David Gee

By David Gee The other day I was talking with a friend of mine in the boating industry, and we were just kind of ruminating and reflecting on how lucky we are to be able to find “romance” in what we do. How many people get to work in a business they are so passionate about, and that basically sells ...

By David Gee The good news is The New York Times recently ran a glowing article called The Boat Business Is Booming. You might have seen it. They interviewed dealers (including Quality Boats; Boating Industry 2019 Top 100 Dealer of the Year) who report sales are up in every category, highlighting the fact many boats are going to first-time buyers. ...

By David Gee A colleague who works as the editor at a sister publication recently went boat shopping to replace an aging pontoon at the family lake cabin. Since we are all hungry for news about “what it’s like out there” I thought I would share some of the anecdotes from his experience at the first dealer he went to. ...

By David Gee Working remotely isn’t new. But being forced into it in such widespread numbers, and so suddenly, is. “And we are being pushed either over, or right straight through, that learning curve,” says Dr. Mark Mortensen, an associate professor of organizational behavior at INSEAD. “But in all fairness, the technology is not new. I have been studying remote ...

By David Gee The National Association of Manufacturers released a survey today of its member companies on the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak to manufacturers. The survey was conducted in the field from Feb. 28 to March 9. The 558 respondents were asked about effects to their supply chain and operations, their financial expectations and their emergency response plans. More ...

By David Gee While doing interviews for an upcoming Market Trends story on outboards, we caught up with Tracy Crocker, president, BRP Marine Group, at the Miami International Boat Show. The following is an unedited transcript of that interview. Boating Industry: Retail sales for outboards increased for the eighth straight year in 2019, with unit sales reaching a 13-year high. ...

By David Gee In the next issue of the magazine, we will be running a Market Trends piece on outboards. We don’t want to steal any of the thunder from that story, but we did gather some good interviews. And since we don’t have the space to include the complete interviews in the magazine, we thought we would feature some ...

By David Gee Cool products, cool people, cool place and warm weather. That is, or was, the 2020 Progressive Insurance Miami International Boat Show. And five days, 100,000 people, and lots of sales later, it has successfully concluded. There were some preview events last Wednesday, but for the media, Thursday is the big day. Myself, Boating Industry managing editor Adam ...

By David Gee It’s on. The Miami International Boat Show has officially begun. Or to be more accurate, the Progressive Insurance Miami International Boat Show, presented by West Marine, is underway. 2020 marks the 79th year of the five-day show which occupies an important part of the boating industry’s annual calendar. Speaking of the calendar, it doesn’t hurt to hold ...

By David Gee “Even if you have all the money in the world to spend, the best way to market your business is through social media,” says no less an authority than Sir Richard Branson, world-renowned entrepreneur, and the man once named world’s top social media CEO. “Social media works because it puts products and information in front of the ...