Sibs what’s your thoughts

jrudge said:
They need to make a choice.

1. Punter pays.

He is paying for something and by default that must be to access the boats.

2. It is free.

Exhibitor rules

Boat sales is a long long long game. I have bought 2 from boats.co.uk. One used one new. They know I will eventually likely buy another and likely from them.

Sunseeker likewise always treat me well.

Princess were fine under boats.co.uk but I went to look at a new princess 64 one morning in swanwick. The salesman was clear sir clearly could not afford such a craft and could look from the outside. The next day sir bought a new squadron 65.

They feed their pipeline for the long term and people don't forget how they were treated - both good and bad.

I am surprised the organisers don't mandate that they should all have one publicly accessible boat or what is the point of going ?
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Totally agree. I've been going to boat shows for (worryingly) over 30 years and I have found stands more restrictive in recent years. As you say, much like every other show (Car, Motorhome etc etc), if you are paying to attend the show you are paying on the understanding that at a boat show you will be able to look around boats. If all you can do is walk past them then just take a free stroll down a nearby harbour etc..

I know new boat sales has historically been mostly for a fairly small demographic of the population but would I go as far as say a bit of elitism and greater snobbery is creeping in? Or maybe it's a two way street where also more show attendees are less 'respectful' on the boats... I don't know.
But... the basic understanding has always been if I'm paying to attend a show, I'm going to be able to look around at least 90% of whats being exhibited. (There'll always be the odd exotic 'special' that can only be viewed from afar.. But they should be the exception rather than the rule.)
 
AllanG said:
You were lucky with Sunseeker, Henry, as yesterday they only had one boat for one general public viewing, and was told all the other boats could only be viewed by an appointment with a sales executive…obviously they didn’t see the £Ms sticking out of my jacket!! 🤣

On the other hand, Princess had all their boats open for general viewing 👍 which, IMHO, should be the case for all exhibitors, as it’s the majority of visitors paying hard earned cash to go to the show to see boats!!
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Not my experience last Friday. My friend and were given free reign to look at any Sunny. We did 2, as there were plenty of other brands of interest.
 
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Could any exhibitor pick out a lottery winner from a group of people, some of whom will undoubtedly be wearing jeans. Expensive ones!
 
jrudge said:
The evidence says they are not in rude health in the U.K. quite he opposite.

London. Dead.

Southampton. Shrinking year by year

Sales people dismiss people in jeans at their peril.
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And Cannes? Monaco (where tickets cost over €700 and you aren't getting on anything without an invite!)? Palma, Fort Lauderdale? Palm Beach? Barcelona? All have the same policy, always have. All thriving.

And sales people don't 'dismiss people in jeans' in my experience, they're not idiots. I can only imagine that you must have tried quite hard to convince someone that you couldn't afford a boat for some reason. :)
 
Cheery said:
Could any exhibitor pick out a lottery winner from a group of people, some of whom will undoubtedly be wearing jeans. Expensive ones!
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Lottery winners make up less than 0.1% of big boat buyers, so it's not really crucial to be able to.
 
jrudge said:
They need to make a choice.

1. Punter pays.

He is paying for something and by default that must be to access the boats.

2. It is free.

Exhibitor rules
Click to expand...
I would add that the pricing of boats has changed so dramatically over the past few decades that it has become far more difficult for the average person to enter the new boat market, significantly shrinking its overall size - leading to fewer and smaller shows.

On several occasions, I’ve compared the prices of new boats from decades ago with the closest equivalent models available today, and I consistently find that the increase is way above CPI inflation. While it’s true that boats today are generally beamier and better equipped than their predecessors, I don’t believe this explains the whole difference.

I don’t think that the average person expect multi-million-pound yachts to be accessible at shows - just as many people is okay with the latest Bugatti or Pagani being off limits at car shows. The real issue I think is that half of a boat show is now dominated by these ultra high-end offerings, while the “entry-level” side is still priced at levels that put it out of reach for average people.

In fact, quite a few builders now have smallest models that are almost the same size as their largest offerings a few decades ago. If this trend continues, the new-boat market will inevitably cater to fewer and fewer people - unless there’s some dramatic shift in manufacturing.
 
My 20 year old flybridge 42’ was £350,000 new. It would be nearer £1.25 million today, and have IPS, so I would exclude it. The depreciation of such a boat would be eye watering.
 
Well my prediction based on a few conversations, SIBS may be on next year but I would doubt, unless things change significantly, SIBS will continue into '27. It's exceptionally expensive to exhibit for diminishing returns.. Will be interesting to see if I'm right or not.
 
rafiki_ said:
My 20 year old flybridge 42’ was £350,000 new. It would be nearer £1.25 million today, and have IPS, so I would exclude it. The depreciation of such a boat would be eye watering.
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If in the next 20 years the same boat goes up by another 400%....then the depreciation might not be so bad🤷‍♂️🤔
 
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