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Showing results 1 to 17 of 17
Search took 0.00 seconds. Search: Posts Made By: Kettlewell
Forum: Cruising News & Events 10-11-2023, 13:52
Replies: 159
Views: 19,946
Posted By Kettlewell
Re: West Marine Restructures Debt

This is true, which is why I mainly buy only on sale at WM or when I absolutely need something now and can't wait, if they have it in stock. My favorite rip-off at WM is Rotella oil for more than...
Forum: Cruising News & Events 10-11-2023, 05:16
Replies: 159
Views: 19,946
Posted By Kettlewell
Re: West Marine Restructures Debt

There's a tiny WM right on the waterfront in Vineyard Haven, MA, and I have purchased a lot of stuff there because of its location, the friendly and helpful staff, and they will order whatever they...
Forum: Cruising News & Events 09-11-2023, 04:00
Replies: 159
Views: 19,946
Posted By Kettlewell
Re: West Marine Restructures Debt

OT a bit, but this whole discussion came home to me when I was in Newport for the boat show. I took a walk down Lower Thames Street past where there used to be J.T.'s Chandlery back in the day. You...
Forum: Cruising News & Events 06-11-2023, 06:39
Replies: 159
Views: 19,946
Posted By Kettlewell
Re: West Marine Restructures Debt

Here's an article from 1986 talking about the decline in the sailing industry, and this trend has just continued unabated since then:...
Forum: Cruising News & Events 06-11-2023, 05:58
Replies: 159
Views: 19,946
Posted By Kettlewell
Re: West Marine Restructures Debt

This is total sailboat registrations in the USA, but if you look at the larger cruising sailboat segment the number of new boats is well less than 2,000 a year. It is a tiny industry. I remember...
Forum: Cruising News & Events 06-11-2023, 05:35
Replies: 159
Views: 19,946
Posted By Kettlewell
Re: West Marine Restructures Debt

Yes, and every sailboat company went for the low-hanging fruit of catering to the high end and letting other people take care of the entry points to the industry. There are many other reasons for the...
Forum: Cruising News & Events 06-11-2023, 05:06
Replies: 159
Views: 19,946
Posted By Kettlewell
Re: West Marine Restructures Debt

Decades ago I attended several conferences where sailing industry leaders bemoaned the decline in sales and all sorts of ideas were floated for what to do about it, but nobody (or almost nobody)...
Forum: Cruising News & Events 01-10-2023, 03:49
Replies: 159
Views: 19,946
Posted By Kettlewell
Re: West Marine Restructures Debt

It used to be that off-cuts of line and such were sold in stores at big discounts. I used to get a lot of my line by looking for useful off cuts, but today it seems they just slap the regular price...
Forum: Cruising News & Events 27-09-2023, 14:27
Replies: 159
Views: 19,946
Posted By Kettlewell
Re: West Marine Restructures Debt

I think the bigger problem is that boats are so much more complicated and full of technology. In the past we bought boats to live a simple life and get away from all the complication of the modern...
Forum: Cruising News & Events 27-09-2023, 07:19
Replies: 159
Views: 19,946
Posted By Kettlewell
Re: West Marine Restructures Debt

So this thread brings up an interesting question. What are the marine store alternatives to WM that are better? I mentioned Hamilton Marine in Maine, and they do mail order too. Some have mentioned...
Forum: Cruising News & Events 25-09-2023, 06:13
Replies: 159
Views: 19,946
Posted By Kettlewell
Re: West Marine Restructures Debt

I think also there is a huge shift in how people purchase all sorts of stuff today. I know that when I need something specialized often my first move is to go online and order from Amazon or a...
Forum: Cruising News & Events 24-09-2023, 07:32
Replies: 159
Views: 19,946
Posted By Kettlewell
Re: West Marine Restructures Debt

I believe it is a very different market, though the dollar volume may be up. Just looking at cruising sailboats they are much larger than they used to be, with vastly more complicated and expensive...
Forum: Cruising News & Events 24-09-2023, 05:33
Replies: 159
Views: 19,946
Posted By Kettlewell
Re: West Marine Restructures Debt

Compared to when? I've been sailing in New England for more than 40 years and the places I go are significantly less crowded than they were back in say the 90s. For example, I was in Cuttyhunk...
Forum: Cruising News & Events 23-09-2023, 07:42
Replies: 159
Views: 19,946
Posted By Kettlewell
Re: West Marine Restructures Debt

OT, but Hamilton Marine from Maine (https://hamiltonmarine.com/) is a real marine outfit with several stores. They have a lot of commercial fishing gear in their stores, and unadvertised stuff on...
Forum: Cruising News & Events 18-09-2023, 06:18
Replies: 159
Views: 19,946
Posted By Kettlewell
Re: West Marine Restructures Debt

From the WM website:
Forum: Cruising News & Events 17-09-2023, 12:21
Replies: 159
Views: 19,946
Posted By Kettlewell
Re: West Marine Restructures Debt

Actually, my biggest complaint about WM is the lack of inventory in many stores. I can understand not carrying everything in every store, but I often run into the problem that something is out of...
Forum: Cruising News & Events 17-09-2023, 11:35
Replies: 159
Views: 19,946
Posted By Kettlewell
Re: West Marine Restructures Debt

You can find good prices at West Marine by shopping the sales. I often get bottom paint there during the winter or early spring, and the price is a lot lower than any comparable paint I can purchase...
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