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Builders tailor boats to boater needs
Builders tailor boats to boater needs
By Steve Waters | South Florida Sun-Sentinel November 2, 2008Fort Lauderdale - Give the customers what they want is a theme of the boat companies at the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show that have thrived despite the country's shaky economy.
At Hell's Bay Boatworks, which has three models on display at the Broward County Convention Center, that means building each of its high-performance skiffs with the exact layout and features that suits the angler's style of fishing.
Chris Peterson, the president of the Titusville company, said a customer wanted the small console of the company's 14 1/2-foot Devilray, which was designed as a tender for a sportfisherman, put in the 18-foot Boca Grande model because after hooking a big tarpon, the customer liked to fight the fish from the center of the boat, rather than the bow. No problem.
"Since I've been building boats the past two years, no two have been the same," Peterson said, although he is currently building a pair of identical skiffs that will match the color of the large Garlington that will carry them.
Cigarette Racing Team designed its new 49 Grand Sport Diesel for boaters big and small. The boat features twin 600-horsepower Cummins diesel engines with No. 6 drives and will go 65 mph.
"We have customers that still want the speed, they still want the performance, but they want to bring their family," Cigarette spokeswoman Erika Braver said.
The first stern drive Cigarette, the boat is making its debut at Bahia Mar Yachting Center at the boat show, which runs through Monday. It has ultra-leather upholstery, a roomy, deep cockpit and a cabin with an enclosed head, sink and shower.
Buying a brokerage boat at the boat show is a viable option for some. Mike Dickman, the director of marketing for HMY at Harbour Towne Marina in Dania Beach, has 29 boats 43-100 feet at Bahia Mar, 24 of them used and attractively priced.
"In the brokerage market, you get more flexibility than in the new-boat market. You've got a seller and a buyer," Dickman said, explaining that a seller might be willing to let a boat go at a lower price just to get rid of it, but a dealer has to get a minimum price for a new boat. "This is a good opportunity."
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The market is suffering now, good to see some who can roll with it.
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