Got Boats? NMMA and our friends at MRAA are proving that OEMs and retailers can counter the pandemic. In this case, a rising tide literally floats all boats! Crossing directly over into the powersports market space, PWC sales were up 8% in the past year, according to the National Marine Manufacturers Association.
NMMA Reports Boat Sales Reach 13-Year High
NMMA reports retail unit sales of new powerboats in the U.S. increased last year by an estimated 12% compared to 2019. More than 310,000 new powerboats were sold in 2020, levels the recreational boating industry has not seen since before the Great Recession in 2008.
“2020 was an extraordinary year for new powerboat sales as more Americans took to the water to escape pandemic stress and enjoy the outdoors safely,” said Frank Hugelmeyer, NMMA president. “For the first time in more than a decade, we saw an increase in first-time boat buyers, who helped spur growth of versatile, smaller boats – less than 26 feet – that are often towed to local waterways and provide a variety of boating experiences, from fishing to watersports.”
The following new powerboat categories drove record retail unit sales in 2020:
• Sales of personal watercraft, including Jet Ski, Sea Doo and WaveRunner are estimated to be up 8% to 82,000 units in 2020; with accessible entry-level price points, personal watercraft are often considered a gateway to boat ownership.
• Sales of wake boats—popular for wakesurfing, skiing and wakeboarding and attractive to new and active boaters — are estimated to be up 20% to 13,000 units in 2020.
• Sales of freshwater fishing boats and pontoon boats, often sought for their versatility and entry-level price points and accounting for 50% of new powerboats sold in 2020, are expected to be up 12% to 143,000 units.
