How is Malibu (The Company) doing?

[funkcity]

I see a lot of dealerships closing and/or up for sale.

Malibu only builds in Loudon TN now.

I feel a slight resurgence in the economy but employment numbers are low.

..Just wondering how this great company is doing. Any news?

[Bobby Light]

I have the feeling that the company will be driven into the ground within 10 years, just my prediction hope I'm wrong.

[Pistol Pete]

I have the feeling that the company will be driven into the ground within 10 years, just my prediction hope I'm wrong.

Geeeze, really?

It seems to me there's more guys on here with 2010 boats than I expected.

[DONTW8]

While it is true that many board visitors have bought new boats I believe the company will barely survive the next 3 years.

The stock market is acting as if it is going to collapse. If it does those that feel they have escaped the downturn will diminish and luxury items like boats will suffer.

A Malibu boat is such an expensive item per cubic foot with limited usage hours per year. The homebuilding industry is not recovering in any signifigant way. Many of the boat buyers were connected to the homebuilding industry in construction, realty, and financing. Those jobs are just not coming back fast enough.

Only the boat builders with deep pockets will survive. It will be a test of current Malibu management to make it to the other side.

Brunswick Corp (parent of Merccruiser, SeaRay, etc) had net income of $111,600,000 in 2007. They had a loss of $586,200,000 in 2009. Brunswick had net tangible assets of $968,400,000 at the end of 2007 and showed net tangible assets of NEGATIVE $157,800,000 at the end of 2009.

http://finance.yahoo.com/q/is?s=BC+Income+Statement&annual

http://finance.yahoo.com/q/bs?s=BC+Balance+Sheet&annual

Odds are not good. Expect 30% of the industry to not survive in the present environment.

[TheKiwi]

Just hope they don't sell out and starting making cheaper, crappier quality boats.

[WakingMeHappy]

Let’s just hope there’s not a merger between Malibu and Moomba.

If so it would be called “Maliboomba”.

[jeremyk]

Let’s just hope there’s not a merger between Malibu and Moomba.

If so it would be called “Maliboomba”.

That's funny. Sad...but funny

[MalibuTime]

Without having seen the numbers, I can imagine that their cost structure is a little out of whack having two US locations and the associated overhead, plus you probably have to pay the engineers/designers and everyone else more in California. With that said, closing an office and moving key people (probably everyone left is key!) is a huge expense. That notwithstanding, if they have put their cost structure in a good spot then they will be able to survive as long as things don't start to get worse before they get better.

As for 06's 10 year projection, I think that is dependent more on management/ownership choices and opposed to being forced out by the economy (see above paragraph on why I think that).

My .02 YMMV.

[Bobby Light]

Without having seen the numbers, I can imagine that their cost structure is a little out of whack having two US locations and the associated overhead, plus you probably have to pay the engineers/designers and everyone else more in California. With that said, closing an office and moving key people (probably everyone left is key!) is a huge expense. That notwithstanding, if they have put their cost structure in a good spot then they will be able to survive as long as things don't start to get worse before they get better.

As for 06's 10 year projection, I think that is dependent more on management/ownership choices and opposed to being forced out by the economy (see above paragraph on why I think that).

My .02 YMMV.

That was exactly what I was talking about.

[liljohn]

It will be very interesting to see what happens to the company. Now that Bob has stepped down from office it seems that the new boys in charge are all about the dollar and not the customer or the dealer. If Malibu continues down that path they will either sink or find them selves in line with MasterCraft. Selling over priced so so quality boats that are riding on a reputation that was built by people who actually new what it took to be a stand up and respected company. Neither of which is very inspiring or comforting as a customer/owner. I hope and pray the the new boys figure out real quick just how the marine industry is going to Handel the present state of the economy and consumer. BEST WISHES MALIBU! I hope I am wrong.

[Bill_AirJunky]

I'm a little surprised the 2010s came out with as much bling & price as they did. I would have thought any manufacturer would need to scale things back to make their product affordable to their target.... who can't afford as much as we could a few years ago.

Maybe in 2011....

Edited June 10, 2010 by Bill_AirJunky

[REW]

Without having seen the numbers, I can imagine that their cost structure is a little out of whack having two US locations and the associated overhead, plus you probably have to pay the engineers/designers and everyone else more in California. With that said, closing an office and moving key people (probably everyone left is key!) is a huge expense. That notwithstanding, if they have put their cost structure in a good spot then they will be able to survive as long as things don't start to get worse before they get better.

As for 06's 10 year projection, I think that is dependent more on management/ownership choices and opposed to being forced out by the economy (see above paragraph on why I think that).

My .02 YMMV.

The company I work for just consolidated 7 offices into one, we are all moving to Charlotte within the next three years. The expense is huge but the tax breaks the company received covered most of it. Moving all of Malibu's efforts to Loudon TN would save the company money in the long run as well as make them stronger, and able to react quicker. There is a synergy with all members of a team in one location. Consoladation is something they should look into.

REW

[old skool malibu]

Gents

Dont forget about markets here in Canada. Yes numbers are down but locally there are a pile of boats being sold. Canada was not hit as hard as the US so I hope... and believe Malibu will make it through and self correct some of their internal issues(if indeed they exist). Just my 2 cents...

[Bobby Light]

Gents

Dont forget about markets here in Canada. Yes numbers are down but locally there are a pile of boats being sold. Canada was not hit as hard as the US so I hope... and believe Malibu will make it through and self correct some of their internal issues(if indeed they exist). Just my 2 cents...

I would bet that the percentage of total boats sold that go to Canada is in the low single percentage points. I don't think Canada could keep a company from impending doom. I'm not saying that Malibu is going under or anything, let's hope not.

[TrickyNicky]

Gents

Dont forget about markets here in Canada. Yes numbers are down but locally there are a pile of boats being sold. Canada was not hit as hard as the US so I hope... and believe Malibu will make it through and self correct some of their internal issues(if indeed they exist). Just my 2 cents...

I agree we are not feeling it nearly as much as you guys are, although it is evident. But when it comes to a company like Malibu I don't think it's going to be Canada that can save it. We are such a small share of their business. Even if more malibu's are being bought in Canada (and this wouldn't surprise me), there is just NO comparison to what is being lost in the states. The population and the climate (crucial to these boats) is just not comparable and therefore Canada will never be the solution to a problem selling boats in the US.

EDIT: Beat me to it 06

Edited June 10, 2010 by TrickyNicky

[TrickyNicky]

I'd also liek to add that I don't think Malibu is going to go bust. The maerket is shrinking and so will the companies. It will get to a point where the smaller companies won't be able to move forward andc they'll go bust, leaving the larger companies to start gaining market share once again. I'd be surprised (although not shocked) if even ONE of the big 3 went bust. Some significant changes will likely be made but I'd bet they all survive. Less people will buy these boats but the market will never disappear.

Edited June 10, 2010 by TrickyNicky

[kthurst20]

I'd also liek to add that I don't think Malibu is going to go bust. The maerket is shrinking and so will the companies. It will get to a point where the smaller companies won't be able to move forward andc they'll go bust, leaving the larger companies to start gaining market share once again. I'd be surprised (although not shocked) if even ONE of the big 3 went bust. Some significant changes will likely be made but I'd bet they all survive. Less people will buy these boats but the market will never disappear.

Who are the big 3? And I am wondering, for those of you that think Malibu will go under, which other companies will end up dying?(boat making companies of course, ski and wakeboard boat companies specifically).

[TrickyNicky]

Who are the big 3? And I am wondering, for those of you that think Malibu will go under, which other companies will end up dying?(boat making companies of course, ski and wakeboard boat companies specifically).

The big 3 are Malibu, Mastercraft, and Correct Craft (Nautique), often referred to as Tier 1 inboard boats. I don't know the market sheares of the companies but usually the companies will start falling out based on there market share size (more or less).

Example:

If 100 boats are sold and 60 go to malibu, 30 to centurion, and 10 to Sanger, and than the next year only 50 boats are sold, well malibu is selling 30, centurion 15, and sanger 5, Likely Sanger's going to have a hard time supporting the company off the sale of 5 boats. If this happened and sangewr went bust than Malibu and centurion are goign to be making 5 more sales (the sales from sanger). Please NO ONE take this example as teh truth or my prediction as I have no idea how the market is split up, it was just a descriptive example and those were the 3 companies that popped in my head.

EDIT to add: There are also small market shares that belong to niche companies that sometimes manage to survive,. For ex. EPIC (hybrid wakeboard boat). They have an advantage over a similar sized company because they are supplying a product that is different (to an extent) from anything other companies are offering)

Edited June 10, 2010 by TrickyNicky

[Sixball]

I think Mastercraft is on life support now hasn't the company changed hands two or three times in the last years.

I thought they were building boat for customers only no stock?

[skurfer]

The big 3 are Malibu, Mastercraft, and Correct Craft (Nautique), often referred to as Tier 1 inboard boats. I don't know the market sheares of the companies but usually the companies will start falling out based on there market share size (more or less).

Example:

If 100 boats are sold and 60 go to malibu, 30 to centurion, and 10 to Sanger, and than the next year only 50 boats are sold, well malibu is selling 30, centurion 15, and sanger 5, Likely Sanger's going to have a hard time supporting the company off the sale of 5 boats. If this happened and sangewr went bust than Malibu and centurion are goign to be making 5 more sales (the sales from sanger). Please NO ONE take this example as teh truth or my prediction as I have no idea how the market is split up, it was just a descriptive example and those were the 3 companies that popped in my head.

EDIT to add: There are also small market shares that belong to niche companies that sometimes manage to survive,. For ex. EPIC (hybrid wakeboard boat). They have an advantage over a similar sized company because they are supplying a product that is different (to an extent) from anything other companies are offering)

I haven't checked in awhile, but last time I checked, Skier's Choice (Supra/Moomba) sold more units than Correct craft....

Edited June 10, 2010 by skurfer

[skurfer]

It will be very interesting to see what happens to the company. Now that Bob has stepped down from office it seems that the new boys in charge are all about the dollar and not the customer or the dealer. If Malibu continues down that path they will either sink or find them selves in line with MasterCraft. Selling over priced so so quality boats that are riding on a reputation that was built by people who actually new what it took to be a stand up and respected company. Neither of which is very inspiring or comforting as a customer/owner. I hope and pray the the new boys figure out real quick just how the marine industry is going to Handel the present state of the economy and consumer. BEST WISHES MALIBU! I hope I am wrong.

Great post and I own a MC!

[stroker-ace]

Just hope they don't sell out and starting making cheaper, crappier quality boats.

AXIS?

[Jimmypooh]

Just hope they don't sell out and starting making cheaper, crappier quality boats.

AXIS?

Some would say that's a good business decision. Innovation isn't the only thing companies have to react to. They need to react to what the customer wants. I remember a few threads with people stating "Any Joe Shmoe can get a loan and a boat". Well when those loans aren't as easy to get, they will turn to a cheaper boat. The timing of Axis may have been accidental with the downturn of the economy, but it may prove to help/save Malibu.

[TrickyNicky]

I haven't checked in awhile, but last time I checked, Skier's Choice (Supra/Moomba) sold more units than Correct craft....

Go with big 3 "names" in the industry

AXIS?

Very valid point. In my opinion I have no problem with Malibu making cheaper models, ESPECIALLY if it is under a different name such as axis. I think an axis is a cheaper boat in price and obviously teh materials and fit in finsh will not be the same as a VLX but for it's price-point I'd argue it is a quality product. JUst like a honda civic is not very comparable to bmw, the honda is still a quality product. Not so much the same quality of the materials as much as teh quality of the design or teh end product. Technically AXIS is malibu's cheaper models, along withe the ride series in the middle and than the wakesetters their standard but each is a quality product for what it was designed to do at the price point it was designed to fill.

My favourite example is the Porsche Cayenne (SUV) a car I hate and it's not cheap but it is somewhat hypocritical for a sports car manufacturer to make an suv. BUT the cayenee brings in teh majority of income for porsche and it alone is what allows Porsche to continue to design the beautiful high-end pure bred sports cars that they are known for. So if malibu makes some cheaper (price point) boats in order to create income to make the creme-de-la-crop boats we all love, I support that entirely sop long as their quality products.

[funkcity]

The Axis is priced where the V-Ride was last year.

The V-Ride is a very good boat. I see no reason why the Axis wouldn't also be good.

Years ago Malibu had a stripper called the Tantrum. Then they had the next stripper called the Sportster.

These were good bare-bones boats. And they could build them on the cheap!

But we all like/love the innovation of the upscale Bu Boats. So maybe you need BOTH extremes.?

Maybe building a 23' AND a 24' makes no sense?

Maybe building a 20' AND a 21' makes no sense?

Maybe building an Axis AND a V-Ride makes no sense?

Maybe it's time to take advantage of less parts meaning higher-quantity lower-cost parts buying that having less models would bring...

Many companies today will survive just fine as "smaller" companies, not the size of a just a few years ago.

Maybe Malibu should go back to the employee-owned concept...the concept that put them on top of the industry?

At the LA Boat show this year... a 3rd of the size and 4 days instead of 10.

There were still buyers for very upscale boats.. DCB, Schiada etc...

But the company with the MOST hardware, most boats, waverunners etc... was Yamaha, a company that builds Pianos, musical instruments, motorcycles, snowmobiles and on... They are invested across a broad range of product lines. And they are pricing them right.

It would be interesting to know Malibu's sales numbers for this year.