Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/231507
LAUNCH INDUSTRY NEWS SAME-STORE SALES REPORT November Same Store Sales were down significantly for a number of dealers in the industry. Overall, dealers using ADP Lightspeed saw sales drop 6.3 percent in the month, when compared to November 2012. Major unit sales dropped the most, down 13.3 percent year-over-year. Parts followed, down 4.9 percent, and service decreased 4.0 percent compared to the year-ago month. Parts Service DepartmentDepartment 4.9% Major Units 4.0% Overall 13.3% 6.3% For more information on this report and other industry data, go to adplightspeed.com/dataservices SEARCH SCORECARD Dominion Marine Media collects data via its BoatTrader, Boats.com and YachtWorld websites. Here is a ranking of the most-searched boat types on BoatTrader this past summer. TOP BOAT CLASSES State Boat Class Florida Texas California Georgia N. Carolina New York Michigan S. Carolina Illinois Ohio Center Console250,629 Center Console72,806 Ski & Wakeboard72,030 Center Console50,720 Center Console48,746 Cruiser44,684 Cruiser34,901 Center Console31,667 Bowrider29,029 Cruiser29,029 Unique Searches Based on internal searches of BoatTrader, June-August 2013. 10 | Boating Industry | January 2014 P06x11-BI14JAN-Launch.indd 10 INDMAR AND FORD ANNOUNCE ENGINE SUPPLY PLAN AT SEMA Ford Motor Company will re-enter the marine market in an agreement with Indmar Marine Engines, the world's largest privately held manufacturer of gasoline inboard marine engines. Ford and Indmar Marine Engines made the announcement during the Specialty Equipment Market Association premier event, the 2013 SEMA Show, held every November in Las Vegas. "Ford is pleased to be working with Indmar Marine as it plans to re-enter the marine market," said Jamy Hall, president/ CEO for Ford Component Sales. "Ford has a long history of bringing power to the marine industry and views this effort as a strategic opportunity for the company." The news means the 6.2-liter V8 engine will give watersport enthusiasts the power and torque necessary to meet the increased workload demanded of today's watercraft. Indmar Marine Engines will offer three models of varying horsepower and torque that will have sufficient power to pull waterskiers and wakeboarders. Indmar Marine Engines has been in business for 43 years and operates multiple advanced manufacturing facilities in the United States with distribution centers in Tennessee and California. The company is the engine supplier for some of the most well known, highperformance boats used by watersport enthusiasts across the country. "The 6.2-liter engine was specifically built for a truck, providing the torque needed to tow heavy weight, which is exactly what today's high-performance watercraft need," said Chuck Rowe, president of Indmar Marine Engines. "Our sport has evolved, and with heavier boats, bigger wakes and larger ballast and passenger capacity, the demand on the engine is even greater," Rowe added. "We looked at the total market and have spent a great deal of time and research and development dollars to find an engine that will best fit the demands of watersports." DOMINION MARINE MEDIA LAUNCHES DX1 AT MDCE Dominion Marine Media, the division of Dominion Enterprises that operates YachtWorld, BoatTrader. com and boats.com, launched DX1 — a new business management solution developed for dealerships — at the Marine Dealer Conference and Expo in Orlando, Fla. Gathering a crowd of interested dealers, conference exhibitors and the assembled marine media, Ian Atkins, senior vice president and general manager of Dominion Marine Media welcomed the crowd and set the stage for the company's most significant product introduction in recent years. "We've been overwhelmed by the response to DX1 and the requests by U.S. dealers to become early adopters," Atkins said in advance of the event. "More than 100 trials of DX1 will be taking place at the MDCE event, demonstrating the need for a product like this in the sector. We'd like to thank all those involved in its development, including our marine dealer partners who worked with us to create this end-toend business management solution. " Atkins continued, "We've developed DX1 to be best in class and to help marine dealers across the industry be more successful. We believe it will have a significant positive impact on the sector, and it is a major step forward in the way dealers can run their businesses. Much of today's software still requires dealers to perform redundant tasks across other data sources, business functions and products. Solving these problems was the inspiration behind DX1." www.BoatingIndustry.com 12/18/13 9:57 AM