected crowds. The trend could reflect the strong demand for boats that the industry has seen over the past year. In 2020, boat, ship product and service sales hit a 13-year high of $ 47 billion as people flocked to the water to safely enjoy the outdoors.

The Orlando Boat Show held a personal indoor event earlier this month after a year-long hiatus due to Covid concerns. The event, attended by 21 dealers and more than 70 manufacturers, drew the largest crowd in a decade. According to a press release, attendance increased 66% compared to the event in 2019.

David Ray, executive director of the Central Florida Marine Industry Association, which hosted the event, said the group was stunned by its success as it expected a 20% to 25% decline in 2019.

“This was the best show we’ve ever had,” said Glenn Adams, the yacht and ship broker for Boat Max USA, who attended the event. “We were expecting fewer visitors than our first show in a showroom in over a year, but this was not the case.”

The event had over 500 boats to choose from, and sales at the event exceeded dealer expectations, Ray said. He wouldn’t reveal any specific sales data.

15 shows are scheduled to take place this year, only two of which are virtual, including the Seattle Boat Show, according to DiscoverBoating.com.

The Seattle Boat Show took place in January with 218 business partners. The four day online event consisted of live and recorded seminars on boating and fishing. Usually their personal shows showed over 1,000 boats while their virtual event could only show around 600.

More than 5,200 households have paid to take part in the online show. By comparison, the 2020 in-person event drew more than 45,000 people.

George Harris, president and CEO of the Northwest Marine Trade Association, the organizer of the event, said virtual events will never replace the experience of a personal boat show.

“A boat is an emotional purchase for people. They want to see it, they want to touch it, they want to smell it,” Harris said in an interview. He said he hoped they could hold a face-to-face event next year.

The National Marine Manufacturer’s Association, the largest boat show manufacturer in the country, has canceled its winter and spring shows this year due to the pandemic. However, most of their shows took place last year before Covid hit in March, association spokeswoman Sarah Salvatori told CNBC in an email.

The boat show season usually takes place in the fall and winter to prepare boaters for the high season in the warmer months of spring and summer.

In a research report, Jefferies analyst Randal Konik said recent channel checks showed that consumer appetite for boats remains high. Traders are pledging to buy inventory and internet traffic trends are still growing faster than they were before the pandemic.