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I own a fishing tackle company and we had a booth in the convention center this year.. I must say, the traffic on Saturday and even Friday impressed me.. We had a better than expected show, and overall there seemed to be more people buying. People seemed more inclined to fork over several hundred dollars than they were last year.. Hopefully that is a reflection of the economy and not my imagination.
From a consumer standpoint, it was a little sad to see so many vendors not in the show this year. There were actually empty voids on the first floor, and this is in spite of no second floor in the convention center. Additionally, the entry fee was the same as last year, which I know got under the skin of some people who attended. For the most part though, it was a good show and I still think the Bahia Mar adds a certain aspect to the Ft Lauderdale show that the Miami show lacks..
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That's a whole different issue.
No idea what that was all about?
Back to the issue of scanning DL licenses for at the show entrance, yes it was voluntary, but I had an issue with that also.
Sorry, I thought you were addressing the port entrance.
Its money. homeland security money. be it private, public, federal or local. there is money waiting to be handed out/ Its not Obama money its tax dollars. Its a feel good money grabbing scam. thats all it is. I can tell you that there are more muslim foriegners already on the inside of most of our ports then trying to sneak in???? they work on the ships that come to port. Its about money.
I own a fishing tackle company and we had a booth in the convention center this year..
There were actually empty voids on the first floor, and this is in spite of no second floor in the convention center.
Sorry to hear you were at the convention center and not the beach side - I started walking through the booths over there, saw couple dozen timeshares, shamwow, insurance, save the seals etc, booths - basically anything that could be remotely tied to boating but wasn't actually boating related - and gave up on the convention center and headed over to the beach. Honestly if I were a legit boating vendor there, I would be complaining, I only made a halfhearted pass of the area due to the bizarre content - some hard sell jackass trying to get me to buy a cell phone charger was the last straw over there.
That was my only real disappointment at the show, I thought the rest was fine even though it was downsized a bit.
Flot I just rec'd your e-mail, and I must say I mis-interpreted your first post to me. Your offer is most generous, but I too have the 230 Sport which is way I believe they are looking for one. Very nice offer on your part, I wish when I'm looking for my next boat someone would make me that type of generosity.
Flot I just rec'd your e-mail, and I must say I mis-interpreted your first post to me. Your offer is most generous, but I too have the 230 Sport which is way I believe they are looking for one. Very nice offer on your part, I wish when I'm looking for my next boat someone would make me that type of generosity.
Anytime, Big - I may have misunderstood you as well - since you mentioned the show, I assumed they were looking for a brand new boat - important to note that with Pro-Line, if you're looking at a 23' that could be about 35 different models/hulls over the last 10 years. (just kidding, MikeC!)
I've got the 2007+ version and happy to talk about it.
This was my first year, I have been to small shows so I was expecting a lot more out of this show. If you own a large boat, 75' or larger it was the show to be at. If like me you fish and have a small boat it was just an ok show, I get better results from St Pete, Destin, West Palm and other small shows I go to just for fun. I ahve a GREAT encounter at C&H Lures at the CC which was helpful to me. Other that troll alot would have been been unhappy but I got a lot of info there. Hats off the C&H for that. Something that I just did not understand was the number of yachts that I was invited to board. Sat am I walked the docks and tookpics of some of them, I was invited to board several of them. I declined due to time as I could spend a lot of time just looking. Overall it was a good show but like I said I have never been to FLBS so maybe Miami in 2010. My biggest regreat was I never thought about looking for Glen E at the show. I was not there for an electronic items so I skipped thoses booths. he is my hero when it comes to installs. they do some fine work. as for security I guess it does not bother me to show my ID as long as they don't want it removed from my wallet. Sad it has become a way of life now. Maybe it should bother me. Better think about this some more. The LEO's were all nice about it.
I don't like the boat show people asking for a photo ID for marketing purposes. They should be upfront about it, but of course if they are than nobody will show them their ID.
Its money. homeland security money. be it private, public, federal or local. there is money waiting to be handed out/ Its not Obama money its tax dollars. Its a feel good money grabbing scam. thats all it is. I can tell you that there are more muslim foriegners already on the inside of most of our ports then trying to sneak in???? they work on the ships that come to port. Its about money.
BLY,
You and I are just not going to agree with this issue.
On the security side, I could not be more all in.
On the marketing side, I'm at a 180.
BLY, it's the port.
From my viewpoint, it's long overdue.
Just my opinion, we're so very vulnerable, the security at the port is very appreciated by me.
I think these young men and ladies are doing a great job.
Imagine the alternatives?
We live in such a free society that we object to some security measures.
Ok, we're perhaps not all that used to the measures that maybe are required today.
Rod, That boat was built for the owner of Pro Marine and was built with the specific purpose of fishing SKA tournaments in mind. I spoke with Jim last night about the boat and he said it was unlike any 36 that Wiley has ever built.
Just wanted to give you a FYI for some of the differences you may have noticed!
What is the purpose of bringing a boat that is "unlike any 36 that Wiley has ever built."?
Chris, Thanks I did not get to see much at Bahia Mar - it was just too friggin' hot!
Anytime, Big - I may have misunderstood you as well - since you mentioned the show, I assumed they were looking for a brand new boat - important to note that with Pro-Line, if you're looking at a 23' that could be about 35 different models/hulls over the last 10 years. (just kidding, MikeC!)
I've got the 2007+ version and happy to talk about it.
Well, not that many different 23'S, but enough to often keep me confused as to the one we're actually talking about. And I'm not kidding!
Show's over, we came pretty close to hitting our goal, a very conservative goal, and I headed to the Keys last night.
My boss thinks I have some business to attend to in Islamorada.
I do.
Started off with a very nice dinner and a double handful of cold beer at the Whistle Stop. Damn, the sacrifices I'm forced to make for my company!
Hey Mike C.....Sorry about all the scuff marks, mustard from my sausage and beer I got all over your boat. I tried to be careful then a hot chick walked by and I tripped and dumped everything all over your boat.
Hey Mike C.....Sorry about all the scuff marks, mustard from my sausage and beer I got all over your boat. I tried to be careful then a hot chick walked by and I tripped and dumped everything all over your boat.
That's ok, we're kinda used to it.
Miami will be much worse.
Well, much worse as to the boats getting some wear and tear.
I've always found the lovely ladies are about 50/50 Miami Vs Lauderdale.
It's challanging for me because I'm looking for a much younger lady, perhaps fifty, maybe fifty five or so.
This show was a joke - especially Pro-line. Lay it on me Mike. I went to the show to buy. We all expect the prices to be higher than they should be, but negotiable - especially in this miserable economy. Not this year and not at Pro-line. I specifically told them I was there to buy, but they'd have to be realistic. They showed ZERO interest in working with me. It was either pay asking price or walk. I walked. Not only that, but prices have steadily increased over the past couple years (I've been looking at the same boat for 2 years). And they are setting everyone up for price increases next year. 2010 boat at 2009 prices - yeah right! They say their margins are paper thin so they are making it up in quantity. BS. They say price increases are due to motor and manufacturing increases. Again BS - not in this economy. Fine - hold onto that boat through the off-season. Wait for interest rates to rise. See how many you sell then. Good luck. Your new "marketing philosophy" backfired with me - you lost the sale. Wonder how long its going to take Pro-line to fall victim the the economy - and themselves!
I did not see any good deals at the show in fact I saw higher prices. Insulting prices I should say. Hear are a few that stood out.
$163,000 for a 26 edgewater generator on the deck with cover (looks like an after thought)
$60,000 for a 24 yellowfin no options
$53,000 for 18 hells bay neptune
$80,000 for a 24 young fully loader but still
$70,000 for a 22 boston whaler outrage definitely an outrage
$350,000 + for a 37 boston whaler outrage definitely an outrage
$498,000 for a 37 pursuit small cabin for a 37
$24,000 for a pro-lite with no inner liner interior looks like concrete stucco
The list goes on and on.
I know that most of the brands that I mentioned are top of the line but still, prices are getting ridiculous. I can't feel bad for the builders anymore, who do they think we are, especially with all of the good deals on used but fairly new boats out there.
Rod, That boat was built for the owner of Pro Marine and was built with the specific purpose of fishing SKA tournaments in mind. I spoke with Jim last night about the boat and he said it was unlike any 36 that Wiley has ever built.
Just wanted to give you a FYI for some of the differences you may have noticed!
This show was a joke - especially Pro-line. Lay it on me Mike. I went to the show to buy. We all expect the prices to be higher than they should be, but negotiable - especially in this miserable economy. Not this year and not at Pro-line. I specifically told them I was there to buy, but they'd have to be realistic. They showed ZERO interest in working with me. It was either pay asking price or walk. I walked. Not only that, but prices have steadily increased over the past couple years (I've been looking at the same boat for 2 years). And they are setting everyone up for price increases next year. 2010 boat at 2009 prices - yeah right! They say their margins are paper thin so they are making it up in quantity. BS. They say price increases are due to motor and manufacturing increases. Again BS - not in this economy. Fine - hold onto that boat through the off-season. Wait for interest rates to rise. See how many you sell then. Good luck. Your new "marketing philosophy" backfired with me - you lost the sale. Wonder how long its going to take Pro-line to fall victim the the economy - and themselves!
If you want a 2010 you are probably going to pay more no matter who builds it. Motor companies have increased their pricing and due to low volume manufacturers are running on slim margins.
The best deals are going to be from a repo or leftover 2008-09.
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(just kidding, MikeC!) 
