Plenty of Repo Boats at Reccession Prices
With boat sales down and repossessions on the rise, hundreds of recreational watercraft are stacking up at an Oshkosh business.
It’s called the Midwest Marine Repo Center, a Skipper Bud’s boat dealership, on the south shore of Lake Butte des Morts.
Boats from across the nation, some costing more than $100,000, have been sent there for liquidation at discount prices.
Some were repossessed by banks and other lenders. Others are new boats from dealerships that have fallen on hard times.
Some are from outdoor enthusiasts, stuck with a hobby they couldn’t afford, now selling their boats on consignment.
“There’s a little bit of everything,” from aluminum fishing boats to big cruisers, said Mike Pretasky Jr., Skipper Bud’s president.
Wisconsin’s marine manufacturers also are feeling the recession as they throttle back production and cut jobs.
Sales of pleasure boats have been shaky for several years and took a severe nosedive late last year as the economy worsened.
The fallout deeply affected Brunswick Corp., the world’s largest boat builder who manufacturers Bayliner Boats and parent of Mercury Marine Inc.
Bayliner Boats and Brunswick closed eight factories and eliminated hundreds of marine-industry jobs last year, including jobs in Fond du Lac.
“Demand is down. And there are no factors on the near horizon which will improve demand,” Brunswick CEO Dustan McCoy recently told analysts.
Perhaps a glimmer of hope, Viestenz said he’s seen more sales activity in the last four weeks than he has seen in the last six months.
Most of the buyers are bargain hunters, leaving little profit for the manufacturers, but the increased sales will help clear out inventories of unsold boats. “At some point, supply and demand will get back in balance,” Viestenz said. Bayliner Boats-Bayliner Parts thanks; Boats take a hit during the recession – JSOnline
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