While I was driving up to the cottage last week, I remembered why I keep making my rowboat kits available to the public for a reasonable cost. The smaller lakes and rivers can be accessed in an environmentally friendly way with a small (12 foot) flat-bottom boat, powered by oars or an electric motor.
It would be easy for me to build one at the boat show next year in Gravenhurst and try to encourage others to buy the kit. I did this in Clayton NY a few years back and got a positive response. The only real criticism is the fact that I do not use nails or screws as a permanent fastener. I prefer to use thickend epoxy on all joints and galvanized brad nails to hold the joint together until the epoxy cures. This method has proven to be very effective. My kids have been using the very first prototype for 12 years now and all joints are going strong.
Maybe the way to beat this recession is to market the smaller boats again. I did try this in Ontario years ago with little response. Most of my customers are from the USA. With the dollar the way it is and the lack of funds from the US, my guess is that Canadians are going to be my customers for a while. Canadians are typically cheap but, in the last while, I’ve noticed that they are spending money and particularly on new boats. The boating market is a buyers market right now and new boats have been selling.
An affordable rowboat kit that a family can build at the cottage may prove to be my bread and butter in the near future. Advertising is always the kicker. I need cash for that. Hopefully, I can save enough from my current jobs to try this out. “Boat in a Box”, may be my next venture so, if you see a billboard on Hwy #11 going north, you’ll know where it came from.
Cheers.