Entrepreneur Jeb Griffith is plotting a course for growth after taking the helm of SkipperLiner, a custom houseboat and commercial passenger boat maker in La Crosse, Wis.
Griffith was a loyal SkipperLiner customer before he acquired the company in November 2010, having owned at least seven of its houseboats and one of its commercial passenger ships over the preceding two decades.
But the acquisition initially had little to do with building premium boats. Instead, Griffith was more interested in the company's 6 acres of Mississippi riverfront property.
Plans changed, however, after Griffith and his son, Pete Griffith, got a closer look at SkipperLiner's boat-building operation, which had shut down in April 2010 amid financial difficulties. That came as remaining employees worked with a buyer to complete a boat left halfway done when production stopped.
"The longer we were around, the more we fell in love with the business," Pete Griffith said. "We're all boaters and we really enjoy the boating lifestyle, so that helped as well."
Jeb Griffith, 73, grew up boating on the Mississippi and claims to have "swamp water" in his blood. He also has quite an entrepreneurial touch, having launched and sold companies that make library automation software and composite softball bats. He also owns Locknet Inc., a network security services company now headquartered in the SkipperLiner building.
The boat company was facing a bank sale, Jeb Griffith said, when he negotiated a deal to acquire its assets. The previous owner had filed for voluntary debt amortization, a bankruptcy alternative unique to Wisconsin.
The decision to restart SkipperLiner's production has meant continuing work for 16 manufacturing and four front-office employees, including designers and engineers, some with a decade or more of experience. SkipperLiner was profitable last year on sales between $5 million and $10 million, according to the Griffiths.
SkipperLiner builds custom houseboats and yachts up to 120 feet long and U.S. Coast Guard-certified passenger vessels up to 200 feet long. The company has built more than 1,000 boats since its 1971 founding.
SkipperLiners have a reputation for durability, with owners keeping them 20 years or longer in some cases, the Griffiths said. Steel hulls add to the boats' longevity and enable year-round use, making them popular with "live-aboards."
In hopes of boosting business, SkipperLiner is working to reconnect with past customers and doing research to identify leisure and commercial prospects, the Griffiths said. That research offers an optimistic view of the market, finding that 45 percent of leisure boat owners recently considering buying a bigger boat. Separate research points to a turnaround in the slower commercial market, with resorts, cruise lines and other tourist-related industries expecting stronger business.
Seeking to build international sales, the company is pursuing a business plan to reach potential customers in Asia and other parts of the world.
One challenge is helping potential commercial customers get financing in the face of tighter credit and higher down payments, which Jeb Griffith said can come to 30 percent on a $3 million or $4 million passenger cruise vessel. SkipperLiner offers consulting to help commercial buyers design flexible layouts aimed generating revenue beyond ticket sales.
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