12.

Marine Industry News - June 2001.
Courtesy Yaffa Publications P/L

FRESH IDEAS AND PROVEN TACTICS
Story / Pics Steve Cooper

Bar Crusher Boats is a small company doing big things with plate aluminium from it's new factory in Victoria. MD Peter Cleland tells Marine Business' Melbourne correspondent Steve Cooper how the company plans to become the No 1. plate alloy boat builder in Australia.

Bar Crusher Boats is a relatively new Australian boat manufacturing company, having introduced its products onto the market in the last couple of years. A low-volume manufacturer wholesaling plate aluminium boats to dealers for retail distribution, its designs originated in New Zealand. Now it seems Australians are fast finding out what it is the Kiwis find so appealing about trailerable plate aluminium boats. Two brothers, Peter and Warren Cleland, are behind Bar Crusher Boats. Bar Crusher Boats is growing strongly but despite it's success in the market, the company will continue to target a niche with no intention of trying to take on the big boys on their own turf. The company moved to new manufacturing premises in Burwood, Victoria, in May 2001 in order to increase capacity. Bigger premises have allowed the synergy and efficiencies that come with bringing the entire manufacturing under one roof. Peter describes the Bar Crusher as the "BMWs" of aluminium boats. "They are trailerable, plate aluminium boats in the 5.5 to 6.7m range and they are built using the latest high tech plasma cutting and welding machinery," he said. "They are different because they use water ballast technology to allow for the use of a very deep "V: in a lightweight aluminium boat. "This light, strong and soft riding hull design is superior to other mainstream boats in the same price range. Many competitive products perform poorly on the water using the same objective criteria," said Peter.

According to Peter, there are three trademark design features found on Bar Crushers: "Rigideck", a rigid floor and subframe designed to create a stiff hull to stop cracking and twisting. "QuickFlow" water ballast technology allows the hull to take on water at rest to reduce buoyancy for exceptional stability. Peter s aid the concept allowed the hull to be built with a much deeper V than could normally be used. "Previously only very heavy boats such as fibreglass boats could be built with such a deep V. They were heavy so they would sit down in the water and the deep V created a smoother ride through rough water," he said. "Waveslicer" is the name the company gives to its strakeless hull design, a smooth deep V hull that operates efficiently. It planes early with minimum horsepower, offers a smooth ride, and creates little turbulence across the prop. Peter said that his market research had revealed aluminium was the biggest selling construction type of trailerboat in Australia, but is a market segment dominated by pressed sheet style boats. "Our research suggested that the pressed sheet style of construction is fine for small boats used in calmer weather. Unfortunately, the 'pressed' construction method has been proven to have serious shortcomings when used in wind chop over 10-15 knots," he said. Peter explained that pressed boats are typically built with a shallow dead rise to ensure reasonable stability at rest. "Unfortunately this flatter bottom ensures that they hit hard or pound when they run into even the smallest wave or chop," he said. :"This pounding is uncomfortable and puts tremendous strain on the hull, which causes flexing, cracking and twisting and ultimately leads to fatigue cracking in the frame and hull. "Our market research indicated that the perception in the market place is that pressed aluminium boats provide a pounding, uncomfortable ride and I believe Bar Crusher boats are the answer to this dissatisfaction."

Peter uses a motor industry analogy to describe his boats, saying Bar Crusher build BMWs while the mainstream "entry level" aluminium boats are more the base model Holden. "Our boats are built to a performance and quality standard rather than a price. The pricing is only marginally higher than the leading brand pressed sheet boats, however our performance and quality standards are dramatically improved." Bar Crusher is pitching primarily to fishing enthusiasts. Peter said this was a growth market segment, but while this may be the primary pitch, he acknowledged that his boats must be able to double as family boats or skiboats.

Marketing

The Bar Crusher business philosophy and marketing strategy was simple: Much emphasis is placed on word of mouth, hands on experience. "We use comprehensive magazine advertising, selective direct mail, dealer promotions, boat shows, fishing and tackle shows, and word of mouth. The biggest source of business is people buying our boats and talking about them. "We stay close to our customers and listen carefully. We call them 'customer advocates' and each one actively on-sells our boats to their friends and family." The Bar Crusher philosophy is also about taking a step back, evaluating what is important to customers. "It's a little old fashioned in that we want to personally understand every customer and their needs and thereby give them the quality of life that they hoped to achieve through the acquisition of a Bar Crusher boat. I know it sounds a little corny, but we believe it. "

Peter said that at the end of the day it was about caring more, doing more, focusing on the customer's needs first and giving them more than they expected. "Our marketing strategy is to build brand steadily by carefully positioning the Bar Crusher range as a higher priced, higher quality brand than the pressed sheet alternatives. "The brand is a complimentary range in dealers' yards. We do not expect to take sales away from other manufacturers, but instead provide an alternative by growing the overall market" he said. Peter believes the plate boat buyer is more likely to be a dedicated angler than a pressed sheet buyer, and someone who uses their boats more frequently. "They are practical people who appreciate durability and ease of maintenance over the aesthetics that a fibreglass boat might offer, they do more research than other boat buyers, and are far more discerning," he said.

Bar Crusher encourages on water tests, believing this is the only way to properly demonstrate a boat. "One of the reasons many buyers are unhappy with their purchase is because they did not receive an adequate on-water demonstration prior to purchase, something that has encouraged some manufacturers to build boats for the showroom rather than the water," he said. Bar Crusher dealers are supplied with computer pricing models for efficient pricing and updates. "We provide videos, printed material and manufacturer support to end customers and for sales training purposes," Peter said. "We visit dealers and carry out practice demos for training purposes and we work with the dealer at boat shows to help them understand our philosophy and become familiar with the range."

Peter is an advocate for close communication with end users to ensure the company is being "market driven". "We talk to end users of our product regularly, and we do national shows and test days to keep our finger on the pulse," he said. "We don't just build and sell boats, we fish in tournaments and use our boats constantly all over Australia. Research on the water and at the ramp is what allows us to stay close to our customers, something that has been lost as a function of size in many of the bigger boat building companies." Bar Crusher is looking to extend its dealer network around Australia and is always on the lookout for those special dealer principles that are able to "get religion" and become a part of the Bar Crusher movement.

Peter's aims are modest despite Bar Crusher's increasing sales. "We enjoy what we do and enjoy doing it better. We enjoy the industry and have a passion for good boat design. We want to grow the business and the brand so that we are the number one 'plate' brand in Australia . "By number one, we mean we want to be the most recognisable brand, have the highest unit sales in plate, and make the best performing boats in their class." Peter can be contacted on (03) 9702 8555 or 0418 580 548, e-mail: peter@barcrusher.com.au, or visit www.barcrusher.com.au.

Legal Note: The statements, observations and opinions expressed in the above excerpts are those of the boat tester and were formed after inspection and testing of the Bar Crusher boat described in the test. The opinion is provided by the author of the test and not the directors of Bar Crusher boats.The information in these excerpts is offered to assist prospective buyers to do their research. Bar Crusher Boats confirms that the information above may contain factual errors and no responsibility is taken for it's accuracy or completeness. Please refer to the legal notice by clicking on the words "Legal Notice" at the bottom of each page.