CHICAGO – Of the100 marine dealerships recently named to Boating Industry magazine’s “2008 Top 100 Dealers” list, nearly 70 percent (69 out of 100) were Marine Industry Certified Dealerships, the National Marine Manufacturers Association reported in a release this week.
“The fact that 69 dealerships out of the ‘Top 100’ selected were Certified is a real testament to the strength and endurance of the program,” said Phil Keeter, president of the Marine Retailers Association of America and vice president of Marine Certification Inc. “The basic processes behind the Marine Industry Dealership Certification program, in many cases, is what allowed many of these dealerships to become ‘Top 100’ dealerships in the first place. We’re elated by this news, and we’d like to congratulate all the dealerships named to Boating Industry’s ‘Top 100,” in particular those that have gone above and beyond by voluntarily participating in the Dealership Certification program.”
Marine Industry Certified Dealerships selected as part of the Boating Industry 2008 Top 100 Dealers include:
Arrowhead Yacht Club & Marina, Ketchum, Okla.
Austin Boats and Motors Inc., Lakeway, Texas
B&E Marine, Michigan City, Ind.
Baert Marine Inc., Middleton, Mass.
Basa’s Marine Inc., Bolingbrook, Ill.
Boat Town Inc., Austin, Texas
Boaters Exchange, Rockledge, Fla.
Bosun’s Marine Inc., Mashpee, Mass.
BMC Boats, Longwood, Fla.
Buckeye Marine, Bobcaygeon, Ontario
Candlewood East Marina Club, Brookfield, Conn.
Colorado Boat Center, Loveland, Colo.
Comstock Yacht Sales & Marina, Brick, N.J.
Crowe Marine Inc., Eatonton, Ga.
D&R Boatworld, Green Brook, N.J.
Dry Dock Marine Center Inc., Angola, Ind.
Erickson Marine, Hastings, Minn.
Fischer Marine Boat Sales & Yacht Brokerage, Fort Myers, Fla.
Galati Yacht Sales, Anna Maria, Fla.
Galey’s Marine, Bakersfield, Calif.
Gone Fishin’ Marine Inc., Dixon, Calif.
Gordy’s Lakefront Marine Inc., Fontana, Wis.
Hall Marine Group, Lake Wylie, S.C.
Hampton Watercraft & Marine, Hampton Bays, N.Y.
Hardin Marine Arrowhead, Lake Arrowhead, Calif.
Hobby Lobby Marine, Toms River, N.J.
Hoffmaster’s Marina Inc., Woodbridge, Va.
Irish Boat Shop, Harbor Springs, Mich.
JOA Marine, Marietta, Ga.
Kelly’s Port, Osage Beach, Mo.
Lake Union Sea Ray, Seattle, Wash.
Lakeside Marine Inc., Lakeside, Ohio
Legendary Marine Inc., Destin, Fla.
Lockwood Marine Inc., Shellman Bluff, Ga.
Lynnhaven Marine, Virginia Beach, Va.
M&P Mercury Sales Ltd., Burnaby, British Columbia
Marine Connection Inc., West Palm Beach, Fla.
Mount Dora Boating Center & Marina, Mount Dora, Fla.
Newport Boats, Corona, Calif.
Oak Hill Marina Inc., Arnolds Park, Iowa
Parker Boat Company Inc., Orlando, Fla.
Port Harbor Marine, South Portland, Maine
Pride Marine Group, Bracebridge, Ontario
Prince William Marine Sales Inc., Woodbridge, Va.
Quality Boats of Clearwater Inc., Clearwater Fla.
Rambo Marine, Hazel Green, Ala.
Rayburn’s Marine World Ltd., Kelowna, British Columbia
Reed’s Marine, Delavan, Wis.
Russell Marine, Alexander City, Ala.
Russo Marine, Medford, Mass.
Sea Ray of Cincinnati, Louisville and Lexington, Cincinnati, Ohio
Seattle Boat Co., Seattle Wash.
Shipyard Marine, Green Bay, Wis.
Short’s Marine Inc., Millsboro, Del.
Silver Lake Marine Inc., Silver Springs, N.Y.
Skyline Marina, Orillia, Ontario
Slalom Shop Boats & Yachts, Lewisville, Texas
South Austin Marine, Austin, Texas
South Shore Marine Service, Huron, Ohio
Spring Brook Marina, Seneca, Ill.
Strong’s Marine LLC, Mattituck, N.Y.
SunDance Marine Inc., Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
Texas Marine, Beaumont, Texas
The Sail & Ski Centers, Austin, Texas
The Sportsman, San Benito, Texas
3 Marine Center of Indiana Inc., Indianapolis, Ind.
Valley Sport & Marine, Bismarck, N.D.
Wayzata Marine Inc., Orono, Minn.
Woodard Marine Inc., Hydeville, Vt.
The Marine Industry Dealership Certification program was first developed in 2005 by dealers, for dealers and focuses on the major areas impacting consumer satisfaction and dealership excellence—operations, facilities, professional sales/service processes, customer satisfaction and employee training/satisfaction. To date, a total of 425 dealerships have earned the official “Marine Industry Certified” designation.
Marine Industry Dealership Certification is part of the industry’s Grow Boating Initiative, an integrated effort among organizations with an interest in the recreational marine industry to promote the boating lifestyle and improve the boating experience. A strategic set of programs focusing on all areas of boating including water access, dealer and product certification, marketing, and research is designed to increase participation in boating and improve sales of marine products and services.
For more information, visit GrowBoating.org. For more information about the Marine Industry Dealership Certification program, contact Dealership Certification program director Terry Leitz at (312) 946-6500; tleitz@nmma.org, or visit DealerCertification.org.
- For more of the latest news, click here.
