The big spring launch is done and all the boats are in the water. Wow what a rush. Definitely tougher than last season as more of you decided that rather than leave boat sitting, prep it and splash it! What the heck, you can't sell it, might as well use it!
I ran my guys hard trying to please all of my customers (some with unrealistic expectations) and I again have the belief I have the best staff in the industry. My guys were pushed hard, put under a heavy load and each launch went without a hitch. For that I am grateful to you all.
Now lets get down to what its all about---having a great summer! Be safe and enjoy and PLEASE be responsible to yourselves and the environment.
That's my rant...
Joe Cap
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
Sunday, April 4, 2010
Spring has Sprung!
Yep, all it took to wake everyone up is one 70 degree day! I am happy to report that the phone has been ringing off the hook and we finally have seen that almost extinct animal...the NJ Boater!
A year ago I spoke with a majority of my existing and long time loyal clients. You were all honest and sometimes brutally frank with me when I asked "what was most important to you in boating".
Well it was overwhelming to what a majority of you said and (dramatic pause) I listened to you and instituted our number one focus of service first, sales second management approach. Guess what? You guys were right.(proof to my wife Sherry that I do listen). You insisted that service not stop with mechanical work so we included hauling, parts delivery, maintenance and insurance in what you defined as "true marine service center".
Because of your input and advise to me, we have not only survived the worst winter economically I can remember, but we have positioned ourselves as a leading marine service center. When WE service your boat, our number one priority is for you to turn the key and go! We take care of all the rest.
A year later and it has proven to me that once again the customer is always right. For this I want to thank you all. You have no idea what it has meant for me, my family and my staff. That's why I can say without any doubt:
The Boating Experience Starts Here!
and that's my rant.
Joe Cap
A year ago I spoke with a majority of my existing and long time loyal clients. You were all honest and sometimes brutally frank with me when I asked "what was most important to you in boating".
Well it was overwhelming to what a majority of you said and (dramatic pause) I listened to you and instituted our number one focus of service first, sales second management approach. Guess what? You guys were right.(proof to my wife Sherry that I do listen). You insisted that service not stop with mechanical work so we included hauling, parts delivery, maintenance and insurance in what you defined as "true marine service center".
Because of your input and advise to me, we have not only survived the worst winter economically I can remember, but we have positioned ourselves as a leading marine service center. When WE service your boat, our number one priority is for you to turn the key and go! We take care of all the rest.
A year later and it has proven to me that once again the customer is always right. For this I want to thank you all. You have no idea what it has meant for me, my family and my staff. That's why I can say without any doubt:
The Boating Experience Starts Here!
and that's my rant.
Joe Cap
Sunday, March 7, 2010
Spring
Yep, I finally see them. There are boats growing out of my yard from under the 5 feet of snow we got here over the last 3 months.
This past Saturday we opened for the first time officially since November and I must say I was surprised to see how busy we were. 50 degrees and a sunny day did not hurt but I was happy to see people were out shopping.
What I am seeing is the only way for our economy to get out of its funk. We have decided to not count on the powers that be and are doing it ourselves. I am seeing more service requests for PWC and boats and most of you are going to spend money on your toys maintaining them and actually make a serious attempt (damn the weather) to use them regularly.
Sales of used PWC are actually up a tick. Makes more sence to by a good, pre certified used machine at half the cost then go buy a new one for 3 months of use. (shameless commercial)
The winter boat shows locally were a bust with Atlantic City hammered by blizzard #2 then the Super Bowl while the good old NJ Boat Show in Raritan center was cancelled this week due to not enough vendors (see my previous post-i told you so). If you want to boat, you now have to go out and find a dealer near you to see the boats.
Shop on line then GO TO THE DEALERSHIP of your choice. Shake hands with a human and talk about your passion in person (no texting!). You will be amazed at how much more information you will get by actually being with a dealer. Sure we want to sell but most of us who survived know its all about YOU, the customer and are more than happy to help.
Thats my Rant
Joe Cap
This past Saturday we opened for the first time officially since November and I must say I was surprised to see how busy we were. 50 degrees and a sunny day did not hurt but I was happy to see people were out shopping.
What I am seeing is the only way for our economy to get out of its funk. We have decided to not count on the powers that be and are doing it ourselves. I am seeing more service requests for PWC and boats and most of you are going to spend money on your toys maintaining them and actually make a serious attempt (damn the weather) to use them regularly.
Sales of used PWC are actually up a tick. Makes more sence to by a good, pre certified used machine at half the cost then go buy a new one for 3 months of use. (shameless commercial)
The winter boat shows locally were a bust with Atlantic City hammered by blizzard #2 then the Super Bowl while the good old NJ Boat Show in Raritan center was cancelled this week due to not enough vendors (see my previous post-i told you so). If you want to boat, you now have to go out and find a dealer near you to see the boats.
Shop on line then GO TO THE DEALERSHIP of your choice. Shake hands with a human and talk about your passion in person (no texting!). You will be amazed at how much more information you will get by actually being with a dealer. Sure we want to sell but most of us who survived know its all about YOU, the customer and are more than happy to help.
Thats my Rant
Joe Cap
Saturday, January 23, 2010
Boat Show Season
Well its that time of year folks, boat show season. The season where we all shake the winter blues away a bit and start dreaming of playing with our water toys. The boat show is the perfect place to do this. You can see many models, browse tons of accessories and generally mingle with like mind folks. Sound great right?
Well, not this year.
Oh the shows will be there, but there will be less dealers attending because they simply can't afford to. The shows will be smaller with less to see.
The good news is the powers that be moved the NY Boat show to a more traditional and realistic attendance date. Not like last year where some bean counter said "lets hold it two weeks before Christmas, during the worst economic climate in history". We all know that was a total failure but I am happy to say attendance was way up this year (how could it not) and some of the last leftover inventory was being sold by many dealers. A good start if you ask me.
In our area, Atlantic City is the next critical show. Unfortunately the show will be HALF the size of last year (which was half the size of the previous year) because most dealers who survived 2009 simply can't afford to attend the show. I am one of those dealers making that decision. This also means you will see less boats limiting your potential choices(do you see a reoccurring theme here yet?).
Yep, less boats to see making that $8.00 beer easy to finish in one walk thru. You leave unfulfilled and looking to find another venue in which to spend the remainder of the day instead of thinking of adding to your passion. Is this any way to get excited about playing with our water toys? I think not, and I feel our industry needs to make some serious changes to fix this.
What I am hoping happens as a result of all this is the companies wake up, join us in the real world and make the shows manufacturer sponsored like they do with the NY Auto Show. This would take the enormous pressure off the dealers to outlay the limited cash flow they have renting space and allow them to sell boats with the customer in mind, not the fact they have to move old inventory.
What I want to see is the companies responsible for renting boat show space.
They in turn would bring one of every model they make and the booth would be staffed by local dealers. Based on your boating area zip code, you would be assigned to deal with the dealer from that area (we all have a territory in our contracts that no one seems to honor) and make a deal based upon the boat you want, not one that happens to be in a particular dealers inventory.
That would allow the local dealer the opportunity to continue to grow the relationship with you on parts and service. If something does happen to your boat, it would be good to know the dealer knows you, the boat and can handle your problem in a reasonable time because they service that boat and area. If you buy a boat from a dealer in NY but you boat in Barnegat Bay you loose the priority approach when it comes time for service. That is where the trouble in our industry hits hard. Boats are not made by God and the do break. That's why it is important to deal with a dealer WHERE YOU BOAT. Do you see my point?
I would like to hear from you on this and am opening up the Blog to responses. I am interested to hear what you think with pithy comments or questions. Lemme know...
Joe Cap
Well, not this year.
Oh the shows will be there, but there will be less dealers attending because they simply can't afford to. The shows will be smaller with less to see.
The good news is the powers that be moved the NY Boat show to a more traditional and realistic attendance date. Not like last year where some bean counter said "lets hold it two weeks before Christmas, during the worst economic climate in history". We all know that was a total failure but I am happy to say attendance was way up this year (how could it not) and some of the last leftover inventory was being sold by many dealers. A good start if you ask me.
In our area, Atlantic City is the next critical show. Unfortunately the show will be HALF the size of last year (which was half the size of the previous year) because most dealers who survived 2009 simply can't afford to attend the show. I am one of those dealers making that decision. This also means you will see less boats limiting your potential choices(do you see a reoccurring theme here yet?).
Yep, less boats to see making that $8.00 beer easy to finish in one walk thru. You leave unfulfilled and looking to find another venue in which to spend the remainder of the day instead of thinking of adding to your passion. Is this any way to get excited about playing with our water toys? I think not, and I feel our industry needs to make some serious changes to fix this.
What I am hoping happens as a result of all this is the companies wake up, join us in the real world and make the shows manufacturer sponsored like they do with the NY Auto Show. This would take the enormous pressure off the dealers to outlay the limited cash flow they have renting space and allow them to sell boats with the customer in mind, not the fact they have to move old inventory.
What I want to see is the companies responsible for renting boat show space.
They in turn would bring one of every model they make and the booth would be staffed by local dealers. Based on your boating area zip code, you would be assigned to deal with the dealer from that area (we all have a territory in our contracts that no one seems to honor) and make a deal based upon the boat you want, not one that happens to be in a particular dealers inventory.
That would allow the local dealer the opportunity to continue to grow the relationship with you on parts and service. If something does happen to your boat, it would be good to know the dealer knows you, the boat and can handle your problem in a reasonable time because they service that boat and area. If you buy a boat from a dealer in NY but you boat in Barnegat Bay you loose the priority approach when it comes time for service. That is where the trouble in our industry hits hard. Boats are not made by God and the do break. That's why it is important to deal with a dealer WHERE YOU BOAT. Do you see my point?
I would like to hear from you on this and am opening up the Blog to responses. I am interested to hear what you think with pithy comments or questions. Lemme know...
Joe Cap
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Report Card Time.
Well gang, based on my own world, it looks like we made it through the bailout nightmare that was 2009. When I first bought this place, mind you in the worst economy since the depression, many of my close friend believed I had finally lost my mind. They had good reason after all. I mean really, who would want to put all this fresh debt on their head during what was predicted as a US economy collapse?
I believed in my client base and the general mind set of our people as a nation to fight back for what we believe in when our backs are up against the wall. Case in point, we sold more boats in the last quarter of this year than we did the previous two years last quarters combined! The people basically said "nuts!" and kept fighting on. As I have always said, Boaters ... boat. In some form or fashion they are going to be on a boat. If that meant buying a 12'aluminum skiff or hard bottom dinghy rather than using their 25'Sea Ray, they were gonna be on the water.
People bought smarter and deals were a constant negotiation but in the end we kept the bill collector at bay and gained more customers. To me, that was a huge victory.
As I now plan for 2010, I am excited of the direction our place in going in.
We have stream lined the number of manufacturers represented to a few high quality companies that have the smarts to run their businesses in a way that put them on solid ground. We have also dropped several manufacturers who proved to me they simply don't know how to run a business. They simply didn't get it and were not right for my customers. There are a few more moves up my sleeve but that will be shown at another time.
We reopened our most popular sales division, Brokerage PWC. Our old location was not conducive to this even though this was always a popular sales division. In a months time it started right where it left off and given the economy, many of our customers were able to buy yet another toy in a more economical way. We have a full inventory of top quality machines and spring looks like it could be a big jump start.
The Insurance Agency has survived as well. We did a lot of policy value adjustments to give our customers a better rate based on true value of their boat, saving them premium dollars. Strange how claims were up significantly but that tells me more people actually used their boats despite not having the best weather this summer.
The Service and Parts department did very well this year with an increase in service business of almost 30%. Our customers spent the money to properly maintain their boats and kept their initial investment in top condition. Very few were penny foolish this season.
All in all I give us an A- for 2009. I know I am a tough grader but I always feel there is room for improvement. With a year under our belt at the new place, I feel we have made huge strides and with the help of a better economy and a top staff, we will emerge as a leader in our industry. One that our customers will be proud to do business with.
2010 will bring some new and exciting things. I really can't wait to get at it but for now, I am going to take some of my own advise and sit back. After a week of playing Clark Griswold, I will be back doing what I do. Before you know it, Spring will be upon us!
and that's my rant...Happy New Year!
I believed in my client base and the general mind set of our people as a nation to fight back for what we believe in when our backs are up against the wall. Case in point, we sold more boats in the last quarter of this year than we did the previous two years last quarters combined! The people basically said "nuts!" and kept fighting on. As I have always said, Boaters ... boat. In some form or fashion they are going to be on a boat. If that meant buying a 12'aluminum skiff or hard bottom dinghy rather than using their 25'Sea Ray, they were gonna be on the water.
People bought smarter and deals were a constant negotiation but in the end we kept the bill collector at bay and gained more customers. To me, that was a huge victory.
As I now plan for 2010, I am excited of the direction our place in going in.
We have stream lined the number of manufacturers represented to a few high quality companies that have the smarts to run their businesses in a way that put them on solid ground. We have also dropped several manufacturers who proved to me they simply don't know how to run a business. They simply didn't get it and were not right for my customers. There are a few more moves up my sleeve but that will be shown at another time.
We reopened our most popular sales division, Brokerage PWC. Our old location was not conducive to this even though this was always a popular sales division. In a months time it started right where it left off and given the economy, many of our customers were able to buy yet another toy in a more economical way. We have a full inventory of top quality machines and spring looks like it could be a big jump start.
The Insurance Agency has survived as well. We did a lot of policy value adjustments to give our customers a better rate based on true value of their boat, saving them premium dollars. Strange how claims were up significantly but that tells me more people actually used their boats despite not having the best weather this summer.
The Service and Parts department did very well this year with an increase in service business of almost 30%. Our customers spent the money to properly maintain their boats and kept their initial investment in top condition. Very few were penny foolish this season.
All in all I give us an A- for 2009. I know I am a tough grader but I always feel there is room for improvement. With a year under our belt at the new place, I feel we have made huge strides and with the help of a better economy and a top staff, we will emerge as a leader in our industry. One that our customers will be proud to do business with.
2010 will bring some new and exciting things. I really can't wait to get at it but for now, I am going to take some of my own advise and sit back. After a week of playing Clark Griswold, I will be back doing what I do. Before you know it, Spring will be upon us!
and that's my rant...Happy New Year!
Monday, December 21, 2009
Carpe Diem
I am sitting here this morning in my home unable to leave because my street is not plowed yet from the weekend's big snow storm. Since I am not at the shop, I have had some time the last few days just to hang around and do nothing. Those of you that really know me can find this unbelievable since usually if I am not at the shop I am traveling to some far off rink with my son Joey or running with Sherry to complete a portion of my honey do list or running Anthony around the yard. Bottom line is I simply can't just hang around.
Well, I was forced to this time. After all, you can only use the snow blower so much and my neighbors all have their own. What I did see though was how nice the house looked and how festive everything is. Sherry worked really hard to make the house look great and I was able to just sit back and see her handy work. Trust me Martha has nothing on my Sherry.
Where am I going with this...oh, what I am amazed to see is how hard we all work but really never just sit back and see what we have done. Its hard to appreciate the things we have worked for unless you sit back and look at it. I don't care what level of financial status you have and this is not about money. It is about taking the time to simply appreciate your life where you are now. Before I get to serious here, I say one thing...there is no reboot key. Seize the day. Appreciate whatever you have done already and if its not working for you, don't get depressed and give up, change what you are doing and take the past as a lesson.
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all. My holiday wish to you all is to keep the faith. We all got through the bailouts. Now make it a point to get on the path we want...this time for real.
and thats my rant.
Well, I was forced to this time. After all, you can only use the snow blower so much and my neighbors all have their own. What I did see though was how nice the house looked and how festive everything is. Sherry worked really hard to make the house look great and I was able to just sit back and see her handy work. Trust me Martha has nothing on my Sherry.
Where am I going with this...oh, what I am amazed to see is how hard we all work but really never just sit back and see what we have done. Its hard to appreciate the things we have worked for unless you sit back and look at it. I don't care what level of financial status you have and this is not about money. It is about taking the time to simply appreciate your life where you are now. Before I get to serious here, I say one thing...there is no reboot key. Seize the day. Appreciate whatever you have done already and if its not working for you, don't get depressed and give up, change what you are doing and take the past as a lesson.
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all. My holiday wish to you all is to keep the faith. We all got through the bailouts. Now make it a point to get on the path we want...this time for real.
and thats my rant.
Friday, December 4, 2009
Discount Services?
Two weeks ago a customer came in and bought one of our $30 "do it yourself" outboard winterization kits. Although it comes with a DVD that shows you step by step what to do, this gent ended up cracking an inlet during the process of removal and that caused him to bring it into us for repair and replacement.
After all was said and done, his $30 "savings" cost him almost $300. Now I am all for the labor of love we all have for our boats but there are times that I really believe there are some things that are best left to the pros. If he had brought it into us to do the work for him, it would have only cost him $160 bucks.
Now this is no commercial, just a point that as pros we have the experience of doing hundreds of these motors and have all sorts of tricks to help expidite the work. When you don't do this everyday, something is bound to mess up. With the current economy, I agree we all should do our part to spend wiser but I say not foolishly.
Whatever you do, don't skimp on crital maintenance on anything you own. In the long run you save and have just one less thing on your mind to stress you out. Beware of the word "discount" when it comes to service. It usually is defined as "something is missing so the cost can be lowered".
and thats my rant...joe cap
After all was said and done, his $30 "savings" cost him almost $300. Now I am all for the labor of love we all have for our boats but there are times that I really believe there are some things that are best left to the pros. If he had brought it into us to do the work for him, it would have only cost him $160 bucks.
Now this is no commercial, just a point that as pros we have the experience of doing hundreds of these motors and have all sorts of tricks to help expidite the work. When you don't do this everyday, something is bound to mess up. With the current economy, I agree we all should do our part to spend wiser but I say not foolishly.
Whatever you do, don't skimp on crital maintenance on anything you own. In the long run you save and have just one less thing on your mind to stress you out. Beware of the word "discount" when it comes to service. It usually is defined as "something is missing so the cost can be lowered".
and thats my rant...joe cap
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