offshorecatcrazy

Hi and nice to meet everyone on the forum. Im a college student right now studying business, but my passion along with cars has always been offshore powerboats. My father worked for Talon Marine and I always use to visit the shop every week when I was younger.
Anyway I attended a design college for two years, things got too expensive and now im taking the business route. My friend and I want to start a super boat company eventually, but we are dead in the water as to how to go about this. Below are some boats I came up with and Ill add more if the forum shows intrest. Thanks for your time and hope to talk with you all in the future-rob

TUFFboat

Start were you are, design and build radio control (RC). Then build a small O/B. If it works keep going, and so on, and so on.

Audiofn

I would imagine that tooling for boats of that size is going to be HUGE money. Then even building one is again huge money. The boats look cool but what is to say that they will perform. You are in extreamly tough company at that level of boat. Do you think that these designs will out perform say a Skater or MTI? I don't mean to discourage you on this just some things to think about.

Jon

Chris Sunkin

Entrepreneurship is wonderful and never to be discouraged. However, the high-performance marine industry is crowded with people doing just what you want to do. We've had industry legends like Bobby Saccenti and Craig Barrie start new boat companies and sell only a few (or one) of their designs.

Now that you're in business school, they'll teach you some of this but here's a preview- Wgat's your "value proposition". What I mean is, what can you provide to the marketplace that someone isn't doing right now? After you develop that value proposition, show it to 100 potential customers- real people who can and will buy your product. If 80% say WOW and 20% want to write you a check on the spot, you've got a real business.

If you were my son, I'd tell you to stay in business school, get an advanced degree and make damn sure you graduated at the top of your class. Then make a fortune doing "something". Then, buy a boat- or work with an architect and build one of your own design.

the bear

Maybe take time and talk to some of the people who have started their own boat business, the lines are nice but your going to have to prove performance before anyone drops big money on a cat....................

BAJA WILL

I would encourage you to continue your passion, however maybe think of going to work for a company the builds Catamarans, say Eliminator, Spectre, Talon,MTI, Skater, Awsome>>>>>> it would be great experience and you could learn everything from lay up schedules, to weight ratios, structural stresses, and so on.

WILL

Ed

Yes, Chris has some good advice there. I would get Gary Armingtons phone number from your dad & give him a call. He's a nice guy & can answer all you & your business partners specific questions. Gary was your age once too! lol Good luck in your endeavors.

FROGMAN524

Make friends while you're in college with marine engineering students, electrical engineers, architects, mechanical engineers, marketing students, and other students who are studying in the fields that you would be working with in the future to develop your boat line. Then, if you end up making enough money to start your company, you already know who to go to to help get it started.

Pure Energy

Are you looking to build for race only? Most manufacturers build race boats to sell their pleasure/poker run boats. Pleasure/poker run boats may not be the fastest, but comfort, features, fit and finish, durability,and styling all come into play.

It is very competative and very expensive undertaking. But that doesn't mean you can't do it!!

offshorecatcrazy

I thank you all for your encouragement and words of advice. As to building cats for pleasure/poker runs I'd be up for that also. Almost every company that has race cats has a pleasure version and I think if i could get established and off and running I'd persue this avenue.
What I plan to do is graduate with a very respected business degree, get a job with Skater,MTI, Mystic, Nor-tec etc...then once I learn about the boat business and gain some friends through the industry I will try to break away and start my own company.
Ideally I just need two things Money lol and recognition in a product that people will want. My goals for my company are Craftsmanship,Performance and Innovation. I plan on producing three models in the future, a 34' Race cat, light with capacity for some big engines. 44' Race/Pokerrun cat with class leading performance and a 55' Race cat for the European offshore Racing series. Most of this sounds like a pipe dream, but Im really going to try and make it work.