Friday, April 23, 2010

Boutique Boat Shows in CT

It seems Connecticut is hosting about a half dozen boat shows this year, most of them small and first-time shows organized by boat dealers that are pulling out all the stops to make 2010 more successful than last year.

Today, I attended one of these shows in Essex, CT, and I'll be exhibiting BoatNameGear at another one in New London on June 19th. There is also one happening in Mystic at the Seaport next month. The New London event appears that it might be much larger than what I witnessed today in Essex, as it is being organized by the same folks that put on the huge SailFest every year.

As for Essex, here's what I saw on this beautiful Friday afternoon. One dock with boats, three non-boat vendors under the tent, and a couple dozen boats to look at. And there seemed to be a lot of yacht salespeople and Soundings writers and photographers milling around - at least for the kickoff of the event.

Still, you couldn't have asked for a better day weather-wise for a boat show.

Overall, I think Soundings, Brewer, Hank Aldrich Yacht Sales and the other yacht brokers involved with the event did a pretty nice job with the inaugural "Spring Boat Show" in Essex, CT. The show began today and goes through Sunday, April 25th. Here are a few photos of my favorite boats from the show.