Marina Sales

[VitaBene]

I believe DaSilva bought Independent Marine recently.

[ishoot308]

Originally Posted by VitaBene

I believe DaSilva bought Independent Marine recently.

Yes and Winnisquam Marine bought Wards in Ossipee this past fall...Lots transactions happening!!

Dan

[codeman671]

I heard earlier this year that Marinemax was in the process of purchasing Irwin Marine but pulled out very late in the process. I don't recall where I heard this.

[8gv]

I have been happy with Irwin.

It feels like family.

I also deal with Marine Max in Florida.

They are machine like and put the "Max" in every invoice!

[TiltonBB]

Originally Posted by codeman671

I heard earlier this year that Marinemax was in the process of purchasing Irwin Marine but pulled out very late in the process. I don't recall where I heard this.

Right dealership, different buyer. The new owner is very experienced and has multiple locations in Maine. They are really good people. The closing is in January.

[tis]

Originally Posted by TiltonBB

Right dealership, different buyer. The new owner is very experienced and has multiple locations in Maine. They are really good people. The closing is in January.

Irwin Marine did get sold then? And to a Maine company?

[TiltonBB]

Originally Posted by tis

Irwin Marine did get sold then? And to a Maine company?

Yes, sold to a very reputable dealer with locations inland and on the Maine seacoast. Most everything at Irwin will stay the same, including the employees.

[tis]

Originally Posted by TiltonBB

Yes, sold to a very reputable dealer with locations inland and on the Maine seacoast. Most everything at Irwin will stay the same, including the employees.

Interesting. Thanks.

[steve-on-mark]

Originally Posted by TiltonBB

Yes, sold to a very reputable dealer with locations inland and on the Maine seacoast. Most everything at Irwin will stay the same, including the employees.

I feel so out of the loop! ;-)

[tis]

Originally Posted by steve-on-mark

I feel so out of the loop! ;-)

LOL. Me too. And we do business there even though it has been difficult the past few years.

[codeman671]

I’m hearing that Meredith Marina may be the next to sell.

[FlyingScot]

My understanding, and I hope someone will correct me if I'm wrong, is that the Goodhue owners are a private equity firm. If that's the case, that is likely bad for the community in one way or another as they focus more intently on the bottom line to the exclusion of other considerations

[sluggo]

I was doing some work for the yacht club and I was told three individuals bought Meredith marina a little while ago. There's an awful lot of changes happening around here lately !

[Garcia]

My fear with the consolidation/mergers is that in the long run the owners/investors make out well while the end user ends up paying more for less.

I hope I am wrong; time will tell.

[ghfromaltonbay]

Originally Posted by Garcia

My fear with the consolidation/mergers is that in the long run the owners/investors make out well while the end user ends up paying more for less.

I hope I am wrong; time will tell.

These investors are also buying up cottage rental colonies. Sandy Point in Alton Bay is a perfect example. Bought up along with 3+ other properties in Alton Bay by the same group. Rates increased over 100% for seasonal leases for next season.

[John Mercier]

Originally Posted by Garcia

My fear with the consolidation/mergers is that in the long run the owners/investors make out well while the end user ends up paying more for less.

I hope I am wrong; time will tell.

Due to the near impossibility that another marina facility could be developed on the lake, and expansion of current facilities are both limited and likely to spurn opposition; I would agree with your assessment of the value of the exclusivity in the investment.

[pjard]

It's simple supply and demand.

[FlyingScot]

Originally Posted by pjard

It's simple supply and demand.

Of course. But that does not mean it's a good thing for any of us or the lake in general. When you're an ordinary slob negotiating against another ordinary slob, it's all good. But when you're an ordinary slob negotiating against a professional investor with no other ties to the community, guess who wins every time?

[thinkxingu]

Originally Posted by FlyingScot

Of course. But that does not mean it's a good thing for any of us or the lake in general. When you're an ordinary slob negotiating against another ordinary slob, it's all good. But when you're an ordinary slob negotiating against a professional investor with no other ties to the community, guess who wins every time?

Are there any examples of a business going corporate that have worked out positively for the consumer?

I think about this a lot, actually, as I was part of the Tweeter explosion...and downfall, and two of the central causes of its demise were bringing in "big box" retailer "specialists" to run what was never supposed to be a big box business and going public/being beholden to profit-driven shareholders over what was best for the company AND its customers.

*There's a book called The Common Good by Robert Reich that I find very interesting. In it, he points to where he thinks the shift occurred from "stakeholder" capitalism, where employees, ownership, AND customers find the perfect balance to "shareholder" capitalism, where the focus is on maximizing profit.

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[Garcia]

Originally Posted by thinkxingu

Are there any examples of a business going corporate that have worked out positively for the consumer?

I think about this a lot, actually, as I was part of the Tweeter explosion...and downfall, and two of the central causes of its demise were bringing in "big box" retailer "specialists" to run what was never supposed to be a big box business and going public/being beholden to profit-driven shareholders over what was best for the company AND its customers.

*There's a book called The Common Good by Robert Reich that I find very interesting. In it, he points to where he thinks the shift occurred from "stakeholder" capitalism, where employees, ownership, AND customers find the perfect balance to "shareholder" capitalism, where the focus is on maximizing profit.

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For the most part, no. It seems we are shifting more and more towards "oligarchy" (can't think of a better word) at both the local and national level. At the local level near me, small family owned business like HVAC companies are being bought up and consolidated. I find it progressively harder and harder to get a plumber to come for small jobs; the rapport between customer and client has been lost. Motels/hotels are bought by larger chains. Housing is bought up by large scale investors. Car dealers are consolidated. Big media companies grow bigger (and seem to result in less service and higher prices) and Walmart and Amazon's bottom lines are boosted while locally owned business by me are closing.

Intentional or not, this is the direction we seem to have chosen to go both at the local and national level. My kids are navigating a different world than I did at their age. Back to the Lakes Region, I am doing everything I can to ensure the island property and lake access I was fortunate to grow up with will be preserved for them as the days of someone with my chosen career path (or theirs) buying island property on Winnipesaukee are pretty much gone. And back to Shep's specifically, since Goodhue bought them I have not seen better service or lower prices.

[John Mercier]

Not really the difference.
Corporate tends to have universal policy across national or international borders, while private tends to be a local policy.

The ROI expectation is about the same regardless.

I have box, independent, and my family has owned... same expectations.

What everyone had in common... efficiency of process and customer.

[FlyingScot]

Originally Posted by thinkxingu

Are there any examples of a business going corporate that have worked out positively for the consumer?

I think about this a lot, actually, as I was part of the Tweeter explosion...and downfall, and two of the central causes of its demise were bringing in "big box" retailer "specialists" to run what was never supposed to be a big box business and going public/being beholden to profit-driven shareholders over what was best for the company AND its customers.

*There's a book called The Common Good by Robert Reich that I find very interesting. In it, he points to where he thinks the shift occurred from "stakeholder" capitalism, where employees, ownership, AND customers find the perfect balance to "shareholder" capitalism, where the focus is on maximizing profit.

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PE has two faces:

When the investors are investing in the business for growth, it works out well for all if the business is successful--tech, biotech, pretty much all the high growth companies in the US had PE investors at some point (I include venture capital as a subset of PE). This is the American Way

But when PE invests in low growth mature businesses, such as mom & pop marinas, they are typically looking to squeeze maximum profit rather than boost growth. And even if they do figure out a way to grow, the lake is a finite resource, so....Reich, or at least his friends, would call this extraction capitalism. Not really good for anyone but the PE guys