January 2007
I really have to apologize for not having updated the newsletter sooner than now. A lot has happened since I last wrote.
On November 4th we said final farewell to my father-in-law, Edward Dinkins. I won’t get too mushy here because he wouldn’t have wanted that but Ed was a good father, a responsible man, a veteran wounded in combat, but most of all Ed was a gentle man. I use two words here. Of course he was a gentleman as well but I don’t know as I’ve ever met anyone who was as kind as he to those who could not defend themselves. And in the end I guess that’s as good a mark of a man as we need to use.
Top 100
On November 15th we were honored by Boating Industry Magazine as one of the Top 100 Boat Dealers in North America. I flew Sally out for the awards dinner in Vegas; I was already out there for a 20 Group meeting and Marine Retailers Convention. What does this award mean? Well I’d say that once you get past the quantitative stuff to the qualitative, the Editors just felt like we’d be a great place to buy a boat or work at. After reading my application, they said they came away wishing they had my job. And you know what, they’re right. Anymore, my job really comes down to two things—talking with customers and coaching. The customers (you) have never been better. I can truthfully say that we boast the best, highest-class customers in the world. You come from all walks of life, every ethnic and religious background, and yet no one is ever a stranger at the marina. There is a common bond of high ethics and a desire to live a full, fun, high quality life that all of you share. People would kill for my client list, and will never get it. I want to thank each and every one of you winners, not just for being a part of the team and not just for doing business with us, but for making my life so happy. If it weren’t for you I’d never have had the positive energy necessary to lead us to where we are much less the energy it will take to lead us to where we will go. I am nothing but grateful.
As for the coaching, well that’s a full-time job. What’s going on is the people I work with have gotten good enough to get us to this point and now are already past that. I find myself reading and learning at a faster pace than ever just to stay in front. And that’s harder to do each day. The staff is the most proficient it’s ever been and a lot of the resources we will spend in this off-season will be on them because they are the engine that will drive this company in the future. Our success depends on them finding more and better ways to serve you while improving the financial performance of the company. Every full-time and part-time employee is receiving intense training, too much to list here. Out of the Top 100, we were second in training expense as a percentage of our gross profit. Our goal is to be number one in that category next year. Here again, I guess I’m a lucky guy to have my job.
Boat Show Season
As for upcoming events—boat show season is upon us. We have had many customers step forward that would like to work the show and we’d love to have the help! Fredericksburg runs Jan 26-28. The 46th Annual Washington Boat Show runs from February 15th–19th. For more information visit www.washingtonboatshow.com. The National Capital Boat Show in Chantilly runs from March 9th–11th. Please visit their site at www.royalshows.com.
Spring Kickoff Party
Our Spring Kickoff Party is slated for March 17th. That will be a chance for future customers to meet present ones and just all hang out and have a great time.
Projects in the Works
We are working on more projects around the marina in preparation for spring. The bathouse is now climate-controlled, we will be improving the pier lighting and services going out the piers, and we will be spending roughly $25,000 renovating the lift. That should hold us for now unless I can get a pile driver in to replace the slip behind mom’s house. It’s badly needed and I want to get the whole thing shifted so there’s more space to maneuver in front of the downriver side of A pier.
That’s it for now! More sooner I promise,
Joe
Contact Information
Joe Hoffmaster—Sales Manager, General Manager, Sales Specialist new boats. M, T,W, and F
8am-4pm, Sat 10am-4pm.
Martha Hoffmaster—Chief Financial Officer; M, T, Th and F 8:30am-11am, 12:30pm-3pm.
Judy Chilcot—Accounts Receivables, billing questions, and boat sales; M-F 8:30am-4pm.
Terry Verity—Service Writer
Jeff Atwood—Parts Manager, Parts and service questions, Sales Specialist; M-F; 8am-4pm.
Charles Hedrick—Sales Specialist; M, W, Th, and F 8:30am-4pm; Sat 10am-4pm; Sun Noon-4pm or by appointment.
Tracey Crowell—Parts and Accessories; M-F 9:30am-4:30pm. Weekends by appointment only.
Sam Childress—Lead Tech/Foreman M-F; 8am-4pm.
David Brigante—Delivery Specialist, compliance, ship's sytems M-F; 8am-4pm.
John Louisor—Marine Coatings specialist, lead lift operator, ship's systems M-F; 8am-4pm.
Dave McMillan—Volvo Penta Certified Tech, Fiberglass Repair, ship's systems M-F; 8am-4pm.
Jon Hanner—Volvo Penta Certified Tech, Electronics and Electrical Specialist M-F; 8am-4pm.
For Service and parts orders and follow-up, call Terry or Jeff. On the weekends leave Terry notes. Parts order forms and work order forms are located on the parts counter. Anybody in the store can assist you with this.
To put your boat up on brokerage or to get a value call Chuck.
If you have a question about your bill call Judy.
