October 4, 2010
There is a boat show going on now, somewhere in the world. Big boats or small, in port or in a parking lot, we asked yacht captains what they have to say about the ubiquitous boat show.
“Boat shows, they’re an evil necessity,” a captain said at this month’s Triton From the Bridge lunch.
“You have to go,” another captain said. “You have to keep up with products, what’s going on, networking.”
Although shows are not mandatory, the captains at the discussion nodded in agreement that boat shows are a part of their job. There are broker and charter shows, vendor booths and seminars, in-water displays and convention centers, but conversation centered on which shows they attend, the benefits and what troubles them.
As always, individual comments are not attributed to any one person in particular so as to encourage frank and open discussion.
The relationship between captains and brokers in broker shows such as the Ft. Lauderdale International Boat Show (FLIBS) heated up the conversation as captains discussed who actually shows the boat and what information is shared with clients.
“The broker said to me, ‘why don’t you show the boat?’” a captain said. “Who’s job is that? I am the one who knows the boat best, but what do I divulge?”
“There is a conflict of interest,” another captain said. “If we sell the boat, we sell ourselves out of a job.”
“I know what needs to be done on the boat, what’s wrong with it,” the first captain said. “So, I have the prospective buyer asking questions. What if he buys it and keeps me on as the captain? I need to be honest with him.”
“But am I supposed to tell them everything at that time?” he said.
“A lot depends if the broker is an agent of the owner or the buyer,” another captain said.
One captain explained how since the broker can’t know as much about a yacht as the captain running it each day, he tells the broker he will give everyone the same overview tour. Then, if interested, prospects can come back to hear more and the captain will answer their questions separately. That way he doesn’t say too much unnecessarily.
“You’re right,” another captain said. “Sometimes I feel like I’m talking too much and just need to shut up.”
“Not many captains actually go with the boat when it’s sold,” said a third. “But if you do get to go, you want to make it work with the new owner, so you think you need to tell him about the boat. “You can choose not say what is up with the boat, but you want to be knowledgeable,” he added.
“That relationship between the broker and the captain needs to be worked out before the show,” one of the captains said. “This is a constant problem and FYBA [the Florida Yacht Brokers Association] is trying to address it because this situation puts captains in the wrong position.”
In addition to brokers, the topic of money always comes up when the subject of selling boats is discussed.
“The numbers are impressive at the shows,” a captain said. “The management company is really making the money.”
“You pay for the key location for your boat,” another captain said. “You pay for the broker dock and then you pay for power, the dockage. They keep charging you.”
“Last year we paid about $13,000 for the show’; this year I think it will be $14,000,” said a third about the cost to be in the show.
One captain explained that sometimes the broker will underwrite the cost, with the yacht paying up front and then when the boat sells they’ll offer some of the money back.
“It was $23,000 last year with expenses, plus, that’s not productive time for crew,” a captain said.
Another captain said the owner has a different idea for this year.
“The owner said, I spent $20,000 last year in the show,” this captain said. “What if this year I take that money to do projects, instead. Put the money into the boat?”
In addition to showing the yachts, one captain said his crew enjoy the educational seminars, and while he would like his crew to attend them, they are often scheduled at the beginning of the show when crew either haven’t heard about them or simply can get there because the first days are their busiest.
“It’s just too early for crew at the beginning of the show,” this captain said. “The last days are the slower days. “Maybe they should schedule them later in the show.”
Many of the captains at the lunch had been to boat shows around the world. One captain said he goes to shows in Newport, San Diego, San Francisco, Palma and Palm Beach. And they had plenty of opinions.
“Yachtfest in San Diego? They don’t know how to manage that show,” one captain said. “You don’t go to that show to buy.”
“San Diego reminds me of St. Petersburg [Florida],” a second captain said. “All the sailboats are just lined up, just sitting there.”
“Then there’s Seattle in January,” said a third. “That’s the worse time of the year in Washington.”
“Puerto Rico’s show is like a parking lot show,” another captain said.
And then there are the charter shows in the Caribbean.
“We either go to St. Maarten or Antigua, but that decision kind of gets made for us,” one captain said. “We go to the bigger show.”
With several of the captains preparing for FLIBS later this month, one captain said his boat doesn’t show at the other popular South Florida show, the Yacht and Brokerage Show in Miami in February.
“I do Miami if I’m forced to,” he said. “Lots of boats drop out of the Miami show because it’s tough with it so close to Ft. Lauderdale. You just can’t do both because they are so close in time.”
“But everyone goes to Ft. Lauderdale,” another captain said.
The captains discussed whether a yacht really has to be in a show to be seen.
“If the boat is not in the show, no one is going to go out and see it,” a captain said. “No one will take you to see it. It would take you an hour to go out to see a boat that’s not in the show and then another hour to get back, no one wants to leave.”
“Brokers are basically lazy, and so are the buyers,” another captain said.
It’s hard to pin down exactly what a show means for captains because, like boats, each one is different.
“I go buying, not shopping,” a captain said. “I have done my research and I go to buy.”
“I do research at shows, but not necessarily to buy,” another said. “I go for advice and information. Some of the seminars are good.”
“Crew hate shows but love the parties,” a captain said. “They work long days, up to 14 or 15 hours.”
But, “with a charter show it’s different,” another captain said. “Charter crew are a big part of the experience, where at a broker show, crew are not part of the package. For us, a charter show is kind of like our regular work. The crew are at their best.”
“They get to show their accomplishments and we always throw a party,” he said. “We’re selling to the brokers at a charter show. We’re selling our friendly, outgoing crew.”
Owners go to shows to see the newest things and all the toys.
“The owner flies in for the show to get hands on, to touch stuff,” a captain said.
One captain said his boss wanted a night vision camera even when the boat didn’t have radar equipment, and another owner wanted to sacrifice life jacket storage for a new sound system.
“Sometimes the sales people are so good,” a captain said. “They say ‘you gotta have this’ and the owners believe it.”
“If there’s something they want, they’ll buy it,” another captain said. “But if we want something, it’s like pulling teeth.”
One captain said his boss has bought everything from shoes to tenders at boat shows. Many of the purchases come as a surprise to the captain who then has to fit or retro-fit the new gadget onboard. Captains have seen impromptu purchases such as new scuba gear, every type of electrical gizmo and yacht stabilizers.
“Even an Intrepid,” a captain said.
“The boss bought a Grand Banks on a whim,” another captain said.
One captain said he and the crew work hard before, during and after the show, and next the owner shows up with his new purchase.
“Then, he says I have to make sure everything is put together by next week.”
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