Petrolheads see what it's all about
The marine industry put its best foot forward at the British Motor Show over the past two weeks.
For the first time the show included a number of stands exhibiting boats, from canoes up to Sunseekers, while smaller craft gave displays on the water. Visitors could also go on boat trips around Victoria Dock.
National Boat Shows (NBS), an arm of the British Marine Federation that organised the venture, are hailing it as a huge success.
The British Motor Show is held every two years at ExCeL in London and closed on Sunday.
NBS say the event generated a number of sales and valuable leads for exhibitors, while taking advantage of a potential new audience.
Andrew Williams, Managing Director at National Boat Shows, said: “Our reason for branching into this new market was to exploit the obvious links between motor and boating enthusiasts.
“We were excited by the opportunity to introduce a high quality audience to our industry, and are thrilled at the positive comments our exhibitors have fed back to us.
“The event also provides an excellent shop window for our upcoming PSP Southampton Boat Show, where we hope to see the new relationships we have developed continue to flourish.”
The Royal Victoria Dock played host to more than 35 boats of all shapes and sizes, with Sunseeker displaying some of their biggest models.
Crowds enjoyed activity on the dock, with Viper Jet Boats and Thundercats putting on displays.
Paul Potguster, Marketing Consultant at RibEye, said: “This really is an opportunity to monopolise the petrol heads. I’ve sold a boat to someone who made the visit to the show to buy a car.”
Darren Pilbeam of Essex Boatyards said: “The event has certainly surpassed our expectations and the quality is definitely out there. We have had three sales and lots of promising leads.”
Iain Smallridge of Pearl Motor Yachts added: “The sun has been shining on the marina, bringing people down to the dock edge and encouraging networking opportunities to arise.”
The PSP Southampton Boat Show runs from 12 to 21 September.
