Bennington Marine Closes Deal for Nautic Global Group

Pontoon manufacturer Bennington Marine announced today that it completed the acquisition of the brands and certain assets of Nautic Global Group LLC and is assuring dealers and customers that all of the brands will continue to function independently.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

The brands Bennington acquired — Godfrey pontoon boats (which includes Aqua Patio, Sanpan and Sweetwater), Hurricane deckboats, Polar Kraft fishing boats and Rinker cruisers — are being held in a newly formed holding company and will be operated separately from Bennington.

The acquisition will not impact existing operations, dealer networks or retail customer relationships for either Bennington or the acquired brands.

“We are excited to bring together some of the strongest brands in the marine industry,” Jacob Vogel, CEO at Bennington Marine, said in a statement. “And we want to assure dealers and their customers that it is business as usual. Production, servicing and marketing of these terrific brands will continue to remain separate and strong.”

Elkhart, Ind.-based Bennington said in late September that it was buying Nautic Global Group, also based in Elkhart, and its brands, which include four pontoon lines under the Godfrey umbrella.

Bennington founder Steve Vogel said at the time that the acquisition would give dealers an opportunity to expand their product offerings.

“Current dealers of either or both brands will have opportunities to expand their representation, and the companies announced that the intention is to distribute dealer-specific news and meetings scheduled shortly after the closing of the transaction, which is anticipated to be Oct. 2,” CEO Jacob Vogel said in a statement. “At this time we are planning on operating these acquired brands and businesses as an organization separate from Bennington, but with the same world-class attention to quality and customer service.”

Nautic Global, the sixth-largest U.S. boat manufacturer, has as much as half of the deckboat market share with its Hurricane brand. The company’s pontoon brands include Godfrey Pontoons, Sanpan, Aqua Patio and Sweetwater. It also builds Rinker Express Cruisers, Captiva Sport Boats and Polar Kraft aluminum fishing boats.

 

“The entire Elkhart-area community will benefit from the acquisition of these great boat brands, as this represents a big win for the employees, dealers and customer end users,” Malone said in the statement announcing that Bennington would purchase the group. “We’re pleased that the company is being acquired by one of the most highly regarded companies in the boating industry.”

“This represents an exciting opportunity for both companies,” Jacob Vogel said. “By putting some of the strongest brands in the marine industry together in one corporate family we will be able to better provide dealers and consumers with the highest-quality, most innovative products and back them with the best services and warranties in the industry. This is truly a historic transaction in the boating industry.”