Views
5 years ago

2018 September October Marina World

  • Text
  • Marinas
  • Marine
  • Pontoons
  • Concrete
  • Breakwater
  • Pontoon
  • Breakwaters
  • Products
  • Projects
  • Docks
The magazine for the marina industry

MARINA EVENTS I was

MARINA EVENTS I was aware that I could still learn a lot from these very knowledgeable and successful people. The second CMM was an experienced businessman running a marina in the Sydney area. Driving to the first marina took one hour. Everyone received general information about the island and the region, and about the two different laws regulating marinas (state and regional) dependent upon whether they were inside a state harbour or not. Different laws, different leases, different taxes. Suddenly I relaxed and started really enjoying myself because I could explain something they did not know, and their reaction wasn’t just polite interest – it was genuine. The weight of their combined superior knowledge sat more lightly on my shoulders. After driving alongside a mountain ridge, vineyards and effectively crossing the whole island SW to NW we arrived at the first marina, 745 berths, an own hotel with 78 rooms and 28 suites, lots of personnel and a large boatyard with a 150 tonne straddle carrier. The developer of this marina (Alcudiamar) was a visionary who started this yacht harbour in the 1960s to complement his local hotel business. Today, it would be impossible to build such a facility due to environmental laws. The marina has renewed its lease with the Harbour Authority for a further 12 years. After this summer season it has to increase its berth prices by 100% so as to realise its business plan as the compulsory investment it has to make is €21 million and the annual lease to the government is €2.7 million. YES. This isn’t a printing error! A 12 year lease costs €21 million and the annual fee is €2.7 million. That explains in part why marinas in Mallorca cannot afford to install finger pontoons for berth holders: every square meter of water comes at a very high price. Describing the tour is not the purpose of this article but those two days confirmed the importance of travelling and learning about the day-to-day reality in different places – and the diversity in our industry. Within half an hour of the first visit, the manager of a familyrun 333-berth marina was explaining that having had good financial results for many years, they were now trying to maintain or lower berth prices as a goodwill gesture to “their” yachting community. Financial results were good because customer loyalty was good. We continued to discuss the facilities while driving on a small detour through the narrow streets of towns with stone façades hundreds of years old. Four experienced marina industry members were genuinely enjoying the discovery of other ways of designing, building, managing and using marinas, and learning about Mallorca history, the islanders’ historical rejection of the sea as the source of invaders, and the consequences of such ancient traditions in today’s local nautical scene. When these people go to a marina event they become a valuable part of the content because it’s not just about listening to presentations, but meeting people, chatting, discussing. It is the perfect way to meet captains of industry without needing an appointment. It is like being a music fan and being able to chat with the players at a concert. What is happening to us? When we travel, we stop to have a peek at a marina if we see one. We read news about marinas. We are actually reading this very article! We find marinas interesting. We enjoy, we understand, we love them. Not attending professional events is like shopping by Internet all the time: a serious part of the experience is missing. We all agree that personal contact with our customers is extremely important in our business so why do we avoid events and not even recognise the importance of face-to-face meetings? Let’s talk marinas personally. Our industry deserves that. Oscar Siches runs Marina Matters, a consultancy based in Mallorca, Spain. He can be contacted on oscar@siches.com 28 www.marinaworld.com - September/October 2018

REGISTER TODAY! www.worldmarinasconference.com Noted speakers include: Oscar Siches Yacht Harbor Expert, former Founder Director of the Global Marina Institute, Spain “The ICOMIA World Marinas Conference allows current and future marina operators to directly interact with the most experienced experts and fellow marina operators and developers. It is a golden opportunity to be immersed for three days in our fascinating and complicated industry” John Hogan Chairman, Global Marina Institute and CEO, Superior Jetties, Australia “The World Marinas Conference is an opportunity to meet the leaders of the international industry in one place. It is always an eye opener and with new technology in boating we are seeing improved berthing solutions as well. All of the top suppliers are there as well, and the relationships that are built will stand you in good stead into the future.” Topics to be discussed include: MARINA MARKETS OF THE WORLD: AN UPDATE MOVING TOWARDS DEVELOPMENT AND GROWTH • North America • Latin America • Asia • Australia • Mediterranean • MENA • Russia • Greece on the spotlight: Investment opportunities for foreign investors • Sharing experience from abroad: Key consideration for successful marinas development Presented by: Hosted by: Organised by: Under the auspices: Lead sponsors: Main sponsor: Conference sponsors: Conference sponsors: Exclusive International Marina Media Partner: Communication sponsors:

Back Issues