Irish boat companies
sail towards success
 BY Elaine Sheridan
IRISH boat companies sailed their way into London recently looking for
a slice of the multi-million pound British leisure market.
Exhibitors from across Ireland joined those from Britain, Europe and across
the world at the Collins Stewart London Boat Show this month to show what
Ireland has to offer to boating enthusiasts and holidaymakers.
The leisure market in Britain is currently generating about £2.8billion
for the economy and Irish companies are adding greatly to this success.
Companies looking to promote sailing holidays in Ireland were a popular
feature of the show.
One company, Carrickcraft, offers boating holidays on the River Shannon
and Lough Erne.
North of Ireland-based Carrickcraft’s John Morton said: “As
first-time exhibitors we are delighted with the response, with quality
visitors coming to the show. We have great sales leads of which many will
convert to hard sales.
“We have a large range of boats from two-berth to eight-berth and
no experience is necessary — in fact half our customers have never
been on a boat before.
“For those interested in coming over, travel to Ireland has never
been easier and we operate a coach transfer service from Dublin and Shannon
Airports every Saturday making your journey even easier.”
Also at the exhibition was Sail Ireland Charters who are one of Ireland’s
largest yacht charter companies.
According to a spokeswoman from Waterways Ireland, the guardians of Ireland’s
inland navigations, Ireland’s waterways can provide a unique experience
for everyone.
She said: “The natural environment provides excellent opportunities
to participate in a huge range of sightseeing, cultural and outdoor activities.”
While at the show visitors from across Britain, Ireland and beyond learnt
how to anchor a boat and navigate their way through fog as well as picking
up tips and advice from the many experts that appeared in the Sky Sports
Theatre.
Overall the attendance for the 2007 show exceeded 130,000 visitors and
according to Andrew Williams, managing director of National Boat Shows,
this has been an exceptionally good show.
He said: “We will now build from this position to further attract
a wider audience in future years.”
The London Boat Show was held at the ExCeL conference centre and had over
700 exhibitors, around 1,000 world-class boats and masses of related equipment.
Plans are now beginning for the 2008 show which will take place from January
11-20, 2008. | 