Stabicraft Boats has relocated its service centre and Southland showroom to make room for expanded production
“Demand is exceeding supply. It’s been very strong over the past couple of years and we’re looking at a 12-month order book,”says CEO David Glenn.
The new location added seven jobs and is operated by dealer principal Hayden Sayer, who plans to add staff as the new location establishes itself.
“The challenge will be getting him the amount of boats he needs,” Glenn said.
As with the rest of the industry around the globe, supply chain issues have hampered the builder of their aluminium monohulls.
“The good part is we know that every boat is sold before it arrives,” Sayer said, adding that plans include an expanded retail operation offering water toys, sporting goods and fishing equipment.
“We’ve had really good foot traffic so far. It’s increasing each week,” he said.Stabicraft has 33 dealers in New Zealand, Australia, North America, Sweden and Caledonia. The 10 North American locations are scattered along the US Pacific Northwest and Canadian Western provinces. In 1987, founders Paul Adams and Bruce Dickens built their first rigid hulled aluminium chambered boat, a 3.5m dinghy called the ‘Ally Duck’, and signed their first dealer a year later.
Production began in the UK in 1992 with its first exports going to Australia and the US in 1994. A factory upgrade in 2001 doubled capacity to 500 boats annually, and a second manufacturing space for large custom builds and a dedicated service centre were completed in 2008. Current production targets is around 1000 boats annually.
