Haines Group going from strength to strength in 2010

by The Haines Group on 9 Apr 2010 Despite two years of global turmoil and downturn in the boating market, the Haines Group has weathered the GFC and continued to manufacture and import boats of distinction.

With a new member of the population every 4 mins or so in Queensland, the Sunshine State has become the nation’s leader in registered recreational vessels and with many different leisure boats out there, boating enthusiasts have a smorgasbord to choose from.

Queensland is home to The Haines Group, manufacturers of fibreglass trailer boats, and the boats they produce are still being sold in huge numbers all around Australia.

Managing Director (Sales and Marketing) for The Haines Group, Greg Haines says Australias recreational vessel industry is booming with hundreds of thousands of vessels on our waters today.

“The Haines Group manufacture three brands of fibreglass trailerable boats (Signature, Traveller and Seafarer) from 4.6metres to 7.7metres. They are all made in Queensland on a 10 acre site by a dedicated Australian workforce. Only the best materials are used in production which is why the boats hold their value for resale and are still on the waters decades after they left the factory.”

The strength of production is also a reason why The Haines Group continued to build boats through the recent economic down turn.

“The order book was never empty during the GFC,” said John Haines, Chairman and CEO of The Haines Group “It is testament to our product that our boats were still in demand even during those challenging times in 2008/2009.”

“Australian boaties have always appreciated quality and it is the quality of our boats that has given our family and family of employees pride in their employment over more than 50 years. Our motto in the factory is ‘Build it as if you are going to own it’ and our team does exactly that,” said John Haines.

As the company has expanded The Haines Group has continually invested in our manufacturing facility with new R&D projects and significant financial commitment to the latest technology. 2009 saw a new office building (pictured) being occupied on the existing Queensland site to house the ever growing numbers of office based employees.

“As we have grown we have increased our staff numbers in order to give the dedicated professional back up to service the needs of our dealers and customers. We got to the stage where a new office building was a necessity rather than a luxury” John Haines said.

According to Greg Haines, investing in a boat is a solid and worthwhile investment, from both a financial and lifestyle perspective.

“We have come out of an uncertain economic climate and the boating business is booming once again, The Haines Group have introduced our own finance company, Haines Group Impressions Finance, to assist customers who are looking to own a boat this summer,” Greg said.

“Haines Group Impressions Finance offer tailor-made finance to customers for a diverse range of lifestyle vessels at the industry’s most competitive rates.

“We want to ensure that consumers have a number of options to allow them to purchase and enjoy their new boat without feeling a significant financial strain - The next biggest decision is which boat to choose.

“We have a range of vessels to suit almost all needs and budgets from 2.4 metres in our Walker Bay inflatable boats to 7.7metres in our Signature range. Whether you are looking for a tender, a fishing boat, a cruiser or a day boat for watersports then The Haines Groups family of brands has something to suit.”

So what is the difference between the three brands?

A Signature comes with more of the frills as standard as well as SVDH (Signature Variable Deadrise Hull) which gives an extremely smooth ride even in choppy conditions while also being stable at rest. Your Signature will stand up to everything that is boating and even the hardest fishing boat can be washed down and converted in to a day tripper or overnighter that the whole family will enjoy. Signature now enters its 26th manufacturing year.

Traveller starts with less of the frills as standard but maintains the same Haines Group build quality and materials. “Haines Quality Boating” as the tag line states, at a lower starting price. Traveller boats have now been on our waterways for the last 10 years and although they have often been the ‘quiet achiever’ for The Haines Group in the past their popularity is increasing at a rapid rate with an evolving product range and introduction of all new R&D’d Traveller models.

Seafarer has made its mark on boating since 1957 and has literally got legendary status with boaties and fishermen around Australia, this is one of the best known trailerable fishing boats on the market and it’s high standard of build quality has been maintained and improved since The Haines group started manufacturing the brand in November 2007 with the continued guidance and input of the original owner Lindsay Fry. With the R&D resources of The Haines Group there are good things happening for the Seafarer range.

With such success in the marine industry The Haines Group is also the chosen distributors for Suzuki outboards, Nautique tow boats and Walker Bay inflatable boats.

With over 50 years experience in the marine industry, The Haines family and the Haines Group is Australia’s largest and most awarded fibreglass trailer boat manufacturer and are looking forward to another prosperous and safe boating year for all in 2010.

For information visit www.thehainesgroup.com which is a portal to the six Haines Group brand web sites.