On this episode of Boating Industry Insider, we sit down with Jeremy Bale, senior brand manager at KICKER Marine Audio – a guy who knows about sound on the water. We dig into what boat buyers expect today, how audio has become a core part of the on-water experience and what KICKER is doing to grow while keeping dealers (and their customers) grinning. If you love boats, audio, tech or just a good behind-the-scenes conversation, you're going to enjoy this one.
Fresh from IBEX, we’re bringing you an episode of Boating Industry Insider featuring Áine Denari, president of Navico Group, and chief technology officer at Brunswick Corporation. As Simrad unveils an autonomous docking innovation, Áine explains how it advances Brunswick’s ACES strategy—Autonomy, Connectivity, Electrification, and Shared access. We also take a broader look at today’s recreational boating climate: demand, inventory, and the crucial role innovation plays in shaping tomorrow’s market. If you want to understand where boating is headed—and how technology is reshaping the experience—you won’t want to miss this episode.
Charting the Future of Marine Innovation with new IBEX Show Director Mary Velline. In this episode of Boating Industry Insider, David Gee focuses on one of the most important events in our industry - IBEX - the International BoatBuilders’ Exhibition & Conference, held October 7-9 in Tampa, Florida. IBEX is the leading marine technology trade show, bringing together boat builders, suppliers, designers, and innovators to share knowledge and showcase what’s next in the business of boating.
Let's talk horsepower. Outboard horsepower that is, and Mercury Marine's brand new V10 425hp motor to be more specific. Joining the conversation with Boating Industry Insider host David Gee is John Buelow, the President of Mercury Marine. The two were recently together In Tampa for the press introduction of the new outboard. They not only discuss specifics of this latest product, and where it fits in the lineup, but also the company's commitment to noise, vibration, and harshness engineering and why that matters boaters and dealers alike.
What happens when tariffs bite, consumer confidence wavers, and boat sales stall? In this episode of Boating Industry Insider, David Gee talks with Anthem Marine CEO and serial boat building entrepreneur Mark Overbye to unpack and discuss the choppy waters currently rocking the recreational boating market. From rising inventory to tougher conversations on the sales floor, we tackle the pressing challenges dealers and manufacturers face—and explore what it really takes to stay afloat when the tide turns. If you're looking for straight talk, smart strategies, and a reality check on today’s boating business climate, this one’s a must-listen.
How much do you think about your marine insurance? A little? A lot? For many marine businesses it represents your second largest cost, right behind payroll. In this edition of Boating Industry Insider, you'll hear a discussion about all aspects of insurance for your business from how often you should audit your coverage, to adverse weather, workers' comp and even how tariffs can impact your business. Host David Gee is joined by Jeff Heydlauff, commercial marine specialist, and Matt Anderson, president, Global Marine Insurance Agency, one of North America's leading marine insurance providers.
Radian IoT and Northpoint Commercial Finance have begun a pilot program using Radian’s GPS telematics tracking technology to test the delivery of real-time insights into OEM inventory-level management, production trends and delivery timelines. To hear more, Boating Industry Insider host David Gee is joined by Northpoint Vice President of Marine Operations Gary Childress and Radian IoT President Scott Crutchfield. The pair say the technology, which is being tested among some Northpoint OEM and dealer customers, will enable more efficient production planning and tracking of boats, from the assembly line to delivery to a new customer.
Inflation. Interest rates. Consumer confidence. Boat shows. Advocacy for the recreational boating industry, in Washington, and at the grassroots level. Growing the next generation of boaters. The outlook for the 2025 selling season. Those topics - and more - are all on the agenda as Boating Industry Insider host David Gee is joined by Ellen Bradley, SVP, marketing and communications and chief brand officer, National Marine Manufacturers Association, for a wide ranging and fast moving conversation.
From kayaks to cruise ships. Roger Moore, aka 007, the dealer principal of Nautical Ventures, the recently-crowned Boating Industry Top 100 Dealer of the Year award winner, says you can buy just about anything that floats from them. And they even sell a few things that can go under the water, instead of on top of it. However, they constantly emphasize to staff that what they really sell is fun. In this interesting, insightful conversation, Moore and Boating Industry Insider host David Gee discuss vertical integration, how he grew the footprint of his business, impediments to growth, including staff, and how you get disparate parts of an organization to work together as they continue to grow and scale.
100,000 attendees, 1,000 boats and a billion dollars in economic impact. That is the Discover Boating Miami International Boat Show and Boating Industry Insider host David Gee interviews some of the biggest names there. Join him along with Brenna Preisser, EVP, President, Brunswick Boat Group, Aine Denari, President, Navico Group and Brunswick Chief Technology Officer, Ryan Martin, Marine Category Lead, Honda Marine, and sales statistics guru Jack Ellis, founder and CEO of Info-Link. They’re sharing new product news, their insights and thoughts on the 2025 boat selling season, as well as the broader future of the recreational boating industry.
The Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show brings in 1,500 boats, several thousand exhibitors, 100,000 attendees and generates over a billion dollars in economic activity. The show can also be a barometer for the greater boating industry, not only with regards to actual sales but also in terms of the talk on the docks. Boating Industry Editor-in-Chief Adam Quandt was there, and tells Boating Industry Insider podcast host David Gee what people were saying about the economy, the presidential election, tariffs, and the prospects for a successful 2025 selling season.
For the last four years, Halevai has worked relatively under the radar researching and developing an electric trimaran. As entrepreneur, explorer and Halevai CEO and founder Frank Heidinger details in this latest edition of Boating Industry Insider, the company is now building and selling their first 24-foot boats with a 20mph cruising speed and a range of 50 nautical miles. He and David Gee discuss where the name for the company came from, how it defines their vision, as well as electric boat use cases and the future of different propulsion platforms in recreational boating.
Make your plans to celebrate the recreational boating industry at the Boating Industry ELEVATE Summit Conference, January 20-22, 2025, in Charlotte, North Carolina. In this edition of Boating Industry Insider, host David Gee talks about the origins of the conference, details the agenda, and gives a little preview of the opening night reception at the NASCAR Hall of Fame. Kicking us off as our opening keynote speaker is Jay Samit, former Vice Chairman of Deloitte, and the author of Disrupt You! and Future Proofing You. He is one of the nation's foremost experts on disruption and innovation. ELEVATE is also welcoming back entertaining and engaging economist Elliot Eisenberg. He will educate us on a number of issues, including inflation, GDP growth, interest rates, unemployment, currency movements, demographics, energy prices, household behavior, wage growth, and other topics that will help you make better business decisions. Boating Industry has just unveiled a special Early Bird registration ($295) for those who register before September 30. Beginning October 1, registration for the full conference will be $495. Designed specifically for recreational marine industry leaders, the Boating Industry ELEVATE Summit brings together the best and brightest minds from all areas of the industry for thought-provoking seminars, discussions and a multitude of networking opportunities. Make your plans today, and start the new year off strong!
Free sales tips! Who doesn't want those, right?! Especially in the challenging sales environment we find ourselves in now. Boating Industry Insider host David Gee is joined by Anthem Marine CEO and serial boat building entrepreneur Mark Overbye to discuss ways to simplify - and improve - the sales process as well as the entire customer journey. This includes making sure we are selling an experience and not features and specs and price. One of the best parts is many of these tips and takeaways don't have a dollar cost attached to them. They are available to anyone with the mindset and the commitment to improve their operation.
The 2024 Discover Boating Miami International Boat Show was a big success and Boating Industry editor-in-chief Adam Quandt was there. He joins David Gee to talk top line takeaways, headwinds, tailwinds, sales numbers and forecasts, new products, sustainability and more. Adam was also an NMMA Innovation Awards judge in Miami and he'll discuss that, as well as provide some information about the next Boating Industry Elevate Summit Conference in Charlotte.
How does the CEO of the largest maker of recreational boats in the world see 2023? What lies ahead in 2024? Where are the headwinds coming from - and the tailwinds? Are there still lessons to be learned from the pandemic? Which categories are flourishing - and languishing? Is the industry doing enough to create the next generation of boaters? Join Boating Industry Insider host David Gee as he welcomes Brunswick Chief Executive Officer David Foulkes and Aine Denari, President, Brunswick Boat Group, to discuss these issues - and more. Their insights will better prepare you for a happy new year.
Kim Sweers isn't just the dealer principal at Top 100 FB Marine Group in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, she's also The Boat Boss. It's a multimedia platform utilizing podcasts, videos and other content all designed to promote recreational boating and the boating lifestyle. In this Boating Industry Insider podcast, she and host David Gee talk about her corporate background and how she got involved in boating, lessons from the pandemic, what 2023 has been like and what she expects from 2024. She also gives a sneak peek into her women in the marine industry breakout session talk, "How to get a seat at the table," at the upcoming Boating Industry ELEVATE Summit Conference in Dallas, Texas, November 5,6, and 7.
What has the 2023 season been like for manufacturers in the recreational boating industry? What potential challenges and opportunities lie ahead in 2024 - and beyond? What does it mean for a boat builder to be a good partner with dealers? How has the production landscape changed? Join Boating Industry Insider host David Gee as he brings in the perspective of Anthem Marine CEO Mark Overbye for the answers to these questions and more. Overbye, a contributor to Boating Industry, is a championship winning water skier and has been involved with Supra, Moomba, Gekko, Montara Boats and is now building aluminum wake surf boats with Anthem Marine.
Are you a sales detective, or still stuck peddling products while spewing out features and specs? Today the highest performing salespeople aren't solution selling. They're actively engaged in problem finding, taking prospects through a discovery process. In this Boating Industry Insider episode, host David Gee talks with technologist, inventor and serial sales platform start-up leader Lief Larson about the state of the sales landscape; new tools, new technologies, new methodologies and whether sales people have kept pace. Find out how - and why - the top 20% of sales professionals are outperforming the bottom 50% combined.
Boat sales. Everyone's favorite subject, right?! Jack Ellis, founder of Florida-based marketing and data-services company Info-Link doesn't sell boats for a living. But he does track boat sales for a living. And in this Boating Industry Insider podcast episode from the recent Miami International Boat Show host David Gee will ask Jack about the last couple of years in the recreational boating industry, what 2023 might have in store, and what might happen with all of those new boat owners that came into boating during the pandemic. Also find out why Jack calls this a "market of multiple segments."