Grand Rapids show reports more than $15 million in sales
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – More than 30,000 people attended the 59th Grand Rapids Boat Show and were responsible for between $15 and $20 million in sales, according to a story in yesterday’s, Grand Rapids Press.
Sales have not been that good at the five-day show since the 1990’s, Henri Boucher, the show’s producer with Grand Rapids-based Showspan, told the newspaper.
Turnout was called “the best yet,” about 10 percent above last year’s traffic of 28,000 people, the newspaper said.
“I don’t think I’ve worked a show like this in four years,” Brian Gill of North Shore Marina of Spring Lake, which sold a 28-foot boat and a 37-footer during the show, said. “People are a little more secure than they were a year ago.”
A good economy for boat buying, with a favorable stock market and low interest rates, were among the reasons cited by exhibitors for the strong show, the newspaper reported.
About 80 percent of the visitors who came through his exhibit already were boat owners and looking at upgrades, the Grand Rapids Press said.
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