Polaris to shut down production of Rinker and other lines

So, per the article the boats that they are going to continue to make are pontoon and deck boats (Bennington, Godfrey and Hurricane). I guess that is the way the market has been heading.
 
They bought those companies in the last two years. Must be losing their shirt on them.
 
What really makes me angry is that they just purchased these brands in 2018/2019. Why buy something to close it down? The same thing happened in the guitar industry when Fender bought Hamer and then closed them down. Just seems like a total waste of money.
 
Gofirstclass said:
That's quite an assumption. What are you basing that on?
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This quote is from the Polaris website linked above:
“Polaris purchased the Larson FX and Striper brands in 2019 and the Rinker brand as a part of its Boat Holdings acquisition in 2018.”

I owned a Larson runabout in the early 90’s. Good solid boat. I liked it. I would purchase another one. Sad to see them go.
 
Sad, Rinker was a decent boat for the money. Pontoons and bow riders with outboards is the trend.
 
Chip S said:
What really makes me angry is that they just purchased these brands in 2018/2019. Why buy something to close it down? The same thing happened in the guitar industry when Fender bought Hamer and then closed them down. Just seems like a total waste of money.
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Chip, maybe I misinterpreted your comment. I took it to mean they bought those brands with the intent to shut them down in their minds when they bought them.

My bad. Sorry.
 
Sad! I have had three Rinkers and they where some of the best boats I had owned.

My first move into a cabin cruiser was a 26ft Rinker. We log about 2000 hours on it with out one mechanical issue. Towed that boat to every major body of water in the west and even spent a month in the San Juan in the NW.
Sad to see them go.
 
DWABoat said:
This quote is from the Polaris website linked above:
“Polaris purchased the Larson FX and Striper brands in 2019 and the Rinker brand as a part of its Boat Holdings acquisition in 2018.”

I owned a Larson runabout in the early 90’s. Good solid boat. I liked it. I would purchase another one. Sad to see them go.
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My first power boat was a small Larson cuddy cabin. Agreed, it was a solid boat that felt well put together.
 
Chip S said:
What really makes me angry is that they just purchased these brands in 2018/2019. Why buy something to close it down? The same thing happened in the guitar industry when Fender bought Hamer and then closed them down. Just seems like a total waste of money.
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It's not an entirely uncommon thing if you're focusing on a specific market segment.

If there are brands a, b, c, d, e and f and you're selling brands a-c, buying out e and f and closing them down narrows the choices for buyers in that segment. You can streamline marketing, possibly even raise your price, etc.

IMHO, a lot of business these days seems to be focused on competing by just eliminating the competition and angling for some kind of monopoly, even if its not a true monopoly. Actually competing by being the better business is out of fashion.
 
As long as Sea Ray survives...

Lots of manufacturers hurting but I believe the rebound will bring lots of made in China back home.
 
I had no idea Polaris owned them all. While I don't like anyone to lose a job, I'm thinking this might be good for Sea Ray in the sense it clears out another one of he players.
 
That was great timing for the Vogel family who sold Bennington, Godfrey, Hurricane and Rinker to Polaris last year when the value was ~$805M. Horrible timing for Polaris to make that acquisition. And good timing for our old buddy Rob Parmentier who sold Larson to Polaris last year from Marquis Yachts. Interesting times we're in.

Stupid virus screwed up a lot of things for a lot people and companies.
 
My uncle was a Larson dealer in Nampa, Idaho for years. I'm sorry to see the brand disappear.
 
Hard to believe many of these old, storied brands are shutting down. Rinker was a good entry level boat for many, as was Larson. Talk about money down the drain by Polaris.
 
Tonka Boater said:
That was great timing for the Vogel family who sold Bennington, Godfrey, Hurricane and Rinker to Polaris last year when the value was ~$805M. Horrible timing for Polaris to make that acquisition. And good timing for our old buddy Rob Parmentier who sold Larson to Polaris last year from Marquis Yachts. Interesting times we're in.

Stupid virus screwed up a lot of things for a lot people and companies.
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Your second best day as the owner of a boat business is the day you sell the boat business.
 
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