Boating Industry Canada - February 2009

sion to finance a new boat, build that sale by up-selling into a matching lift. That way the new boat is best protected from the elements, the client’s investment is cared for and they are likely financing anyway. It makes sense to get a complete package.

Downie offered several other good ideas. Shoreline is critical. He noted that on the affordability scale, expanding the client’s dock area delivers an unbeatable waterfront outdoor patio that can evolve into a whole place for entertainment. The dock isn’t just where you tie the boat up anymore.

We spoke to Buckeye Marine in Bobcaygeon who has created a waterfront accessories display with ladders, benches, tables and convenience features that has been a winner for them.

Barrett Marketing Group has

ShoreMaster across the country and they do have dealers but Downie

admits, some of the most successful ShoreMaster retailers are specifically in the dock business. He emphasizes that service is the key to success. People don’t expect something for nothing. In some ways, the big profits are made on service.

For every dock or lift retailer, make it easy to buy the product. Doug said it’s all about making the boat buyer happy. His best dealer sells high-end ski boats and when they make a sale, they literally walk the customer over to the display lift and dock system and say, “This is what you need for your new towboat.” Doug says that dealer is successful about 25% of the time. It makes it easy to finance the complete package as an all-in-one and that makes sense when they’ve just made a major purchase like a new towboat.

On selling lifts, Doug believes that a proper cover on the lift means the boat is protected from the wind, rain and sun fading. Over the years he has observed that a lift with a good-quality canopy really encourages the owner to use their boat more. That‘s a winning formula!

float system. This product is designed to sell through dealers and you can achieve anything from a 27% to 100% markup. New dealers start with a $26,000 investment for a truckload of product and a display.

So, some dock and lift product lines are well suited for marinas to stock and sell while the higher-end docks and lifts generally need a greater commitment to be in that business. Otherwise, the marina should just connect the customer for a finder’s fee.

Although on commissions and finder’s fees, Brad Hutchinson who sells Sun Stream has a different perspective. He works with well-established dealers in some of the most prestigious cottage areas. They’ve learned that those dealers

Easy-to-retail Jet Float cubes (inset) can be expanded year after year

We talked to Jan Butterworth at Dockside Equipment. They work along with the Naylor company building some products for Naylor and getting some Naylor products to sell. Dockside Equipment emphasizes service and wants a dealer to have a qualified installation team.

Talking about product design, Butterworth pointed out that people care about their environment in the sense that they want less visual pollution. That means that cottage owners want nice-looking hydraulic lifts and handsome, clean-lined docks. They don’t want to see a boat lift that is a cheap cage of wires and levers.

Product lines that are more tuned into retail sales by marinas include the Dock In A Box line. This product line is better sized and suited to owner installation.

Dock In A Box provides the marina with an alternate revenue stream by selling docks, lifts and various parts and they have a casual dealer program for that. It is an innovative company and we also discussed a program where a marina can lease lifts.

Their special arrangement allows the marina owner to generate income during the high season and then pay later in the fall. For six months, they make the payments starting a month or two into their high season and the payments end six months later, so no further payments in the off-season. Renting lifts at your marina can generate larger revenue than regular slips. Dock In A box can also handle all the labour.

For perhaps the simplest retail arrangement, Jet Dock has their open-ended modular interlocking plastic

This elegant ShoreMaster set up makes the most of swampy shoreline and includes ladder, patio, bench and lifts with excellent canopies.

just want their customers looked after the best possible way. In fact, Brad said that some marinas do not want the customer to think that they got a commission by referring them.

Doug Downie at Barrett Marketing Group sells ShoreMaster who offers one of the widest lines of docks, lifts and related products. The ShoreMaster docks go from big commercial units to modular starter-level residential and Barrett Marketing group sells through dealers.