UK. Busiest ever Southampton Boat Show for McMurdo

Tuesday, 23 September 2008


The 2008 Southampton Boat show started with a 'Big Bang'. Not an announcement of a rush of new boat sales, but instead the shock news of the failing of one of the largest US investment banks, Lehman Brothers, the propping up, by the US government of one of the world’s largest insurance companies, AIG and the necessary merger of Lloyds TSB and HBOS to protect the UK's third largest mortgage lender from financial disaster.

Yet, McMurdo experienced their best Southampton show ever in the terms of unit sales through their dealers there.

The show opened to the news that financial institutions around the world were recording some of the largest one day losses in history, and yet McMurdo went on to witness a substantial increase in the take up of PLBs by keen leisure sailors, adventurers and canoeists through the week.

McMurdo has hit the headlines recently with some major rescues being carried out using the company’s distress beacons. “People’s awareness of the McMurdo safety products have clearly increased and we sensed that this was linked in some way to the uncertainty of the future” said Sales and Marketing Director Jeremy Harrison. Buyers seem to be placing their priority on safety and security before they spend money on new boats”.

Steve Rogers, of the McMurdo sales team, manned the stand throughout the ten day marathon event and at the end of the show reported "We changed the focus of the stand this year to concentrate purely on the Smartfind EPIRB and the Fastfind MAX G PLB. As a result we were projecting a streamlined message to attract attention to our core lifesaving products, a strategy which seemed to both carry well with the dealers and end customers alike.” He then added “ I am now going to take a day out for a well earned rest - I’m going fishing!" He will be sure to have his McMurdo PLB with him

Last Updated ( Tuesday, 23 September 2008 )

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