Built in North Carolina 



If you are in the market for a luxury 

 pleasure boat, you can likely find a North 

 Carolina-made vessel to fit your needs — 

 or your dreams. 



"The boatbuilding industry is a 

 growing economy in North Carolina," says 

 Mike Bradley, director of N.C. Marine 

 Trade Services. 

 "In the last few 

 years, we've had 

 the greatest 

 expansion of 

 boatbuilding 

 production and 

 new boatbuilders 

 in North Caro- 

 lina" 



Today, there 

 are more than 75 

 boatbuilders in 

 North Carolina 

 constructing a 

 variety of 

 recreational 

 vessels — from 

 small skiffs and 

 kayaks to luxury 

 yachts. 



Last fall, 

 Tiara Yachts, a 



division of S2 Yachts Inc. in Holland, 

 Mich., opened a facility in Swansboro to 

 make the 5000 Express, a 50-foot cruising 

 yacht with a base price of $830,000. 



David Slikkers, president of Tiara 

 Yachts, says the company came to 

 Swansboro because of the experienced 

 work force in the area "We are very labor 

 intensive and needed a talented work 

 force," says Slikkers. "We also got a lot of 

 support from Swansboro, Onslow County 

 and state officials." 



The company now employs about 50 

 people. "Over the next 24 to 36 months, we 

 expect to expand up to 200 employees," he 

 says. "We hope to add one new model a 

 year to our product line in Swansboro." 



Another boating manufacturer new to 

 North Carolina is World Class Catamarans. 



By Ann Green 



About 1 8 months ago, the company opened 

 a facility in Greenville to manufacture 

 power catamaran fishing boats retailing 

 from $55,000 to $75,000. "We've had 

 phenomenal growth," says Forrest Munden, 

 company chairman. "The first year we sold 

 out of all three models. Last year, sales were 



World Class Catamarans will expand its North Carolina operation. 



higher than projected by 100 percent." 



In fact, World Class Catamarans is 

 expanding so fast the company now has a 

 new 121,000-square-foot facility in Tarboro. 

 "The good economy is helping our 

 business," says Munden. "Currently, we 

 employ 125 people. With our expansion, we 

 hope to employ an additional 200 people 

 over the next 24 months." 



In 1993, the repeal of the federal luxury 

 tax — a 10 percent tax on luxury items 

 more than $100,000 — allowed boating 

 manufacturers to recover from a near-fatal 

 sales level, says Bryant Phillips, senior vice 

 president of sales and marketing for Hatteras 

 Yachts in New Bern. "With the strength of 

 the economy and rise of the stock market — 

 coupled with new models — Hatteras 

 Yachts is coming on strong," says Phillips. 



As a result of the increased demand 

 for boats, the value of boatbuilding and 

 repair shipments in North Carolina 

 jumped from $227.7 million in 1993- 

 1994 to $275. 1 million in 1995-1996, 

 according to the U.S. Department of 

 Commerce's Annual Survey of Manufac- 

 turers. In 

 addition, the 

 number of 

 people 

 employed in 

 boatbuilding 

 in North 

 Carolina has 

 swelled to 

 20,000, says 

 Bradley. 



Hatteras 

 Yachts, the 

 largest boat 

 manufacturer 

 in the state, 

 has about 850 

 employees. 

 The company 

 makes more 

 than 20 

 models of 

 sportfishing 



convertible and cruising yachts that cost 

 $1 million to $7 million. 



Grady White, which manufactures 

 sportfishing boats that range in price from 

 $14,500 to $101,000, employs about 400 

 people at its Greenville facility. 



A few miles away in Washington, 

 300 employees at Fountain Powerboats 

 make high-performance pleasure boats 

 that retail from $50,000 to $1.5 million. 

 The boats are used for offshore racing, 

 sportfishing and cruising. 



With the quality of the work force in 

 North Carolina and easy access to water 

 along the coast, Bradley sees a bright 

 future for the state's boatbuilding industry. 

 "Within the next two years, we expect to 

 have 500 new jobs in boatbuilding and 

 boat repairs," he says. □ 



COASTWATCH 19 



