Navigating the Roanoke Boat & RV Show

FILE | Laker Media

FILE | Laker Media

Virgil Naff (center) talks to Boat Show visitors about Sea-Doo models at the 2009 show.

Optimism is the word among boat show dealers this year. After a rough 2009 when they endured a triple whammy of a sluggish economy, high gasoline prices and heavy snow the weekend of the show, dealers are hoping for a better 2010.

"We're not real boastful about it, but we're optimistic," said Kimbra Swett, co-owner of Ace Marine in Stuarts Draft. "We're keeping our fingers crossed."

Fingers are crossed and eyes are on the forecast to see if winter will grant a reprieve for the 37th annual Southwest Virginia Boat Dealers Association's show of new watercraft that starts today at the Roanoke Civic Center.

"We would like sunny weather and 60-degree temperatures and then people will just come out in droves," said Swett.

People haven't been coming out in droves in recent years. Attendance has dropped and there are fewer dealers exhibiting.

Boat show woes are evident across the country, with some shows canceling this year, including the New Orleans Boat & Sport Show and Washington (D.C.) Boat Show. In press releases, the associations in charge blamed the economy.

As shows are canceled, shortened or undergo face-lifts to attract more visitors, the Roanoke Boat & RV Show is sticking to the blueprint its Association has used for more than 30 years. Leaving glitz and glam to the other shows, it targets the serious boat buyer.

Mary Yeaman, finance manager of Hughes Marine in Danville, said she'll happily trade 50 "tire-kickers" for five visitors who want to buy. Yeaman said browsers are, of course, welcome. Sometimes they come just to kick tires and dream, but wind up finding the perfect boats and signing contracts.

Virgil Naff, Association president and owner of Virgil Naff Lynchburg Kawasaki Yamaha and SeaDoo, said the Roanoke Boat & RV Show doesn't face the same financial challenges as some other shows.

"The underlying reason for show cancellations is due to the fact that most shows are run by a promoter, who marks up the show cost per participant as much as possible to make a huge profit," wrote Naff in an e-mail. "In contrast, our association is the promoter and we avoid the huge markup on space"

The Association is a nonprofit whose members are dealers, said Darrell Ross, show coordinator. He said profits are not divided among members.

"Their objective is to sell boats and then break even on the show," said Ross.

Lee Arnold, general manager of Smith Mountain Yacht Club in Moneta, said most years, the Association makes money on the show.

"If we make money, we hold most of the profit for the next year," wrote Naff, who declined to reveal figures from previous shows. "And if we come up short and sufficient funds are not available, we assess each member based on square footage."

In addition to the cost of using the Civic Center, the Association must pay for setup, security and advertising.

Naff said the majority of show funding comes from the boat dealers who pay per square foot of floor space used at the Civic Center. The Association also receives money from other vendors and a portion of the ticket sales.

Attendance factors

Weather is the biggest factor when it comes to attendance, said area dealers. In 2009, the show attracted 1,750 visitors, according to the Roanoke Civic Center, down from 2,400 in 2008. However, it snowed two days of last year's three-day show. The weather in 2008 was better.

Arnold said the Association operated at a loss from last year's show because of low attendance.

Good weather also can hamper attendance, said Yeaman.

"If it's too pretty, people hit the golf course or all the things that compete with us," she said.

Then again, snow might not be much of a deterrent this year.

"I wouldn't be surprised if we're up this year, even if the weather is marginal," said Arnold. "There's pent-up demand to get out of the house and get this spring going on."

Yeaman said reports from surviving East Coast boat shows have been promising, showing higher attendance and sales.

Other attendance factors include the economy, consumer confidence and innovation in watercraft. When everything lines up perfectly, it can be a show to remember for boat dealers. Arnold recalled 1987 as one of the best years.

"I think we had everything going right," he recalled. "The economy was good, fuel was low, the Reaganomics thing was going full stride. It was unprecedented, the numbers we were selling."

When things don't line up, dealers, who pony up the money not only to rent floor space but to trailer boats to and from the show and to hire extra workers for the event, pay.

"Overall expense to [the Yacht Club] is $20,000," said Arnold.

But even on years when the Association operates at a loss, the expense of participating in the show and filling in the monetary gaps is worth it, said dealers.

"The boat show is very important," said Yeaman. "I make contacts at that show that sustain us throughout the year."

She said it's not uncommon to receive calls or have walk-in clients who say they saw a boat at the show this year, last year, or even a few years ago, and now they're ready to buy.

Internet age

Swett said dealers often can tell the serious buyers based on their knowledge of the boats they're looking to buy. The Internet has provided potential buyers the opportunity to research beforehand.

"If they're real serious, they'll do their homework," said Swett.

Despite doomsayers in the blogging world who say the Internet is killing boat shows, dealers in the Association said they don't believe the Roanoke show can be replaced.

"The Internet cannot hope to compete with a boat show," wrote Naff. "A boat show purchase in most instances represents a considerable investment that demands the consumer to see and touch, not to mention compare."

Yeaman said potential buyers may like the red boat they see on the Internet, but when they get to the show, they find it's actually orange.

"You might get a guy that's 6-foot-4 and he can't fit behind a 16-foot boat's console," said Arnold. "Those kind of light-touch inputs are still mandatory to come to the show and get a feel for the boat itself."

Another benefit of buying at the boat show or from an area dealer is expedience of service, said Naff. When someone buys from outside the area or via the Internet and tries to have their boat serviced at area dealers, they can find themselves at the bottom of the list.

Boat show changes

With boat shows around the country adding seminars or other events to attract visitors, the Roanoke Boat & RV Show hasn't changed much in the last 37 years, said participating dealers.

"Most of those quick fixes that a lot of these shows are trying to do to promote traffic aren't sustainable," said Arnold.

Plus, he said, the market he and other dealers are trying to attract can't be seduced by marketing ploys and second-rate entertainment. The boat show depends, in part, on the SML community, which Arnold called "a fairly mature market." Too many bells and whistles and the buyers may stay home.

"We really get down to the crux of the boat show being about boats," said Arnold.

In 2008, the boat show featured an indoor wakeboarding event. Attendance numbers were up that year -- 2,400 from 2,154 in 2007 -- but even with the Rail Jam, attendance was down from 2,915 in 2006.

The only major change to the show came with the opening of the 40,000-square-foot Special Events Center at the Roanoke Civic Center in 2008, said dealers. Before that, some dealers exhibited in the parking lot.

The addition gave dealers space to spread out, said Yeaman. Hughes Marine, which had part of its exhibit outside, used to bring about seven boats to the show. Now, she said, it brings about 20.

Also changing through the years has been the number of participating dealers.

"In the early years, the SML population was growing at double-digit increases each year and the Association had as many as 16 dealers as business was robust and supported the number," wrote Naff.

This year, there are eight dealers. Some of the former exhibitors have gone out of business, said Arnold. Other dealers are no longer Association members.

Industry belt-tightening may be a factor, boat manufacturers are not giving as much money to sponsor their dealers at shows as they have in the past.

"They help, but it's starting to wane quite a bit as they're fiscally having to watch their dollars tighter," said Arnold. "We are not getting nearly as much of our donor money."

Boat show future

Several Association members said they believe the Roanoke Boat & RV Show will survive.

"I know that our dealership in particular is very committed to the success of that show because it relates to our success as well," said Yeaman.

Arnold said the show is a great financial kick-start to the year, pushing the selling season earlier. He said manufacturer and dealer incentives such as rebates and extended warranties encourage people to buy during the show. Many of those incentives are only available then.

Yeaman said the Roanoke show needs to continue because the closest boat shows are in Richmond and Greensboro; the Smith Mountain Lake community has come to rely on the show to see the newest watercraft lines, she said.

As long as there are dealers to represent, it looks like the show will go on.

"I think the dealers that have been hanging in there and been able to survive so far. I think they'll come out on top," said Swett.

And the show, she said, "will be around for a while," too.

2010 BOAT SHOW

When: Friday, Feb. 26, 1 to 8 p.m.; Saturday, Feb. 27, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Sunday, Feb. 28, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Where: Roanoke Civic Center Coliseum and Special Events Center, Williamson Road, Roanoke

Cost: $7.50; children 12 and under are free

Information: www.roanokeboatshow.com