Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/556112
www.BoatingIndustry.com 12 | Boating Industry | May 2015 BY JONATHAN SWEET o ver the last several years, Yamaha Marine has rolled out several in- novations from its Helm Master integrated boat control system to a variety of new engines. But even as the company has developed a wave of new products Yamaha has also been one of the biggest industry advocates, lobbying for the industry at the state and national level on a variety of issues. Leading the team during this most re- cent period of innovation has been Ben Speciale, who took over as president fi ve years ago this month following the retire- ment of Phil Dyskow. Before that, Speciale held a number of positions with Yamaha, starting with the company in 1987. Boating Industry talked to Speciale about some of the trends in outboards, why advocacy is so important for the company and more. Boating Industry: We've been hearing a lot of good early reports so far this year. What are you hearing from your dealers and what are you seeing out there? SPECIALE: Yamaha increased its pres- ence at boats shows, expanding into the Midwest market. So we have been paying careful attention to the results. Though it's not true of every show, it is safe to say the trend is positive: traffi c, leads and sales are all improved compared to last year. Our dealers are telling us the same thing. Boating Industry: What's your outlook for the industry for the rest of 2015? SPECIALE: Generally, there will be a moderate increase in outboard-powered boat sales this year. It will be single-digit growth unless there is a big move upward in the GDP. But that's not likely. Saltwater will outpace freshwater in growth. Boating Industry: Yamaha is obviously in a number of different market seg- ments from pontoons to fi shing boats and more. What segments are you most optimistic about? SPECIALE: We see growth in the saltwater categories, mostly because boat builders have invested a lot of resources in redesigning their saltwater lines and consumers are respond- ing. That trend is clear from recent boat shows, particularly Miami. For us, this will really drive the sale of larger outboards, such as the Yamaha F200 and our line of 4.2-liter V6 Offshore outboards, and Helm Master. As for the freshwater markets, consum- ers will continue to buy up. They want products that are feature rich. While that may not drive segment volume much higher, it will mean higher profi tability for the dealers and boat builders. Boating Industry: Outboard sales con- tinue to outpace the sterndrive segment. Why do you think we've seen such a stronger recovery on the outboard side? SPECIALE: Outboards tend to be pur- chased by the more serious boaters. As the market is still in a recovery phase since the Great Recession, these are the consumers who are stepping back in and buying new today, versus fi rst-time new boat buyers. The more serious consumers under- stand features that add value to the experi- ence. Outboard designs have continued to advance and this is exciting to serious users of the products. Features such as four valves per cylinder, dual overhead cams and vari- able camshaft timing appeal to knowledge- able boat owners. Yamaha will continue to expand the features in our products that add value for the serious boater. with Ben Speciale President, Yamaha Marine