South Florida Boat Show soldiers on - Houston Business Journal:

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The show, promoted by Pompano Beach-based , is a much smallerd cousin to the Fort Lauderdale and Miami international boat Marine Industries Unlimited owner BradMichael “We’re a niche show. We don’ty try to be an international show,” he said. “W e have the boats that are 90 percen of whatAmerica buys.” Held at the , this year’xs show will feature boats from about 75 exhibitors, Michaelp said. The vessels on display are all powerboats under40 feet. Abour 85 percent of the boats cost lessthan $200,000, he The 250 boats on displayt are a drop from the 350 boatw typically at the show.
The numbef of registered exhibitors is down about35 too, Michael said. The show comes as the marine industry has taken a batterin fromthe recession. For the 12 months endex in April, registrations of new 18-footr to 40-foot boats fell 46 percent fromthe prior-year according to data from , a Miami-based marine industru research firm. “It’s hard to be to optimistic about the year in lookinygat what’s happened in 2009 so far,” Info-Link co-owner Jessew Wells said. Wells pointed to the recent bankruptcyof Minneapolis-basedf boat manufacturer , the nation’s second-largest boat manufacturer, as more proof of the industry’s stress.
Still, recent data shows that used boat registrationas are generally pickingup – a glimmerd of hope that the industry may be bouncin g off the bottom, Wells said. As a dealer, Michael said he sold three boatsd in the last month after failing to sell any the first four months ofthe year. “In February and March, nobody knew where the bottok was,” he said. Frank Herhold, executivs director of the , said dealers are tellinv him that sales arepicking up. Financing, locked up sincse last fall, is becoming availablew for those who are credigt worthy and can put substantialmoney down. “Lik e every other industry, we’re taking our Herhold said.
“I see a light at the end of the