Jeff Napie Resigns as NMMA President

NAPIER TENDERS RESIGNATION
AS NMMA PRESIDENT

NMMA Press Release
CHICAGO, March 5, 1998 -- Jeff W. Napier, president of the National Marine Manufacturers Association (NMMA) since 1980, has resigned to pursue other opportunities. In accepting his resignation, members of the NMMA Executive Committee stated they "wished to thank Napier for his significant contribution which lead to the evolution of the Association and the marine industry in general."

Sylvan "Ham" Hamberger has agreed to serve as interim president in order to support the Association during this transition period. Hamberger is a past chairman of NMMA and served for over 40 years with major marine engine and boatbuilding companies in top sales and marketing capacities. He will be responsible for the day-to-day operation of NMMA in the interim period and will conference twice monthly with the NMMA Executive Committee.

The Executive Committee has pledged support to the NMMA membership and association management team during the transition. They indicated that the search for a new president will begin immediately and that an individual with significant marketing credentials will be sought to continue the NMMA's emphasis on market expansion and "uniting the boating industry for growth." 

FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT
GREG PROTEAU: 312/946-6200.

Copyright © 1997 National Marine Manufacturers Association, Inc.
March 06, 1998

RBBI Comments

When we attended IMTEC in September 97 it was obvious the organization had some major problems. They have thousands of members, but a when the "rubber hits the road" they have to get a few of the monstrous companies (Brunswick, etc) to agree to follow along. The organization is very broad (boat builders, accessories, retailers, PWC's, etc) this makes it difficult to gain consensus on certain issues. It is a nice forum to get the broader groups together, but perhaps a more focused organization could be more useful. Several industries have multiple trade organizations.

When Irwin Jacobs, Genmar, recently pulled out of the organization due to conflict with allowing PWC's into the group, it became more apparent the organization is in for some "shaking out." Now that Mr. Napier is gone, we would expect to see continued changes.

Its possible that a few of the majors could form their own organization and leave all the minor players to fend for themselves.

Although we do not agree with all the recent Task Force proposals, we do think the general concept of promoting boating and good customer relations is a good item for the organization to address. We hope addressing some of these basic issues does not get lost in the organization "swirl."

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