The industry looks toward upcoming boat shows - Australian MarineBusinessWorld.com newsletter
by Peter Rendle 5 Mar 13:00 PST
The Wooden Boat Festival of Geelong © Denise Smeaton
As we slowly emerge from summer amid welcome torrents of rain along the eastern states in Australia, the industry looks to prepare for upcoming boat shows.
The Wooden Boat Festival of Geelong, presented by Wooden Boatshop and Yanmar, is set to rock the Royal Geelong Yacht Club (RGYC) this weekend, as the biennial event running from Friday 6th to Monday 9th March, 2020. The Wooden Boat Festival of Geelong is a fan favourite on the Boat-Lovers' Calendar and also gives the Geelong Community the opportunity to see some of Australia's most historic Wooden Boats first-hand. This family-friendly festival spectacularly celebrates Australia's maritime heritage and local history by immersing visitors in the world of wooden boats and their craftsmanship.
The 2020 Club Marine Pittwater Sail Expo runs from 21-22 March where Multihull Solutions will be showcasing the multi-award-winning Fountaine Pajot Saona 47 sailing catamaran. The Saona 47 has swept international marine awards, winning SAIL magazine's "Best Multihull Cruising Boat - 40 to 50ft" title as well as the 2018 Christofle Style Award for "Best Multihull Sailing Yacht Under 15m". Dates: Saturday 21 - Sunday 22 March, Times: 10am - 4pm daily Venue: Royal Prince Alfred Yacht Club, Newport NSW 2106.
A big turnout is anticipated for the annual Multihull Solutions Multihull Boat Show and Open Day on Saturday 28 March on the Gold Coast. The free day will showcase an expansive range of quality pre-owned sail and power multihulls in a display that will span the company's innovative "Out-of-Water Boat Show" as well as in the marina at The Boat Works in Coomera. There will be multihulls on display to suit all budgets from AUD$200,000 to $2.1million, including the new Fountaine Pajot Astrea 42 sailing catamaran and the ILIAD 50 power catamaran.
Two months later and slightly further north, the Sanctuary Cove International Boat Show takes place on the 21st to 24th May. Visitors to the 2020 show can expect a total of more than 300 exhibitors and 600 boats, including a diverse array of trailerable boats and engines within the massive Sports, Leisure and Fishing Precinct which will be a key highlight of this year's show. With over 20,000 square-meters of space dedicated to the very best and latest trailerable boats, the Sports, Leisure and Fishing Precinct will showcase brands and models to suit every interest, from offshore angler to first-time boaties.
AIMEX has announced a taste of the calibre of this year's conference speakers who will be presenting at ASMEX 2020 under the banner 'A 2020 Vision for The Future: Building A Stable and Successful Industry'. The ASMEX 2020 program will tackle the challenges facing the future of the industry through forward looking sessions addressing questions on where the marine industry in Australia, the South Pacific and the global industry as a whole is heading and what steps should be taken to ensure its continued success in the new decade to come. ASMEX 2020: May 18-20, Sanctuary Cove, Queensland, Australia. Registration is open. Visit www.asmex-conference.com.au and see www.asmex-conference.com.au/speakers for list of speakers.
Product news this week includes ANGLR, Lowrance® and Abu Garcia®, who announce the successful collaboration between the three brands to blend their cutting-edge technologies to create a powerful new way to plan, record and relive fishing adventures - all while using precise data to catch more fish. Giving anglers a previously unavailable level of control, the ANGLR app acts as a bridge between the new Abu Garcia Virtual™ Rod and compatible Lowrance chartplotters/fishfinders. This new functionality lets users privately capture key fishing data with a click of a button - without the need to stop fishing to access navigation displays, logbooks or mobile devices.
Zhik, the Australian foul weather gear manufacturer, broke into the elite sportswear market in 2008 with their game-changing wetsuits for athletes competing in the Beijing Olympics. More recently, they disrupted the field with their radical Isotak X ocean racing foul weather gear, developed for the Dongfeng Race Team, winners of the 2018/2019 Volvo Ocean Race. Featuring multilayer composite membrane fabric, the premium marine gear is four times more waterproof than the industry-leading ePTFE ocean fabric. Now, 2XU co-founder Jamie Hunt is bringing his obsession with quality, and belief in the importance of cultural alignment, to another brand pushing the boundaries of sportswear innovation. Says Hunt: "Zhik makes sensationally styled, world-class products but they needed to communicate their innovation platform more strongly. Olympic champions and elite athletes know how good Zhik is, but Joe Public does not. That's what really got me excited about coming onboard as a non-executive director to look at supply chain and brand story."
And people news incudes YANMAR who have announced the appointment of Taro Kitamura as the new President of YANMAR Marine International (YMI) and head of YANMAR's Recreational Marine Business Unit. Effective from 1 April, the 30-year company veteran will replace current YMI President Shiori Nagata, who has been promoted within YANMAR Holdings Co. Ltd. in Japan after overseeing a strong five-year period of growth for the Netherlands-based recreational marine division.
Aveagooden,
Peter Rendle peter.rendle@marinebusinessworld.com