Thread by @bopinion

When Americans began emerging from their homes after the first wave of Covid in spring 2020, many apparently headed straight to their local boat dealers.

Spending on pleasure boats shot up to 20% above the pre-pandemic pace in May 2020 trib.al/xHmYB8x

At a time when crowded indoor spaces can pose deadly risks, small boats are great places to be.

The remote-work arrangements also made it easier for affluent white-collar workers to locate themselves within convenient distance of a body of water trib.al/RiRZvDB

With so many other things that have boomed during the pandemic, one does have to wonder how long this elevated demand for boats will last.

Here’s spending on pleasure boats going back to 1959, adjusted for inflation: trib.al/RiRZvDB

It’s clear that while 2020’s 318,550-powerboat total was the best in years, and 2021 looks even better, sales were much higher in past decades.

This chart is cobbled together from a couple of different data series from the @therealnmma: trib.al/RiRZvDB

Powerboat ownership is down and boating seems to play a reduced role in American life compared with past eras.

The decline can perhaps be attributed to larger trends, such as the population shift toward large metropolitan areas and the West trib.al/RiRZvDB

80% of the boats Brunswick, the leading player in the U.S. recreational boating business, sells cost $50,000 or less.

61% of boat owners have household incomes of $100,000 or less trib.al/RiRZvDB

At Freedom Boat Club, women now account for 35% of the 67,000 members who pay to use boats without the hassle of storing and maintaining them.

That number is much higher than the female share of boat owners trib.al/RiRZvDB

Executives at a boat company being optimistic about boats is not exactly news, of course.

Investors seem pretty optimistic too, though trib.al/RiRZvDB

Here’s consumer spending on boats alongside three other leisure-spending categories that have had great runs lately:

➡️ Books
➡️ Streaming
➡️ RVs
trib.al/RiRZvDB

The urge to get out of the house during the pandemic boosted spending on boats.

Will the nudge from Covid-19 bring on a permanent shift in behavior? Some, probably. We’ll just have to see if this includes lots more of us making waves trib.al/RiRZvDB