February MSR reveals encouraging numbers

swadminJune 10, 2005

CHICAGO – Wholesale dollar sales of all boats were up 11.7 percent in January, 2005 compared to the same month the previous year, while unit boat shipments dropped 14.8 percent, based on the February Monthly Shipment Report released Wednesday by the National Marine Manufacturers Association.

Through February, dollar sales were up 11.4 percent while unit sales were down 7.6 percent. Dollar sales for the traditional powerboat segments (outboard, sterndrive, and inboard boats) fared even better; up 13.9 percent, while unit shipments declined slightly, by 0.2 percent. For the first two months of the year, dollar sales were up 12.2 percent and unit sales were up 1.4 percent.

“Paddlesport sales were down significantly during the first two months of the year,” said NMMA director of Industry Statistics and Research Jim Petru.“ Given the significant size of the category, this had a negative impact on overall sales. Looking at the traditional segments alone, high price cruisers were up 10 percent and inboard skiboats were up 16.7 percent, so overall this is an encouraging start to 2005.”

NMMA’s MSR tracks manufacturers’ shipments to dealers for both boats and outboard engines using a control group of boat and engine manufacturers. The 2005 boat control group represents about 77 percent of the overall boat marketplace while the 2005 outboard engine control group represents about 95 percent of the market. With this information, companies can measure how their sales are compared to the rest of the boat and engine manufacturers.