Sailing to profits in crowded field

STEADY COURSE: A strong focus on customer service has kept Warren’s Zim Sailing profitable in a competitive market, says Robert Adam, above right, vice president of sales and marketing. He’s pictured with owner Stephen F. Perry. / PBN FILE PHOTO RUPERT WHITELEY
STEADY COURSE: A strong focus on customer service has kept Warren’s Zim Sailing profitable in a competitive market, says Robert Adam, above right, vice president of sales and marketing. He’s pictured with owner Stephen F. Perry. / PBN FILE PHOTO RUPERT WHITELEY

There’s more to sailing in Rhode Island than sun, sea breezes and drinks at the yacht club.
Behind those leisurely days on the bay is a competitive Rhode Island boat construction and sales industry with dozens of businesses looking for a slice of the public’s limited recreation dollars.
Zim Sailing in Warren is keenly aware of the local competition in small sailboats not only because of its proximity to so many marine businesses in the East Bay, but a shared history with some.
Zim was founded six years ago by Stephen Perry after he was forced out of venerable Portsmouth boat maker Vanguard, when it was acquired by Performance Sailcraft and turned into LaserPerformance LLC.
Zim, incorporated as Gecko Marine Inc., not only operates in the same sailing dinghy market as LaserPerformance, but builds and distributes some of the same licensed designs, including the popular Optimist and 420 classes.
The competition has led to some tension over the years, including a lawsuit by LaserPerformance against Zim for trademark infringement in 2010, which resulted in a settlement.
Since then, Zim has fared well in the race to supply the sailing dinghy fleets of yacht clubs and summer vacationers across the country.
With the economy and boat market recovering somewhat, Zim has posted 30 to 40 percent growth over each of the past four years – from selling roughly 50 units annually in 2009 to 300 units in 2013, according to Vice President of Sales and Marketing Robert Adam.
“Yacht clubs and junior programs have begun to rely on us as their main source for boat needs and parts to keep those boats sailing,” Adam said. “We are growing and are trying to hire more people on the manufacturing end right now.”
The American small-sailboat industry includes a mix of local manufacturing, importing, finishing and distribution.
The recognizable classes of boats, like Optimists, 420s and lasers, still utilize traditional fiberglass construction and, because they are meant to be uniform when raced against each other, cannot employ some of the more efficient composite methods, like vacuum resin infusion.
To keep costs down on designs with relatively significant labor costs, most companies, including Zim, import hulls from Asia and finish them in Rhode Island. “The business climate is international and all builders are sourcing from places that make the most sense,” Adam said.
After starting out with Optimists, Zim has added designs and now sells 18 different types of vessels, plus rigging, sails, spars, parts and accessories, online and at its Warren retail store.
The most popular designs are still the Optimist and 420, Adam said, because of their widespread racing opportunities and the availability of used boats for people looking to get into the sport.
While the hulls for both Optimists and 420s are made overseas, in the case of the 420, Zim also owns the tooling used to build the boats that are then shipped to Rhode Island for finishing.
And some of the newer designs Zim is making entirely in the East Bay, prompting the company to expand its manufacturing capacity.
That includes the Byte and Byte CII, which compete with the Laser class, and will include a new design Zim intends to roll out later this year.
On how the sailing dinghy market is changing, Adam said although the yacht clubs and training programs are sticking with traditional classes, more casual buyers are becoming open to different designs that provide more durability or better performance.
Zim is targeting the market for beach, lake or vacation use, where the Sunfish design has been so successful for generations, with the Hartley line of boats that feature more cockpit room and more durable construction.
“A Sunfish, while an easy boat to keep on the beach and sail, is very cramped,” Adam said. “The Hartley can be kept on the beach and rigged like a Sunfish, but it is more durable and more comfortable to sail.”
On what makes Zim different from other builders and distributors, Adam said the company’s strategy has been a focus on customer service and realization that, for sailors, days on the water are precious and lost time due to equipment issues “can never be gotten back.”
In addition, the company relies less on part-time surges of young workers and more on full-time, experienced talent, which gives it more of an aggressive, startup culture than some rivals, Adam said.
“We’ve always had that startup attitude going,” Adam said. •

COMPANY PROFILE
Zim Sailing (Incorporated as Gecko Marine Inc.)
OWNER: Stephen F. Perry
TYPE OF BUSINESS: Sailboat builder and distributor
LOCATION: 84 Cutler St., Warren
EMPLOYEES: 10
YEAR ESTABLISHED: 2008
ANNUAL SALES: NA

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