marine industry professionals
Reggie Fountain talks about Chapter 11 filing
Fountain Powerboat Industries chairman and CEO Reggie Fountain was upbeat this morning as he talked about the plan to bring his company through Chapter 11 reorganization and to continue to build the boats that have borne his name since 1979.
"I always like to be positive; my glass is always half-full, not half-empty," he told Soundings Trade Only.
Fountain, who currently owns 52 percent of the company's stock, said he's now in talks with nine potential investor groups and hopes to find a buyer soon.
"We feel pretty sure one of the lucky ones will team up with us here, and we'll move forward in the next 30 years, just as we have in the past 30," he said.
"I'll probably own very little, if any, of the stock in the new company, but I'm hoping I'll continue to work for them," Fountain added. "That seems to be what they all want me to do, since I started this up, engineered it up and sold it for the last 30 years - over $1 billion worth of boats."
The company could emerge from Chapter 11 by the end of September, he said.
Fountain currently has about 40 employees, though that will be down to about 12 by next week. Just three years ago, when Fountain did $79 million in business, the company had about 450 employees.
"I hope we're going to bring them all back," he said. "Whether it's going to be six months or three or four years, I don't know. That's the saddest thing about the whole deal to me."
Fountain said his biggest mistake over the years was not putting aside money "for a rainy day," but instead reinvesting it in the company.
He predicted a different boat business, in general, when the recession ends.
"I think we all got away from reality. Everybody was building all they could build and sending them into the field, and finance companies were financing them and then all this stuff happens," he said.
Still, he said, many companies have filed for Chapter 11 and come out of it on the other side.
"We're following suit with what everyone else is doing," Fountain said, citing General Motors, Chrysler and Genmar. "I might as well get in on that deal."
"I'm looking around for good, strong partners. With enough good people to form a good team, I think you can make it through, and I think that's what's going to have to happen all throughout the marine industry."
- Beth Rosenberg
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I just heard about this situation with Fountain. However I'm not as concerned about Reggie. He will be fine and still build boats. What I'm curious about is what is happening to Baja. I will never be able to afford a Fountain and really I like the Baja better. I know there will be flack for that statement but I own Chevy's too and will never have a new Cadillac. Any how I am passionate about boating. Whether I'm in the best boat or not I'm still going boating and just because the economy is a mess I'm not running out to buy a pontoon. Life's too short to waste on something that you don't want. My thought's on this are simple Reggie needs to factor in Baja to get him out of this mess. I say that because the smaller more widely affordable Baja's under 30 foot will still sell. Also they can reduce the amount of boats produced but really why not utilize recent designs that have already been engineered. Give the customers more equipment and in expensive luxury's similar to Rinker and 4 winns. Produce these boats with the same bright color sckemes that are their trade mark and reduce the cost due to engineering to allow them into the same price range as the common boats. Trust me boaters will not stop boating. I've spent tons of money just to make sure I made it to the water and home as all boaters have at one time or another. Its our passion and give us more instead of less and we will buy it. I'm not much of a writter and I tend to ramble so I hope that least some of my points made sense.
I saw your comment and immediately took offense. Only someone who enjoys poor fit and finish with glue exposed in the cockpit seams would make a statement that they like a production line Baja over a Fountain. I am offended for the Fountain employees! I am the owner of a hand built Commander 26 Signature from the SoCal region. I can assure you that you get what you pay for.
Your point is clear that everyone would appreciate more for less; the reality is that many need to settle for mass produced, production line boats due to their lack of disposable income. I would love to own a Sunsation 32 foot Dominator, but my budget does not allow for it. Atleat I can respectfully use the Sunsation name in the same comment as the Fountain name. Rinker and 4Winns should not even be mentioned in the same article as Fountain.
A Baja is almost comparable to a Chevy Malibu as a Fountain is comparable to any Ferrari!
The End.
All boat builders are hurting, yet not filing chapter 11 reggie does have a state of the art plant, not like donzi, who i used to work for. will the people that worked there before want to come back? at donzi they let everybody but the high paying people that never worked anyway go, and now they have a crew of people building boats that don't know anything about it. quality of all powerboats will go way down. will be same at fountain.
BOAT DOC is dead on here.
This story doesn't do any favors for Reggie, nor should it.
I bet he put plenty of money aside for himself, yet is scr*wing his employees and creditors.
He is doing exactly what the banks and gov't has done to the taxpayers.
"We're following suit..."
Seems as though if it is good enough for GM, Chrysler, Genmar et al.,
Good enough for Reggie. "I might as well get in on that deal".
Let's see - run up debt, don't save, don't plan, file bankruptcy,
start over, too bad for the creditors that you promised to repay.
America, what a country!
And no one seems to understand the problem?
The Marine business will be the last to recover, if and when the economy turns around. The industry is small compared to the Auto and Banking, so I doubt that Obama and his anointed Czars would want anything to do with it. There is nothing in it for him (votes).
I do hope Reggie can get back building his quality boats again.
I once sold his product working for a dealer & have been to his plant many times. I also have watched him on the rivers of NC when he first started racing . I live close by his plant, & at the back door to other grate quality boat builders in Edenton, NC. who are probably in need $ to keep their plants operating.
The government can find borrowed money to lend to Brazil. But would it not be more help full to back up the boating industry who employ local people to keep their jobs secure here in the US.