IT WAS ALL THUMBS-UP FOR THE 2010 SAILING INDUSTRY CONFERENCE

A mix of stimulating keynotes, breakouts and workshop presentations, outstanding weather, an ideal sailing location, strong industry sponsorship support and a gathering of 140 top industry leaders resulted in great success for this year’s 2010 Sailing Industry Conference held June 15 – 17 in Annapolis, MD.

Across the board, organizers and participants alike raved about the event and its tremendous take-home value.

“I was initially concerned about the commitment of time let alone the monetary cost of attending the conference,” said Hunter VP Sales and Marketing John Peterson. “It was more than worth it! I have been to numerous industry meetings, conferences and even professional educational sessions including MBA-type sessions at the University of Wisconsin, Marquette and CAL – and without slighting any higher learning institution, this was the best conference, hands down – with relevancy and hands-on learning. There were excellent presenters on a perfect mix of topics, coupled with the ability to converse with dealers and peers alike. It was a great meeting and a wise investment of my time.”

ASA Executive Director Charlie Nobles agreed.

“In the six plus years I’ve worked at ASA, this is the single best sailing industry function I’ve attended,” he said. “The speakers were knowledgeable and entertaining; the topics, highly relevant and helpful. I’ve attended similar conference in other industries. Paid two to three times the money and received less value than with the Sailing Industry Conference. The networking opportunities were as valuable as the educational ones. I would not hesitate to sign up for the next conference!

”While the benefits of on an individual level were tremendous,” he added, “it’s difficult to overstate the importance of having a venue in which the key players can come together to discuss and plan for the future of the sailing industry.”

Said Offshore Sailing School’s Doug Sparks, “The conference allowed us to spend some time thinking about how to improve our industry, our business and our own future. We were able to do this because of the well developed and delivered presentations, the insight offered by many of our industry colleagues and the overall ambience of the event.”

According to organizers George Day who served as event chair, and speaker coordinator Scot West, the outcome exceeded expectations.

“In my view, the conference was a success on every level,” said Day. “Sponsorship exceeded our expectations and attendance was close to projection. The venues worked well, the weather cooperated and the speakers were all good to excellent.”

Scot West added, “Overall, I left feeling better about the sailing industry although that’s not meant to sugar coat that we all realize we’re still in a major hole with a long way to go to recovery. I also got the feeling that Sail America is as healthy as it has been in the last three to four years. I left feeling like I have a lot of work to do myself to get better at my job.

“It was a great value for the money and a great opportunity in an educational setting/academic venue to catch up with a variety of industry leaders in a non-boat show environment. I got something specific out of every educational session.”

THANKS TO ALL SAIL AMERICA INDUSTRY CONFERENCE SPONSORS!

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