The Marine Dealer Conference & Expo is the Marine Retailers Association of America’s annual conference. Through a five-year agreement, signed in 2009, the MDCE is co-produced by the MRAA and Boating Industry magazine.

The partnership actually began in 2008 when Boating Industry magazine provided marketing support and content creation services to the MRAA in addition to helping re-brand the event. That year dealer attendance doubled, compared to the 2007 program, called the MRAA Annual Convention. Then, in 2009, aided by a move to Orlando, Fla., the partnership led to a 200-percent increase in total attendance and exponential growth in the amount of sold exhibit space.

About the MRAA: The Marine Retailers Association of America is the only national association serving the interests of the boat and engine dealer. The association exists to assist in raising the standards of marine retailing, to provide its members with a common source of information, to stimulate an ongoing exchange of ideas among its members and to promote sound growth of the retail marketing of boats, motors, and marine accessories. The association hosts an annual educational convention (the MDCE), presents a series of awards such as the Darlene Briggs Marine Woman of the Year award, and operates an educational foundation that awards scholarships for education, training and professional development within the marine trade. The MRAA also represents the interests and concerns of marine retailers to other trade associations and boater member organizations on a national, state and local level through its legislative work. Find out more at www.mraa.com.

About Boating Industry magazine: Boating Industry serves the marine industry through its mission to be a trusted source for proven solutions, delivering its audience real results. That audience has transformed over the last decade, as Boating Industry evolved from a print magazine to a multi-channel media outlet providing content through print, online and in-person mediums. Its magazine is delivered 11 times annually; its Top 100 Dealers Program has risen to become the most-coveted awards program in the industry; it produces several e-newsletters each week; it has created a series of e-white papers; and most recently, it took over responsibility for the production and overall direction of the MDCE in a licensing agreement with the MRAA. See more at www.boatingindustry.com.