Boat U.S. - March 2008 - (Page 37)

“We think that the boating experience suited for winter use in rough North Carolina that people have with Grady-White is more and New England waters. The wooden boats than catching fish, it’s about truly enhancwere handcrafted in Greenville, NC, using ing people’s lives,” she says. “We’re creating oak frames, solid mahogany bow and stern a boating experience that is going to help decking, and lapstraking, and all held togethbond families and friends and bring people er using solid brass nuts and bolts. together.” “The whole boat was bolted together With 60,500 boats produced in the past so it didn’t leak — not necessarily unique, 37 years, Grady-White owners’ clubs have but it was the more expensive way of doing sprouted up all over the country and have it. It was a quality way of building a wooden achieved a near cult following. boat,” says Long Island-based Port of Egypt “I could have bought a new Trophy for Marine CEO Bill Lieblein, whose familythe same price as a used Grady, but I was willing to sacrifice,” says Don Ross, North West Grady-White Club president, who is now on his third Grady-White, a 265 Express. “The customer care is above and beyond, and everything on the boat is quality. In fact, I sold every one of my Grady-Whites for more than I paid for them.” The roots of Grady-White’s customer satisfaction lay with Eddie Smith, Jr. and the values he learned from his father. Eddie Smith, Sr. was unquestionably a legend — an orphan turned businessman, turned town mayor and Grady-White CEO Eddie Smith and President Kris Carroll. philanthropist. “He was a larger-than-life person with owned business is today the oldest continuthe most positive attitude I’ve ever encounous dealer of Grady-White Boats. tered,” Smith, Jr. told an awards ceremony But by the mid-1960s, Grady and White crowd recently. were resisting an inevitable transition to Smith’s father, who passed away last fiberglass, which customers were beginning summer at the age of 88, was known to head to demand because of the strength and low to work at the family’s mail order apparel maintenance that it offered. Lieblein recalls business, National Wholesale Co. Inc. in Grady and White were actually losing money Lexington, NC, early on Monday mornings on each boat and nearly went bankrupt at to cook breakfast for his employees. In the the time Smith’s family helped Smith purunusual event of a customer complaint, chase the company. Smith, Sr. would do the unexpected — showSmith and his team, which included er the client with replacement goods. Wiley Corbett, who had extensive engineerSmith, Jr. spent three years following in ing and manufacturing expertise and later his father’s footsteps at the family’s business became company president until he retired before he decided to branch out and run a in 1993, worked from the ground up to tranbusiness on his own. sition and develop the Grady-White line into “Eddie Smith never wanted to be the premium-quality fiberglass boats. biggest, he just wanted to be the best,” says During this time Smith, who is an avid Carroll, who describes herself as the keeper outdoorsman, took to the water and began to of Smith’s values and principles, especially rub shoulders with potential customers and since an illness has forced him to step back clientele. This is when he first discovered he from the day-to-day operations at Gradycould use the advice from customers to help White. with designing and innovating his boats. Smith purchased Grady-White Boats And this approach has paid big diviin 1968 from Glenn Grady and Don White, dends. J.D. Power says Grady-White has the who since 1959 had gained a reputation for fewest problems experienced in its class. building small yet tough coastal boats wellBoston Whaler, Scout and Century follow Grady-White in the rankings. The J.D. Power and Associates Boat Competitive Information Study measures owner satisfaction among new boat owners of 76 brands in seven categories. Carroll also points out that J.D. Power found Grady-White had both the highest prices and the highest value rating from its customers. “In terms of resale, in the long run, it will cost you less to own a Grady than many other products,” says Carroll. Since 1970, the company has refined and moved closer to their focused niche — producing premium outboard offshore sport fishing boats. In that time, Grady-White has been acclaimed for its breakthrough models such as the 204-C in 1975 — the earliest walkaround cabins, and the stern-drive Kingfish 254 in 1977, which enabled keen anglers to venture further offshore. Other notable breakthrough designs included a new continuously variable V-hull in the Marlin 28 in 1989, the Express 330 in 2001, which was named Boat of the Year 2002 by Boating Magazine, and in 2005, the Express 360, which capitalized on outboard technology advances to offer big water performance. Smith, who today works mainly on philanthropic activities from his office at the Greenville plant, was inducted into the National Marine Manufacturers Association’s Hall of Fame in 2002 for his contribution to the recreational marine industry, and in particular, “for changing the way people enjoy saltwater fishing,” says the NMMA. The accolade reflects a life devoted to the industry through his business, volunteerism and work with industry causes. Smith has also received a lifetime achievement award from the American Sportfishing Association for his outstanding service to conservation and the fishing and boating industries. Carroll would not divulge what’s next on the drawing board at Grady-White, except to say new developments in outboard technology, such as the Yamaha 350s, would provide opportunities on the larger end of the line as far as evolving larger products. “The mid-range products are what brought us to the dance and we’ll continue to evolve those products too,” she says. — By Jill Culora For an online factory tour of Grady-White, go to: gradywhite.com/factory_tour BoatU.S. Magazine March 2008 37 http://gradywhite.com/factory_tour

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Boat U.S. - March 2008

Boat U.S. - March 2008 Contents Behind the Buoy BoatU.S. Reports Member Forum Cap'n Drew Sailing the Sidewalk Aviators Ahoy Docking and Duffing Waterfront Living: Charleston Waterfront Marketplace Grady Right 2nd Time Around DIY: Keeping the Water Out Hot Tips Boat Smart Ask Chuck Foundation Findings Tangled Line At Your Service Good Foundations BoatU.S. Exchange Behind the Boat Where Our Flags Fly

Boat U.S. - March 2008

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