2026 FORECAST
Freedom Boat Club has about 60,000 memberships, totaling roughly 100,000 people exposed to the recreational boating industry through the boat club. About one-third of its members are females, and Cohn said a significant number are in their 30s and 40s.“ We’ re also doing a really good job of retaining older, especially exboaters,” he added.
Companies like Suntex Marinas are improving the boating experience and introducing the workforce to careers within the industry.
Bryan Redmond, co-founder and CEO of Suntex and a Boating Industry Mover and Shaker of the Year Finalist, explained the company’ s partnership with hospitality schools. Suntex has helped develop a marina operations curriculum, internships and a manager in training program.
“ Before we started doing that five or six years ago, I don’ t think the majority of students that were going to hospitality school saw marinas as a real career path,” he said.“[ Watching ] some of the success those young students have had from our organization, who have become leaders within the organization at such a young age, has been a really neat thing to be a part of.”
The company was founded in 2008 with the vision to take the mom-and-pop marina operation and build a scaled platform that treated marinas not just as storage for boats, but as a hospitality experience.
He noted the opportunity for manufacturers, retailers and service providers to work together to improve the customer experience.
“ At the end of the day, I don’ t feel like we’ re competing against other marina operators as much as we are just competing for people’ s time,” he said.“ Our biggest risk is that somebody decides that the boating lifestyle is just not worth their time anymore.”
To meet this challenge, Suntex offers multiple access points to the water, from rentals and boat clubs to dinner cruises and paddleboards.“ The more we do that, the more interest there’ s going to be.”
Overbye also emphasized the need for innovative customer experiences to combat the many alternative recreational hobbies.“ Attracting and keeping custom-
ers should be the highest priority,” he said.“ Sometimes novelty and innovation get confused. Changed behavior is innovation, not a new color. Overhauling practices to meet tomorrow’ s customers is paramount.”
On the workforce front, ABYC is concerned about the effect of the softened market on its educational and certification programs, but so far, enrollment has met expectations.
“ Education is putting qualified, certified technicians into the industry at the rate of 60 to 100 per month,” said John Adey, president of ABYC.“ Our curriculum is in around 60 schools, and our Accreditation Program is working through applications almost monthly, with 13 already awarded. We are doing as much as we can to get schools to produce techs ready to work. We need industry help to identify and approach schools in areas where talent is needed.
“ We are seeing larger companies joining ABYC and utilizing benefits like never before,” he added,“[ And ] we are leveraging this by tailoring programs and offerings that can benefit both small and larger businesses.”
Remaining resilient
“ At Honda Marine, our industry outlook is cautiously optimistic,” said Sherlock.“ We have our eyes on some short-term headwinds, especially trade dynamics, monetary policy shifts, regulatory pressures and even demographic trends – key issues making the current market adjustment take a bit longer than expected.”
Electric propulsion and other technologies are helping expand accessibility and sustainability within the industry.
Yamaha is closely watching the effects of tariffs while planning and strategizing to mitigate their impact. Despite these challenges, Mark Tracy, vice president of Yamaha U. S. Marine Business Unit, noted that premium boat sales remain stable, and repower demand continues to be strong – a sign of continued enthusiasm among existing boaters.
Hugelmeyer added that if inflation continues to moderate and interest rates ease, there could be gradual improvement in accessibility and consumer sentiment. In the meantime, NMMA continues to focus on sustaining participation and keeping people engaged with boating through Discover Boating campaigns, boat shows and advocacy for access and innovation.
“ Our industry thrives when there’ s stability, when businesses can invest confidently and families can plan for the future,” Hugelmeyer said.“ That means consistent trade policy, practical science-based regulation, access to affordable financing and sustained investment in public access. Certainty builds confidence and access drives participation.”
“ Since the beginning of time people have loved boats and being on the water,” Overbye concluded.“ Boating isn’ t going anywhere. Club ownership still makes boating possible for strapped families, but the retail dynamics are evolving. Letting go of expectations and embracing the new norm is the formula for sustained happiness and success.”
www. boatingindustry. com january 2026
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