part 2: Northern Marine 90' Yacht Capsizes Upon Launch...!

A friend of mine has (had) the very next launch from NM under construction in their facility when this one went TU. He has successfully moved his boat to another yard nearby. He told me last week that his boat is now back on track to a launch in perhaps July. He offered no news on the ill fated launch boat, nor did I ask.

I've heard nothing but the court case and the bankruptcy. Only rumors earlier that Bud would try to lease the Northern name again when this all settled down and he found another sucker.

I'm not sure I agree with the word "sucker" in there. New World saw value from their decision to lease the Northern Marine name, and their failures in launching Baden were their own.

You could make an argument that they were making suckers of their customers, by handing around a brand name they undermine any quality reputation attached to it or the business practices behind it, and by leasing the facility and tooling the business making the yacht has no assets to speak of and has no real skin in the game or means to make recompense to an owner they might wrong by oh, say, sinking their yacht through lack of proper preparation.

If this was the first time it was "sold" and failed, I might buy more of your argument. But sold, bought back after bankruptcy, leased, still own the name. There only seems to be one person making money from Northern Marine. With New World, he had guaranteed income while they had all the risk.

Now, I don't argue that they had plenty of self induced problems. Dishonest invoicing practices is one they've been accused of, being desperate for sales and selling for less than they could build, chasing money constantly and borrowing from buyers to finish their boats, some of which never got finished. As to the buyers of the boats, I can't explain why intelligent businessmen will suddenly cast aside all the business practices they've used successfully and let dreams lead them astray on boat purchases.

Actually the buyer whose boat rolled and flooded was more fortunate than at least one other buyer.

Because two more feet ...

Could you translate please?

Two more feet is in reference to people always planning for the next size of boat up. When wise businessmen are making business acquisitions they tend to look for shrewd investments and try to not over commit themselves, that's also typically accompanied by loss avoidance behavior. When you are splurging on a frivolous purchase like a yacht the psychological feedback from getting the two extra feet by going with Northern Marine/New World instead of a better builder acts like a drug and can sway otherwise intelligent people to make poor decisions. The folks buying from NM/NWY probably felt like they were getting a great deal when they signed the paperwork without looking into the business more, and probably felt too good from that little extra they felt like they were getting to care to look into it.

Actually I think the people buying NM/NW were convinced it was a quality boat. The buyer of the 90 certainly had a lot of convincing done by the brokerage that made that deal for him. There were some NM's out on the water that people thought highly of, just failed to realize those were years and owners ago. I think it's more getting sold a bill of goods and trusting the people doing the selling.

Those rotten brokers!

BTW, Ralph (post #286 above), what is an SFB? Does it require a BFH to ameliorate?

Oh.
Not even a BFH will fix that.
The old expression: "Ignorance can be fixed, but stupid is forever."

Now for sale at a salvage auction.
Minimum bid $350,000.

And to add to the fools folly, you have new people trying a reincarnation of Northern Marine with a boat they showed in Miami.

Well, actually the new Northern under it's second ownership. Bud will always continue to lease the name out for a price.

I met the guy who bought the boat that started this thread and apparently he’s working on refitting it.

They've been trying for quite a while. The new owner died in a bicycle accident and they're still trying to carry it forward. The last I knew they had one boat, a 57', in build with the hull being infused in June, unsold and no orders for any boats. Also, the boat the now deceased owner had built for himself at another builder was still for sale. The reality is the new Northern has never sold or delivered a boat and it's been many years since anyone has sold or delivered a Northern, several ownerships ago. Yes, they have a web site. That's the easy part.