Mastercraft and Malibu in trouble?

[gride300]

i think mc just has too large of a line up. x this and x that,. salt water this maristar that

[east tx skier]

Yeah, but for the most part, the X just means different graphics, add tower, add ballast, upgrade stereo. 197 = X7, Maristar 230 = X-30, and so on.

But they have added a lot of boats in the last 6 years or so. Dropped at least 3 that I can think of, i.e., X10, 209, PS205v (but rebadged as X1).

[SkiTundra]

Can'tski, I didn't say we'd recover in the 3rd or 4th quarter, only that I think things might turn around then. Markets may not recover to early 2008 levels for 3 - 5 years. Right now the economy is adjusting to reality. Companies are cutting back how much they produce. But, they're cutting back to levels actually below normal sustainable levels to let existing inventory reduce (we have over supply in just about every area) and to 'see what happens' Sometime about the 3rd quarter I think we'll see them start to increase from that level towards what would be a normal sustainable level of production. They'll start hiring back some people, but doing so slowly because they don't want to over-build again and because in the interim they will have developed new efficiencies. At the same time the weaker players should disappear and either be replaced by stronger players or by entirely new technologies. The governments impact will be two-fold. I believe that rather than help the recovery it will harm it with much higher taxes on the very people who invest in building new companies that will hire more people. They will also prop up some weaker players (GM, Chrysler, some banks, etc.) and this will be at the expense of some who should be the up and coming new and more efficient players (Tesla, Fisker, etc.). Billions of $'s that s/b going in to new technologies (that would provide long-term sustainable employment) will instead be siphoned off to build the high-speed sin train and other projects that will likely not result in any benefit to our economy.

[CAN'TSKI]

SkiTundra, Well thought out and I hope you are right. My company sells a product in all the Wal-Marts, Targets, etc in the country. We have done very well in several mini-recessions over the last 15 years.
And like I said, I am an optimist. My wife says I am very unrealistic and like some little Tinkerbell thinking I can wand away life's challenges.
I am optimistic there are huge opportunity's that will come for a very few in the next couple of years. I believe with God's grace I will benefit. But on this current economic situation and the path we are taking, I am getting that weird feeling I experienced on seeing the first storms appear before the "02 floods in SoTex. It rained hard 18 days straight.
In my gut, I don't think we will see the worst of this for several years.
To end on a good note...Any time I start thinking I'm smart and make a prediction, I am wrong 90% of the time.

[CAN'TSKI]

Mastercraft layoff link:
http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2009/fe...110-employees/

[Proud2BeCC]

Without severance............WOW

""""Mastercraft Boat Co. today said it has laid off 110 workers at its Vonore manufacturing facility as an industrywide credit crisis takes its toll on boat manufacturers.

John Dorton, Mastercraft president and CEO, said the layoffs are effective immediately and will be done without severance. Factory and office employees are affected.

Dorton attributed the layoff to a decline in wholesale credit.""""

[SkiTundra]

They've gone from 570 employees last year to 200 now. That's more than the 110 in this layoff.

Laying off workers without severance is pretty scuzzy. Perhaps they really had no choice, it was either that or shut down the company and liquidate. MC's known this was coming for several months. I hope they at least have made several announcements to employees that significant layoffs were coming and they'd be best to find other work or plan retirement if they can.

Keep in mind that the decline in wholesale credit is because those who provide credit know that sales will be down significantly this year. So, credit or not, fewer boats would be sold. The problem is not lack of wholesale credit but lack of demand. There is also that niggling little problem of past experience with MC overloading their dealers and the credit folks getting stuck with not getting paid for a lot of unsold MC inventory.

[SuperSquirt]

NEXT

[NCH2oSki]

I think MC has had about 4 rounds of lay offs starting around mid or early Oct. I wish the best for all of the employees' as it has coverered everyone from production, office and engineering. I had a good friend that was in engineering made it thru till recently, and a nephew in production with a newborn son that lasted till just after Christmas furlow. On a purely selfish note, I lost a good ski buddy and access to new MC boats to ski in the afternoons.

I talked to the local Bu sales mgr and the dealer in the west coast that bankrupted has really affected their current production. But they are still working some.

I also noticed an article that mentioned CC is only producing a limited number days per week, and training 2-3 days per week trying to keep employees on and with benifits.

The Skiers choice management guys all took a 5% pay cut voluntarily to help cover costs, and they are slowing production, but I think they are still keeping a majority of their crews working.

Sea Ray shut down 1 of its three plants in the area before Christmas.

The Christianson (SP?) Yacht company that was building a huge new factory on lake Tellico has furlowed its construction till times get better.


The boat building business employes a lot of people in the area, hopefully some sectors of it will turn back positive soon.

[Cowboy]

perhaps MC should have helped their dealers get non-currents sold instead of pushing higher floorplans and higher inventory levels

[AirTool]

....... On a purely selfish note, I lost .....access to new MC boats to ski in the afternoons......

That's worse than tooobing I hope you know.

[CAN'TSKI]

AIRTOOL that's funny. Also funny-My son's ski coach calls every inboard boat on the lake a TubeStar.

[CAN'TSKI]

I meant to say I/O's are TubeStars. How come every time it is late on Saturday and the margaritas have been working their magic under the starlit SoTex night, I can's deliver a punch line?

[AirTool]

CAN'TSKI

I'm from Portland TX...way further SoTex than Boerne. In fact, some from the valley might call you a Yankee.

I too have had many misfires...even when not altered by frozen concoctions . The "edit" button is handy and you have 10 minutes to go back in for blunder repair. I'm an expert at that.

I'm here at Starbucks working on the biggest proposal of my life...but started the day with Taco Cabana and a salt-rimmed solo cup. The wife and kids are at Grandma's in Fredericksburg....just east of the bat cave.

Hope to spend a week at Canyon mid-May....the only toobing will be down the Guadalupe.

AirTool

[HS]

From the freeway it looks like there are at least 50 boats on the lot at the MC store here in Washington.