Carlazzomark
02-05-2008, 02:27 AM
First, please forgive me if my lack of an historical context demonstrates my ignorance of past or present attempts to accomplish similar goals.
My proposal is to promote the organization of a variety of relationships and structures for independent boat designers and builders who wish to make their products commercial successes.
Market success depends not only on good design, but also on reasonable manufacturing costs, marketing, and distribution. This holds true for many hand crafted boats as it does for mass produced boats.
I would like to open up (or join) discussions on how independents without access to large amounts of capital can cooperate in order to achieve their individual successes.
BoatDesign.net and other forums have gone a long way in promoting the exchange of ideas. I believe those of us who wish to have commercial success need additional, concrete ways to tap into the marketplace.
Think of the Sundance Film Festival, which was formed to give exposure to independent films and bring many to commercial success. Or any number of agricultural cooperatives that pool resources for common needs such as milling, warehousing, and distribution. Or a whole host of marketing partnerships in the consumer goods arena which cross-promote products.
We can identify the challenges we all face as small, innovative boat makers: high material costs due to small orders, resistance of the marketplace (which largely is a factor of marketing investment), the difficulty of finding dealers who will carry our products, and high distribution costs.
The outcomes are up to all of us, and might include an Independent Boat Manufacturers Association, a funded marketing group, an international distribution network, or even one-to-one partnerships.
I propose that we discuss these opportunities for a year and see what develops.
Thanks,
Mark Vermilion
Marco Polo Boats, Inc.
My proposal is to promote the organization of a variety of relationships and structures for independent boat designers and builders who wish to make their products commercial successes.
Market success depends not only on good design, but also on reasonable manufacturing costs, marketing, and distribution. This holds true for many hand crafted boats as it does for mass produced boats.
I would like to open up (or join) discussions on how independents without access to large amounts of capital can cooperate in order to achieve their individual successes.
BoatDesign.net and other forums have gone a long way in promoting the exchange of ideas. I believe those of us who wish to have commercial success need additional, concrete ways to tap into the marketplace.
Think of the Sundance Film Festival, which was formed to give exposure to independent films and bring many to commercial success. Or any number of agricultural cooperatives that pool resources for common needs such as milling, warehousing, and distribution. Or a whole host of marketing partnerships in the consumer goods arena which cross-promote products.
We can identify the challenges we all face as small, innovative boat makers: high material costs due to small orders, resistance of the marketplace (which largely is a factor of marketing investment), the difficulty of finding dealers who will carry our products, and high distribution costs.
The outcomes are up to all of us, and might include an Independent Boat Manufacturers Association, a funded marketing group, an international distribution network, or even one-to-one partnerships.
I propose that we discuss these opportunities for a year and see what develops.
Thanks,
Mark Vermilion
Marco Polo Boats, Inc.