This may sound like a no-brainer. After all, you buy a
Ford, and you expect it will come from the Ford plant. You buy a Chevy
and it’s a good guess that it rolled down a Chevrolet assembly line. The
birth rite of your new cruiser, however, may be more ambiguous.
Here’s the deal. Many boat companies market and build
their own boats. The whole process is directly under their control like
any other manufacturing company. Others, however, do not. Particularly
in niche markets, salesmen sell boats that are built for them by
contract yards. Their sales office may be in the Northeast, but the boat
could be built in the US, Mexico, Asia, Canada or anywhere. There is
nothing inherently wrong with this. Many quality companies have used the
template for decades, benefiting both their customers and themselves.
The sales team and builders form long-term relationships, each doing
what they do best. The result is a consistent, high quality product.
My concern is another tier of companies. These seem to
bounce around from builder to builder: sometimes continent to continent.
For them, "long term" seems to mean a hand full of years. To the
outsider it can only seem that they are chasing cheap labor.
Unfortunately it is not clear the bargain translates into dollars into
the boat owner’s pocket. A good boat can, of course, result. The
question becomes the odds.
You don’t have to shy away from companies that use third
party yards. I would, however, recommend a few questions. Where, and by
whom will my boat be built? Are they the same folks that built the boat
I’m looking at or the one shown in the ad? How many boats have they
built of this model, and over what period of time? Trust me, a bit of
awareness and a few well-chosen questions can prevent unexpected
surprises that can jeopardize your six-figure investment.
But that’s just my
opinion.
