Boat manufacturing is one industry that’s still made in the USA.
At Fish Tale Boats of Fort Myers, you’ll find the Made in the USA label proudly displayed from the four manufacturers we represent: Avalon, Chaparral, Grady-White, and Robalo.
American craftsmen put their heart and soul into many of the boats that you see on the water today. According to the National Marine Manufacturers Association, 95% of boats sold in the U.S. are made in this country.
So when you buy an American-made boat you’ll know you’re doing your part to help hundreds of workers put food on the table for their families in places such as Alma, Mich., Greenville, N.C., and Nashville, Ga.
Avalon
Manufacturer: Avalon
Headquarters: Alma, Mich.
Website: www.avalonpontoons.com
About: Avalon has built pontoon boats for more than four decades. In addition to the boats, Avalon also makes parts such as the furniture. That’s important because it gives the company better control over quality than if it bought the parts from an outside source. Besides being luxurious and strong, all Avalon pontoons are certified by the National Marine Manufacturers Association. Certified boats meet or exceed the industry’s strictest quality and safety standards and pass rigorous annual inspections to retain their status. Highly qualified welders, furniture makers, assemblers and quality assurance engineers constantly improve Avalon boats and sustain the quality that the brand is known for.
Grady-White
Manufacturer: Grady-White Boats
Headquarters: Greenville, N.C.
Website: www.gradywhite.com
About: Grady-White has been building boats in Greenville, N.C. since 1959. Since purchasing the company in 1968, owner and CEO Eddie Smith has inspired his crew to build boats with the best quality, reliability, safety, performance and long-lasting value. The company constantly refines its boats as technology develops. Models include center consoles, coastal explorers, dual consoles, express cabins and walk around cabins.
Marine Products Corp.
Manufacturer: Marine Products Corp.
Headquarters: Atlanta, Ga.
Website: www.marineproductscorp.com
About: Marine Products Corp. manufactures fiberglass motorized boats distributed and marketed through its independent dealer network. Marine Products has been a publicly traded company since 2001 and its stock trades on the New York Stock Exchange (symbol: MPX). The company sells Chaparral and Robalo boats through a network of 147 domestic and 85 international independent authorized dealers, including Fish Tale.
- Chaparral manufactures 35 models in seven different product lines: H2O Sport and Fish & Ski Boats, SSi and SSX Sportboats, Sunesta Sportdecks, Signature Cruisers, Vortex Jet Boats, and SunCoast outboards. A fiberglass fabricating company in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., produced the first Chaparral boat in 1965. In 1976, Chaparral moved its operations to Nashville, Ga., to allow the fast-growing company to expand its operations and find an experienced labor force and better access to major interstate highways.
- Robalo is a leading sport fishing boat brand acquired in June 2001 by Marine Products. Robalo was founded in 1969 and its first boat was a 19-foot center console saltwater fishing boat, among the first of this type of boat to have an “unsinkable” hull. Robalo is a premium-quality line of outboard-powered bay boats, center console, dual console and walkaround cabin-style sport fishing boats.