Why the cost???

I think part of the problem boats are so high is because outsourcing of parts. If you buy a ______ the motors probably come from Merc the drives definatly do. If you are a small builder the seats come from somewhere, gauges somehwere else, etc. You have to figure these other guys (people outsourced to) are getting it at a price and then adding profit. If you could have all that profit yourself you could either cut costs and sell more or try to sell one.

Now the 1 to 10 theory is great but when you build one instead of 10 and you go BR no one comes to save you when you build 10 and everybody and there brother who has even seen a boat knows someone with your brand than people come in to help you out. You have percieved market value which you cannot put an exact price on. Obviously think fountain.

Now obviously this plan would require capital and lots of it but if you said I am going to build boats a year 2 models 40-25 singles and 30-35 twins 100 power units 500hp each.

First start with engines I go to dart and say I need 100 engines and 200 heads. Then I go to JE and say 100 sets etc.etc.. I cut costs way down for the record I know what dart blocks and heads cost 100 at a time and its a deal.

Then instead of a mercury drive I go to Konrad and buy 100 drives I get a deal.

Then interior I have guys that that is all they do all day same style seats maybe 4 different accent colors (I mean seriously how many differnt colors are boats blue, red, orange and silver.)

Then onto gauges and rigging.

Then onto the hull this is the biggest thing because this is where you stand to lose the most money and this process you can automate more than any other. Everyone does bagging for there hulls which does have some labor but If you wanted a more automated process you could do RTM or RTM Lite these process reqire a back to the mold but you do not have to tape the bag and watch the resin and hope no leaks etc. Downside your mold requires 2 sides bad for 10 different boats in lineup good for 2. Bad for 1 boat a year good for 50. Then you go buy your glass at a decent cost in volume of course.

So lets break down the cost 25 ft

Hull 1200 sq ft cost $3.00 per ft labor and materials. 2 guys could do the whole hull rtm. Note: I would do white gel and then add graphics later. No painting except graphics. 2 days.

Motors dart parts with some type of already exisitng FI like a holley. $6400 (yes it can be done in volume)

Drive $2000. I do not know this can be done but I'm sure no one has ever ordered 100 drives so probably could.

Rigging easy reverse enginered wiring (did one and then copied x amount of times being done in a small room buy one guy. Throw in dash with gauges installed and throttles lay wires put in a fiberglass tube to back and then glassed to the hull saves hangers. Install motors drives etc. 2 guys 2-3 days I know riggin allegadly takes forever but we streamline the process Lets say $3000 total

Trailer $1000

Total cost $16000 in materials and labor

Asking price $25,000 Selling price $22,500 30% gross profit 40 units

Lets say the 35 cost $30,000 to build ask $50,000 and sell for $45,000 30% also.

$260,000 gp 25ft
$450,000 gp 35 ft
$710,000 gp

Rent $1.00 sq ft 30,000 sq ft $30,000
Utilities $15000
Misc labor (office etc $100,000)
equipment cost (over 5 years) $100,000
misc $65,000 shows etc.

Net profit $400,000.

All materials bought up front no terms cash for best deal.

Or you could make $400,000 one boat a year and you have a chief.

I think its possible and I know the costs of glass materials and engines. Don't know drives and rigging but can figure based on markup in other products.

First year costs

$1.6 materials
$310,000 overhead
$500,000 eqipment (borrowed money)
$90,000 misc

$2mil investment $400,000 return 20% in the boat business.


Also definatly not a bayliner.
 
Oh yeah I also would pick up some used molds maybe a Baja or something.
 
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Yes except the engine drive package,glassing style, building and maybe plane. The rtm process would be a better hull less manpower more tooling. The engines would be built in house saving the profit there. And of course the total cost to purchase.

After some figuring I may be off on my price 10% of cost but I think if you skip the discount than you would be good also you could finance these boats in house say 20% down so $5000 down and $500 month first year you recover $11,000 if you figure the cost at $17,600 2 years and your cost would be recovered. It would make your profit more per unit also.
 
You've missed a huge item in your cost structure- the cost of customer acquisition.

There are many other omissions- insurances for example. And getting an EPA glass permit. And the investment in capital equipment.

Brunswick and Genmar do this for a living. They know every way there is to build a boat- and to find efficiency doing it. And look at where they are. On the other end, you've got more than a few guys out there building in sheds, cutting every corner possible and flying under the radar in many areas. And many of them have decades of experience building boats.

Check the USCG HIN database and look at all the inactives. It's a big club made up of people that underestimated the challenges of being a boatbuilder.
 
Personally, Im a lazy bastard...making all that profit one one boat just sounds one hell of a lot easier... Hell I make 2 boats a year, i can take a nice vacation, do some poker runs, buy a 19 year old chick a new chest...
 
I do have capital eqipment in there I have also figured some misc. with rtm molding you have minmal smell hardly any epa issues the neighbors would have no idea you do composites. I understand that there are many people who tried etc. just like anything there are a million people who call themselves homebuilders because they built a house or mechanics because they rotate tires. The plan that I stated figured spending 2 million up front to get back over a year. Customer aquisition factory direct sales all there would be was a delivery fee.

I am just trying to find new ways to get people into this sport that we like. remember this website is here because of boaters if it is limited to the people who own skaters, mti, mystics, cigs than it will probably not survive. Along with the vendors and everyone else. The market is going to have to change to get more people into the sport.

Just because brunswick or genmar do not do something does not mean it is not better. They have many different models so for them to be building backs to their molds for many different boats and buying new eqipment for molding etc.

I will tell you rtm would be the best finish a boat has ever had the inside of the hull would look like the outside you could use white pigmented resin and not have to gelcoat the you could mold the bottom with stringers and bulkeads in one time the cabin finish would be smooth like the outside on the inside no extra work just install interior. Downside existing molds have to have some work done to them (depends on flange size) and you have to build a back mold that fits perfect (this takes time a lot) but if you had 2 or 3 models it would not be bad. Oh yeah not to forget you now have 2 mold for every part or 4 molds per boat so space could become an issue if you had 10 different models.

I will say this in boatbuilding or any other business you do the same thing as someone else the best results possible is getting the same thing as them. If you think outside the box you could get different results. Maybe bad maybe not.
 
I don't know if anyone already said this, but engines and drives, especially on the high-end of the horsepower scale, often represent one-third or more of the cost of the boat.

No question, high-performance marine engines are crazy expensive. Then again, they get put through hell and if there's one true thing about power in go-fast boats: Car stuff doesn't hold up.
 
The single most significant challenge that any business in any market in the entire history of commerce has ever had is finding customers and selling product. It's also one of the most expensive.

As far as Genmar and Brunswick, these people have an army of experienced engineers and MBA's looking at the best practices of not only this entire industry but may that are analogous and most likely many that on the surface bear little resemblance. By the way, Genmar was a pioneer in closed molding and has been building boats that way for almost a decade. I believe it was Four Winns that did it first.

If there was an epiphany anywhere in your formula, I'd be the first guy interested. But your model depends on efficiencies that simply don't exist. The real-business/big-business guys have been wringing costs out for a couple decades. And the small-business guys have been short-cutting costs out since boats have been being made.

I applaud your enthusiasm and appreciate the fact that the sport has significant cost barriers that aren't getting much better. But I fear that's just a reality of modern times and expensive toys.
 
There is a reason 90% of new businesses fail. From the outside it seems so possible. From the inside it is often like climbing Mt Everest.
SQ
 
DB - You can think outside the box and this is what the little manufactuerers do to remain compeitive. They tool their own molds and plugs, and refine their processes as much as possible. By offering a unique product they attract and keep customers.

Think twice about acquiring molds!

Liability insurance is huge- buying Bajas molds? You just inherited that lines liability. I know more than one story about builders being sued over problems with boats they didnt even build! - they all lost the suits.
They bought a company or a mold from an existing owner and continued production with it- you are now liable for everything that came before you.
doesnt sound right but it is.

Warranty provisioning labor is big as well- whats your hull warranty?
How bout nose to tail warranty?

- got bad batch of gauges- they companies will replace the gauge but guess who eats the labor. Bad engine?
Merc /Ilmor will replace it, but you eat the labor.

It's not an impossible business by any stretch, but it is trickier than it appears.

Uncle Dave
 
Although maybe the figures may be off I know there is a line between my figures and $70,000+ for the same 25ft boat. And as has been discussed we do not know the cost that genmar and brunswick build boats for. There is probably a chance they are building boats with similar numbers keep in mind they are doing exactly what I said controlling all costs except when they buy engine parts, drive parts etc. it is from a manufacturer so they are saving yet another person in the food chain. I think it is possible so maybe the 35 ft twin boat is $75,000 still a good deal.
 
Although maybe the figures may be off I know there is a line between my figures and $70,000+ for the same 25ft boat. And as has been discussed we do not know the cost that genmar and brunswick build boats for. There is probably a chance they are building boats with similar numbers keep in mind they are doing exactly what I said controlling all costs except when they buy engine parts, drive parts etc. it is from a manufacturer so they are saving yet another person in the food chain. I think it is possible so maybe the 35 ft twin boat is $75,000 still a good deal.

I don't know where you are, but if you care to travel, I can sit you in front of at least 3 or 4 boatbuilders that have been doing this since the 70's and 80's. They can walk you through every inch of the economic model you describe.

On your powerplant theory- I hate to be the wet blanket here on your ideas and enthusiasm, but Volvo left the space because people were unwilling to not buy the peace-of-mind that came with the Mercruiser product. And that's when they had a servicing dealer in their back yard. Bayliner bought Chrysler and produced them as Force in-house. Outboards and I/O's. They now ship with Merc in them. So the idea that you can produce and sell unbranded propulsion has been tried- unsuccessfully. Attempting it via mail order with no dealer support makes it a leap of many magnitudes greater. And the final blow- your power packages must now be EPA certified on emissions. You're going to have to move a substantial amount of product to recoup those costs.
 
Amen, Chris.

If you want a "cheap" hobby, high-performance boating isn't it. If you feel you're being gouged, use your power as a consumer and ... don't buy.
 
It was a Fad to be cool and buy a boat for most people.

Hey they had a ton of equity in their house from overnight nonexsistent appreciation and the Johnsons nextdoor just bought one of them fancy go fast boats,and by god I have more equity than them damn Johnsons so I am buying a bigger and faster boat.

The glory days are over.

All that is left is the heavy hitters, and the guys that live for this stuff that build their motors and repair their wrecks while saving their pennys to buy gas so they can go out 3 months of the year and beat the chit out of it. The rest were just posers.

I have been a hardcore boater since i was 4 in sailboats and offshoreboats and what ever the hell else would float somedays.Many of the people that i have seen that have gotten into boating after a couple years realize it was fun but there is other stuff they like better and than there is the others who bit off more boat than they could chew and either liquidated them or walked.
Personally I am happy to see things calm down in the boating world,Sorry for the industry but that is the way the ball rolls and it was bound to happen.

Another thing is all the new guys think everybody should be entitled to a 500hp bullet proof well idiling stainless steel header 90mph boat ratteling the windows on some little lake or river, They are offshore boats not lake or river boats.
Back in the day a 27 Magnum or 28 Cig with some basically stock engines with cast manifolds was a hot piece of machinery that was a well built no frills offshore that was thought pricey in the day.

I am aghast at the prices of the high end machinery but have you seen the options and amount of detail that goes into them. 20 years ago you would not have ever dreamed it.
And come on 700 to 1400hp engines that joe stockbroker can dock the boat with and not blowup on his 1st run out.

You could probably build a boat with comparable fitting out and quality as the boats of yesteryear for a decent price but nobody would buy it.
Their wife would want the swirly Boo-Bob Splatter Puke Cartoon paint job and the Electro-San head with microwave and suede interior cushions with the optional A/C because her new fake boobs make her sweat when she tinkles , So there goes anothe 60 grand on a 35 footer.
Than the guys would have to have the latest Gps with weather overlay and and top of the line gauges and latham anodized everthing along with a matching gold anchor chain to prove they have been a captain of the seas for all of 2 weeks. Next thing you know your $100.000 boat turned into a $200.000 boat.

Was it the manufactures fault. No, It was the public that thinks they need all this frills and crap to go out and race around in a offshore boat and come back to the dock with a big chiteaten grin at the end of the day.

What it alls comes down to is it's tough to beat a day bombing around in a little 18 Donzi and at the end of the day throw it in the garage and have a beer.Its all about the fun factor , yet I have seen way to many people caught up in the want or ego aspect of owning a boat whether it is a cruiser,sailboat, or offshoreboat .

There will be a glut of boats for the next 10 years just from the repos and used and the few manufactures left standing.

Additionally the boating industry will face the same challenge as the housing market of how do you build and sell for the same as what you can buy a quality used product currently on the market.

Sorry for the long post, kinda bored. Feel free to rip me a new one,:sifone:
 
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I don't care about a cheap hobby I am discussing a business plan along with a different one i discussed on the other site. Every business has people who say it won't work words like "if it could be done it would have already" and "We have done it this way for XX years and that will never work" I could cite a million examples but I would just be thrown to the wolves.

I do understand the emissions thing I'm sure there would be some cost. Maybe the key is to be mercurys biggest customer. How much are 525's? what drives do they come with?

Long story short business in general is going 2 ways really high end or inexpensive (not cheap) I am not trying to "get into a cheap hobby" I'm trying to find a way to make money with boats in the new economy that may or may not change if it does not for a long time.
 
I do understand your post and I understand the thing about used. On the other site I had an idea for a magazine that fixes used boats some very vocal people said It was a stupid idea that would never work. I am just putting ideas out there and looking for something. I'm sure it is there finding it is the big thing I have some time and the first thing I try may not be the best or even work but I will keep trying
 
There will exist 2 factors that will be the realm of the problem for your economic solution so that every citizen of the United States can have a 35 foot offshoreboat in their garage.

1. The middle class is dropping like flies and will not recover for 10 years at best if they ever do.

2. Is the price of fuel is going to be back up to 4 bucks a gallon here soon even though there is a glut, because of the weak dollar and the Wallstreet crooks playin it.

Joe Schmoe is not going to be in any position to drop 400 bucks every weekend to go out for a 1 hour blast on Saturday and Sunday let alone afford the maintanance even if you gave them the boat.

It is a expensive labor intensive Hobby if you can fix your chit, and much more costly if your only skill you bring to the table is cash.
 
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