Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/326874
www.BoatingIndustry.com 6 | Boating Industry | July 2014 AT THE HELM JONATHAN SWEET jsweet@BoatingIndustry.com Boating Industry EDITOR-IN-CHIEF: Jonathan Sweet (jsweet@boatingindustry.com) SENIOR EDITOR: Tom Kaiser (tkaiser@boatingindustry.com) MANAGING EDITOR: Liz Keener (lkeener@boatingindustry.com) ASSOCIATE DIGITAL EDITOR: Nicholas Upton (nupton@boatingindustry.com) DIGITAL PRODUCTION EDITOR: Heather Brown (hbrown@boatingindustry.com) SENIOR ART DIRECTOR: Dodi Vessels PRODUCTION ARTIST: Kelsey Houle (khoule@epgmediallc.com) PRODUCTION MANAGER: Angela Schmieg PRODUCTION DIRECTOR: Cherri Perschmann NATIONAL SALES DIRECTOR: Kathy Johnson 480-988-3658 (kathyjohnson@boatingindustry.com) SENIOR ACCOUNT MANAGER, EAST: Chris Pelikan 954-964-8676 (cpelikan@boatingindustry.com) CEO: Marion Minor SR. VICE PRESIDENT/FINANCE & OPERATIONS: Gerald Winkel SR. VICE PRESIDENT/MARKET DEVELOPMENT: Joanne Juda-Prainito VICE PRESIDENT/MARINE, POWERSPORTS, BEVERAGE: Amy Collins AUDIENCE DEVELOPMENT MANAGER: Tim Morgan MARKETING SPECIALIST: Geoff Christ SENIOR SALES ADMINISTRATOR: Bernadette Wohlman BOATING INDUSTRY (ISSN #1543-4400) is published nine times per year – January, February, March, April, May, July, August, October and December – by EPG Media, LLC, 3300 Fernbrook Lane N #200, Plymouth, MN 55447. Periodicals postage paid at St. Paul, MN and additional mailing offices. SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION: Free to qualified members of the boating industry. Annual subscription rate is $99 per year for U.S., Mexican and Canadian residents and $149 for residents in other countries. All paid subscriptions must be paid in advance and in U.S. funds only. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Boating Industry, P.O. Box 2123, Skokie, IL 60076-7823. CUSTOMER SERVICE: Visit www.BoatingIndustry.com, call (847) 763-9565, fax (847) 763 9569, email BoatingIndustry@halldata.com or write to Boating Industry, P.O. Box 2123, Skokie, IL 60076-7823. EDITORIAL: All manuscripts, materials, photographs and artwork submitted are at mailer's risk and must include self-addressed envelope with sufficient postage for return. No responsibility will be assumed for unsolicited materials. Boating Industry is a registered trademark of EPG Media, LLC. © 2014 by EPG Media, LLC. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or part is prohibited unless expressly authorized by publisher. For more information on e-prints or reprints from Boating Industry, contact Bernadette Wohlman, 763-383-4400 x2464 Printed in U.S.A. INSERTED IN THIS ISSUE you'll find your first taste of the Marine Dealer Conference & Expo. Be sure to head over to p. 7, where you'll find the preshow brochure. It includes information on our full lineup of speakers and all of the exciting improvements we've made to this year's MDCE, which will be Nov. 16-19 at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando. MDCE is produced by Boating Industry and the Marine Retailers Association of the Americas. Most notably, we've added a fourth track of education, splitting sales and marketing into separate tracks, so we'll now have Service Plus, Powering Profits, Sales and Marketing. The combined Sales & Marketing track has been the most popular in the past, and this will give us a chance to double the options available to you in those categories. We brought back some of the most popular speakers of the past with all-new presentations. At the same time, we've got some exciting new voices to share their insights with you. I'm especially excited about this year's opening keynote speaker, Chester Elton. The author of "The Carrot Principle," among other books, will be speaking on creating a company culture that drives results. Sales consultant Ryan Estis will be delivering the closing keynote, a new addition to the schedule this year, sponsored by the Boating Industry Top 100 Hall of Fame companies. Finally, we've rearranged the schedule to give you more time on the expo hall floor to meet with the exhibitors, network and see new products – something dealers have told us they want in our annual post-conference surveys. * * * I also want to take this opportunity to announce the five companies making up this year's Top 100 Leadership Alliance. GE Capital Commercial Distribution Finance, Manheim Specialty Auctions and the MRAA have all renewed their support for another year, and this year they are joined by two new companies: Freedom Boat Club and Sunbrella Marine. These industry leaders all recognize the importance of supporting dealers and improving the industry. And if you're a dealer, you've still got time to apply for this year's Top 100 and be recognized as one of the best in North America. Apply at BoatingIndustry.com/top-100/application. Investing in your business at MDCE P06-BI14JUL-AtTheHelm.indd 6 5/28/14 11:26 AM