Need help to start new boat building business

[catob]

Hi All,
I am determined to start my dream business of making power boats for leisure and fishing. I need some tips on where to find good quality molds, material and technical know how. I am from the Arabian Gulf and the business opportunity looks very good. Any help is very much appreciated.

[longliner45]

I am not a designer ,,,but you will do good to learn to make your own molds ,,do the business from the start to finish,,,,,I am not a business man either ,,but I do know ,is that employess are a key factor,,,hire and pay well good craftsman ,,with good reputations,,and stay at the yard ,,,,,,,,,alott,there is no free meal anywere,,, your in for a alot of work..,,I admire your guts,,,,,,good luck ,longliner

[Kaptin-Jer]

What, if any, is the boat construction business like in your part of the world? I see Brunei building islands with every house a waterfront, but I never see a boat? Who would be your market? The Mercedes Jeep crowd? Are they into big Go Fast formula types, 15 meter cruisers, or racing sailboats? I'm sure you have done the market research. I am just curios.

If you have the backing to do it right follow what Longliner said. Find a good Marine Architect. Let him design the boat, and have the molds professional built. Build one or two prototypes and try to pre-sell the future boats from these.
If you are starting out with a dream and your wife's kiss on your cheek --- then thats another game. You still have to do the market research to find out what you should be building. Next is to build the mold. There are obvious ways to do this, but to start out morally right you need to build a male hull to your design then build the female mold from that.

[PsiPhi]

I know little about business, and less about boats, but a couple of things I would suggest you keep in mind.

- build what people want to buy, not what you want to build (at least until you get a reputation of your own)
- if you can find a niche, a genuine and consistent demand for something that is not easily available, you will have a better chance against all the other people with the same dream as you
- when you price up you're end product most people forget to add the time they spent as a part of the cost, if you don't there will be no money to pay yourself with.

Good Luck - wish I had had the guts to do something similar 30 years ago.

[masalai]

Hi Catob,
Like the rest of the postings, Good luck, not shouting but DO A BUSINESS PLAN, which includes all the research suggested above and then some. Write it all down and cost it, including your research.

Seek out Bill Barry-Cotter for the big & heary machines in the marine equivalent F1 which races at Dubai as part of the circuit. Tennant produces some nifty designes. Read his stuff too. Seek the views of Robin Chamberlin (now living in Tasmania) & Kanga Bartles (all Australian/New Zealander people, but then I am biased. I am designing my own but very much the novice.

[Ike]

take a look at my web site. There may be some info there that can help you on running a business, Although it is aimed mostly at US, Canadian and European builders, some prinicples are the same anywhere.
New Boat Builders Home page at http://newboatbuilders.com

[nawaratne]

Originally Posted by catob

Hi All,
I am determined to start my dream business of making power boats for leisure and fishing. I need some tips on where to find good quality molds, material and technical know how. I am from the Arabian Gulf and the business opportunity looks very good. Any help is very much appreciated.

I can help you to start your dream busines back in Auckland New Zealand owner of the Bonito boats wants to sell all his moulds to someone interesting to start up business .If you keen to have alookat these moulds I can send some photos .The owner wants to quit the business as he has been nearly 30 odd years.
Ihave inspect these moulds they are mint condition and what you need he got everything.
If you want to buy he will everything.
Please reply
Regards,

NB: I can help you to start up with this business as I'm a qualified Boatbuilder almost 25 years back in NewZealand and SriLanka
My experience from powerboats leisure crafts to Superyachts etc

Francis

[nawaratne]

I'm a qualified Composite Boat builder and i can help you to start up with

[catob]

Fancis,
I am interstead in seeing these molds and appreciate your help. I see you were working in Dubai. Did you work on building boats in Dubai? Please email me at ycato2001@hotmail.com

[nawaratne]

Hi cato,
I'm happy to help you to start up this boat building business,furthermore I would like to ask you what sought capital you can put into this business.
I have very good contact with the boatbuilding firm in Auckland,and they would like to sell their molds to offshore.Iwill forward some photos tkaen recently.
Please reply

Francis

[catob]

Francis,
I am thinking of investing upto US $0.5 Million and if things go OK I can inject more.

[nawaratne]

Hi Cato,
Sounds goods to me, I will forward some photos taken recently in this boat yard.
I may send these photos to your personal email and you will get a clear picture about these molds.
I strongly recommend to you if you can brief visit to NZ ,i can assist to have tour to this boatyard.
Kind Regards,

Francis

[nawaratne]

Hi Cato,
Find these photos taken from yard recently.They presented a project
report to me which I will forward tomorrow.
Have a good look at these molds, he wants to sell all the molds which
can produce 12 boats (conventional) and also all the components to go with it.
If this deal goes, we are looking at at least 2X 40 ft containers to
shipped.
I will give you the charges ASAP once I recieve., by the way you got
factory to start up with.How big the factory is??.
To my understanding it will be around( $450.000 US) he 's asking for the
whole business to sell approx NZ$ 600,000.
To my personal view is this deal is very good to start up with and I known
to him nearly 17 years.
This is his website:www.bonito.co.nz
Have a good look at his projects he has done so far.

Please reply!!

Kind Regards,

Francis

[ratrace2]

Originally Posted by catob

Hi All,
I am determined to start my dream business of making power boats for leisure and fishing. I need some tips on where to find good quality molds, material and technical know how. I am from the Arabian Gulf and the business opportunity looks very good. Any help is very much appreciated.

It was once asked of a kind man with a racing car, "How did you make a small fortune in racing"; he replied, it took a large one".

If I had a factory for black and white tv's would you buy that too; so, why are you thinking of buying a boat factory with molds that is going out of business?

Now, No more mister nice guy.
Do you have any idea how many used boats there are currently on the US market? Huh?
Recession, Recession, Recession? whose goin'ta buy your boat?
What is in style, Now; how many times do you see BOATS on the TV.
Miami Vice is out of style!!!!
Who are the two, current, most popular manufacturers of boats, Could Bertram be one, Sea-Ray the other......? maybe.
What do you have in the way of a boat design that is so spectacular that it makes me want to sell my wife? What ya got?
--------------------------------------------------------------
Now, Mister Nice Guy.
What is a jet-ski?
Why are they so popular?
If polymorphism was applied to a jet-ski what would it look like?
Could the market absord a mutant jet-ski?
Why do they sell so many jet-ski's?
Does a jet-ski have military applications?
------------------------------------------------------------
Now, Mister Nice guy continued:
How may times have you examined a piece of sculpture? for hours?
Do you know what CAD is?
Do you know what CAM is?
Do you know what CNC is?
Do you know how to make a presentation with a Model?
Can you psychologicaly project a customer to place you want them to be?
Have you ever sought and retained sponsors for an event?
Have you ever worked as a salesman?
Do you understand contract law? US.
This is just the beginning, If you think I'm hard on you just wait and see what the market does to you.

[ratrace2]

Originally Posted by PsiPhi

I know little about business, and less about boats, but a couple of things I would suggest you keep in mind.

- build what people want to buy, not what you want to build (at least until you get a reputation of your own)
- if you can find a niche, a genuine and consistent demand for something that is not easily available, you will have a better chance against all the other people with the same dream as you
- when you price up you're end product most people forget to add the time they spent as a part of the cost, if you don't there will be no money to pay yourself with.

Good Luck - wish I had had the guts to do something similar 30 years ago.

Go out in your back yard and get started.......................you a'nt dead yet.