Laser Dinghies - Recession Busting

by . on 4 Aug 2009 Laser Performance Sailcraft the ‘down under’ Laser sailboat builder on the NSW Central Coast at Fountaindale is proving that the right product and the right marketing will deliver, even in the toughest recession.

CEO Chris Caldecoat talked to Marine BusinessNews.com today. 'This year it is value that is delivering. Go back over the last few years and people were impulse buying and saying ‘I want that.’

‘Now with the GFC, people are still buying but they need to know it is a sound investment. There is a flight to well known brands and people want resale value, and the Laser dinghy certainly delivers that.

‘There have been more than 195,000 Lasers built around the world, the biggest number of any boat ever. They are sailed at Olympic, Nationals, in Men, Women, Juniors and Masters levels and of course as a fun boat.

'The resale value is the key. Purchasers can say ‘I’m going to spend eight grand on brand new Laser and we can get six for it in two years time and not spend a cent on it in the meanwhile.

‘We saw it straight away at the Nationals this year and the Internationals. Mum and Dad were saying the best thing about Lasers is we’re not worried about crew. Our son is teaming up with his mates and they’re all just going Laser sailing!’

‘They can put their own Laser in the water and it’s like going bike riding. The Laser becomes a fantastic fun boat; that’s why there’s so many built, you cannot find a second hand Laser for under five grand.

‘The good news is that people are pulling their Lasers out and fixing them up for racing.

‘In tough times like now, some of the bigger boats are being put away as less sailors are going to spend money on going to a major big boat regatta because its a $30 000 exercise, so there are plenty of crew at a loose end.

‘Instead it seems lots of sailors are going Laser sailing. If they decide to be international or even interstate competitors you can’t get past a Laser when it comes to having a taste of travelling for competition; you can pack your sail and ropes and off you go. You can always get your hands on a boat.'

To push forward in tough times Performance Sailcraft Australasia, teamed with Sail-World to launch an online interactive competition.

The competition has reaped more than 3,000 entries, each yielding valuable information about consumer habits, preferences and buying position.

Caldecoat explains. 'We've had such a great response; we've been overwhelmed with hot leads. Now we've had a special online database built so we can handle all the leads that have been generated. We could not get the amazing response we are having from the Sail-World online competition from any sailing magazine advertising campaign.

'In fact, the high quality lead generation information we are gathering online could never ever be gained via a print publication...... not in a million years.'

The competition is open to all comers in Australasia.

Visitors can enter online now to win a choice of a Laser 4.7, a Laser Radial or a Laser Standard sailing boat, built by Performance Sailcraft Australasia and worth around AUD$9,200.

Participants need to answer 20 questions and in 25 words or less convince the judges they are the worthy winner.

Click on the link here or below if you’d like to enter. click here