PSP - Fairlines 'Closed Door' policy - Very upset!

[henryf]

Car shows are different to boat shows. If you are interested in a new car there are many dealers to whom you can go and view the product. If you are a serious prospect they will even lend you a car for the weekend so you can evaluate it in the comfort of your own home. There is no need to stand and queue with the great unwashed.

With boats it's much harder to see different models in one place so buyers will actually attend and rub shoulders with the plebs who couldn't even afford the tender let alone one of the engines. As a buyer there is no way I'm going to stand in a queue and wait to get on board.

This year I was able to see the Squadron 50 with ease on both the Saturday and Sunday (yesterday). With Sunseeker there were queues and so I didn't go aboard. In the past I have spoken to the Sunseeker sales guy, explained my current position and then been shown onto boats in front of people just there for the day out. That's how it should work. I'm a serious prospect and got treated as such.

I will say that at Souhtampton last year or London the year before I spoke with a Sunseeker rep after asking at the welcome desk, spent 10-15 minutes or so qualifying our position, telling them we'd bought new a couple of years previously and explaining the direction we we looking to move, only to be pointed in the direction of the queue rather than escorted onto a boat or 2. Massive mistake of the highest order.

I'd given that prat the most valuable thing I have, my time. I even helped him out by wearing some nice shoes and an easy to identify expensive wristwatch. I had a sensible conversation, didn't bull**** him, told him all he needed to know. He, in effect, said yeah whatever and sent me on my way. I was left gobsmacked and the wife & I just walked off the stand shaking our heads in amazement.

If you are a serious buyer have a quiet word and ask if there is someone free. Briefly explain what you currently have, what you're looking to get into and let them know that you are genuine. They will, (with the exception of Sunseeker!) guide you past any queues and allow you to have a prod and a poke.

This year at Southampton I didn't step foot on a Sunseeker. They are bloody ugly from the outside, that's all I can tell you

I can't comment on Princess. As a former customer I have a couple of people who will give me the grand tour and show me the latest and greatest offering. We know many of the staff manning the various boats so can wander on and off at will. To be honest they never seem to get clogged up. Probably because they let you have a wander rather than insisting you have a whole 30 minute presentation. Some boats you know aren't for you within 30 seconds, so let those people get off. They also had a lot of boats there. But as I say I'm probably not the guy to judge Princess because they look after us very well. I will say though my recollection is they have always been this way even when we owned a Fairline.

Just my two pennies worth

Henry

 

[Deleted User YDKXO]

Most people I deal with know I'm a bit daft and vvv busy, and am quite likely to arrive at 2.45 or possibly the wrong day, or just dial in from the South of France

.

Don't bother asking me for a job

Yeah but my point is you were NOT a buyer. You have extrapolated from your situation and concluded that they would piiss off a real custom

You know what, jfm, I possibly was. At SIBS 2 yrs ago, I had an attractive offer on the table for p/x ing my old Ferretti 46 against a new stock Phantom 50 and I might just have been silly enough to have been persuaded by a sweet talking salesman at the show to buy it.

You don't have any evidence of them turning away ACTUAL potential customers. .

No I don't but the important point is neither do they because their system means they don't find out. Look, I know what they are trying to do in terms of giving hot sales prospects maximum time but the system needs tweaking because turning away visitors to your stand, even at busy times, is really not good business practice. Praps they need to allocate a holding area where visitors who arrive for an appointment but the salesman isnt available, get looked after whilst they wait

We're in total agreement. But of the big builders, I think Fairline were the only firm that had shareholders/main board/CEO walking the stand and seeking out/spending time with customers and strong potentials >1% of turnover, weren't they?

Well thats excellent as anything that exposes the high ups to real customers can only do them good

 

[jfm]

. Don't bother asking me for a job

I think we're comfortably into hypothetical territory there . But you're making a big mistake in hiring only punctual people. There is zero correlation between really clever rain making value-creating ability, and punctuality. Intuitively I'd say the correlation works the other way.

 

[MY littlebirchwoo]

Evidence of them turning away ACTUAL potential buyers? Well JFM whilst I appreciate that in your MBY article it said 'and happy to mix with boaters of all size' it must be pointed out that you have a new and heavily customised high end boat and if were the CEO of a company signing that size order I would be there personally to shake hands on it! I am not the sort of person that fights for what I want in business - instead I have literally found myself fighting for my life on more than one occasion in recent years and the last thing I feel like doing is being uber ascertive at a boat show if I were I am afraid it would probably seem overly aggressive and therefore I tend to be alot more laid back about things in normal life

You are right too that I don't have any DeBere or Graf diamonds nor a bentley, but in recent years (approx every 18 months) we have upgraded our boat, but I see now that it is my fault that I didn't get to see the boat I wanted and not theirs as their policy weaselled out the 25 sales and after all I am not REALLY a customer as I sadly have to wait for a house sale to conclude before changing boats and therefore a tyre kicker!

However, let me also say that the last boat show I went to was in 1990 where, at the age of 23 I bought a brand new 40ft Boat... Maybe I was a bit more forceful then in my younger years!

 

[cruisingsam]

I think I must have gone to a different boatshow.

Went on the first Saturday and went on all the floating Fairlines. I did ask the guy at the entrance to their barrier if we could have a look and was waved through. We did queue for 5 minutes to get on the 78 but jumped on and off all the others with no problem.

The land based Sunseeker yachts was a similar story, albeit having to queue a bit more.

Princess wouldn't let us on their landbased flybridge but explained that they had appointments and may be "sir" would like to look at the V48? on the stand. So we did.

Have to say that imho the quality of the Fairlines was way superior to Sunseeker & Princess but why, from the boats on show, do Fairline owners not install a dishwasher?

The stand out yacht for quality, attention to detail and super detailing was the Discovery 50 Cat. Made all the others look mass produced. Probably being shown round by the owners of the company made a difference but that is a quality product.

 

[Deleted User YDKXO]

I think we're comfortably into hypothetical territory there . But you're making a big mistake in hiring only punctual people. There is zero correlation between really clever rain making value-creating ability, and punctuality. Intuitively I'd say the correlation works the other way.

Maybe but clever value creating rainmakers (w*** bingo award there) who turn up a day late don't sell boats.
Possibly we're in hypothetical territory at the moment, jfm, but when the City goes tits up after global default and financial armageddon and with your mechanical background, I'm sure I can find you a job fixing my machines

 

[MapisM]

I too sell big ticket items, typically £0.5m for a small one and £6m for a big one. Most people I deal with know I'm a bit daft and vvv busy, and am quite likely to arrive at 2.45 or possibly the wrong day, or just dial in from the South of France. They know they can buy from Mr 2.30 Prompt and will get perhaps a pretty mechanical product. Or they can buy from Mr Haphazard 2.45/whatever and get something more creative.

LOL, Mr.Haphazard? Do you mean the same folk who specs and supervises his boats as we all know he does? Per-lease.....

The only sensible reason I can think of, behind the "2.45 or possibly the wrong day" approach, is that your clients think that if they're treated like that after spending millions, then they MUST be buying something real good.
And if so, it's clever from your part to spread such idea...

But let me make another example: when I worked for a corporation whose current turnover is 60+ billion, for a big restructuring project our CEO contacted MBB to check what they had to offer.
Needless to say, all of them already knew him and his habits.
They came to the respective appointments with a delegation which included their CEOs and COOs.
As a young assistant, I went to welcome them at the entrance, and I still remember that I could have set my watch on their arrival. With all of them, bar none.
Correspondingly, they didn't wait for a second, because our CEO was ready to start each meeting right away.
Now, my point is, can you swear that you couldn't and wouldn't become "Mr 2.30 Prompt", as the above lot (which isn't exactly known for offering "mechanical products") was, if you should...?

Anyway, back on topic.
It seems to me that, no matter how good the reasons behind FL approach might be, most folks agree that their competitors' attitude is not only nicer, but also more effective.
To my simple mind, that's what really matters at the end of the day, and in FL boots I wouldn't dismiss these comments as "unrealistic".

Then again, if your and FL clients are the same - which might well be the case - why waste money bringing the boats to the shows, if just dial in from Oundle could be good enough for them...?

 

[MapisM]

when the City goes tits up after global default and financial armageddon and with your mechanical background, I'm sure I can find you a job fixing my machines

I don't think so.
The world we're living in works in such way that after a financial armageddon your machines would be totally useless. Sad, innit?
Mind, I'm not defending the system - far from that - but that's the way it is.

 

[benjenbav]

It seems to me that, no matter how good the reasons behind FL approach might be, most folks agree that their competitors' attitude is not only nicer, but also more effective.

I'm not sure. On the one occasion I was seriously interested in a F/L I made an appointment and was shown around the model in question by someone who knew the product and had time to talk it over with me without being distracted by other potential customers wandering around the same boat at the same time.

F/L are careful to make sure that, at Southampton, they are always in position "A" so that this year's tyre kickers and other assorted dreamers will see their boats and, if they become serious, I guess they will make an appointment for another occasion.

 

[lovezoo]

I'm not sure. On the one occasion I was seriously interested in a F/L I made an appointment and was shown around the model in question by someone who knew the product and had time to talk it over with me without being distracted by other potential customers wandering around the same boat at the same time.

And if they had forgotten your appointment/turned up the next day, or simply "phoned in" from the South Of France would you still have been so keen?

 

[benjenbav]

And if they had forgotten your appointment/turned up the next day, or simply "phoned in" from the South Of France would you still have been so keen?

Probably not...unless they'd left the keys and a full tank of fuel and a note saying "Be our guest; max it out"

 

[ari]

Anyway, back on topic.
It seems to me that, no matter how good the reasons behind FL approach might be, most folks agree that their competitors' attitude is not only nicer, but also more effective.
To my simple mind, that's what really matters at the end of the day, and in FL boots I wouldn't dismiss these comments as "unrealistic".

More effective at what?

Getting the maximum number of people on, through, and off their boats in one day?

Possibly.

Getting the maximum number of potential buyers properly qualified, accompanied by the correct/most relevant sales people, given plenty of time to look, having all their questions properly answered, details taken correctly so they can be followed up efficiently?

Maybe not...

 

[MapisM]

More effective at what?

Oi, I told about my simple mind, didn't I? To me, effectiveness means bringing results.
According to what I read so far, FL approach dismissed some genuine leads, which signed contracts with others.
That's all I would want to know, if I were a boat builder and had to decide which approach to follow.
All the rest is forum talk.

 

[ari]

No they didn't.

Some people got the hump because they perceived the Fairline system to be "unfriendly", a bit of "well if I HAD been a buyer...", and everyone else (myself included) simply asked to look at the boats and did.

 

[Steve Clayton]

........The stand out yacht for quality, attention to detail and super detailing was the Discovery 50 Cat. Made all the others look mass produced. Probably being shown round by the owners of the company made a difference but that is a quality product.

+1; I was just a tyre-kicker for this sort of yacht but the friends we were with weren't. He is certainly looking for a yacht of high calibre with full live-aboard potential (and can afford it) and nothing was too much trouble for the company staff aboard re information giving - with no pressure at all; with several offers made to pop over to their build location for a look around and have further discussions as necessary.

 

[MY littlebirchwoo]

No they didn't.

Some people got the hump because they perceived the Fairline system to be "unfriendly", a bit of "well if I HAD been a buyer...", and everyone else (myself included) simply asked to look at the boats and did.

In my OP I certainly didn't say if I HAD been a customer. The thread has moved a little off topic, however I would like to add that I really haven't been to a UK boat show in years - literally, and obviously As has been pointed out I wasn't doing it 'right'. I would also like to add that we were both polite to the people we spoke with and they were with us and my disappointment was that we werent offered an appointment and in the morning when we had attempted to just walk around the barrier we were informed that there was a group viewing. Maybe we were unlucky on the day, I certainly wouldn't usually dismiss a product in this experience alone but as we didn't get to compare we ended up looking at other boats, one if which we are going to view again at a dealer. So on this occasion Fairline themselves have put themselves out of the frame for now. It's a shame that I didn't see Guy Or James Barke around the show as I am sure this would not have been the case. However we did see another dealer who we have bought two boats from over the past three and a half years and another that we bought a boat from several years before and were guests of a company of a brand we have never owned but would be very keen to see us in one of our boats. So does the system Fairline have in place REALLY work? Or because I wasn't waving my cheque book around at the show were we dismissed as a voyeur?

As I've said before no one knows what fortune befalls anyone and I wonder. . Just as a comparison. . How many people who now own very expensive boats just wandered around a boat show in the past before they even owned the boat just 'browsing'. . . Loads I bet!

 

[ari]

I think from the sounds of it you were a combination of unlucky and being there on the worst (busiest) possible day.

Ultimately, non of the "big boys" are going to please all the people all of the time because they just don't have the manpower or boats available for peak times. There have been posts on here over the years berating Fairline, Sealine, Princess, and especially (I'd say) Sunseeker.

Whether Fairline are worse off because of it, hard to say. No doubt all of the stands risk losing customers because of being overwhelmed. What Fairline do have is a system that controls the visitors as effectively as can be, in terms of access, qualification and data capture.

They obviously think feel works for them, so maybe for each they "lose" they gain five properly managed leads that would otherwise not be dealt with properly.

 

[Deleted User YDKXO]

. There have been posts on here over the years berating Fairline, Sealine, Princess, and especially (I'd say) Sunseeker.

.

No there haven't, at least not in my memory. Yes there have been a few mutterings about Sunseeker in the past but they have changed over the years and become more accessible. Fairline's policy, on the other hand, is a perennial topic for brickbats. In fact, I posted a very similar post to this OP's post about their LIBS 2010 viewing arrangements.

 

[MrB]

"is a perennial topic for brickbats."

That is the funniest thing i have read in this 8 page saga. It's a phrase to be saved for the next AGM. PMSL

 

[MY littlebirchwoo]