Clemons Boats in Sandusky, Ohio has joined forces with Carefree Boat Club to further supplement their day-to-day operations. Jason Clemons, general manager for Clemons Boats, said, "The Carefree Boat Club is a way for us to be a one-stop shop for any level of boating interest. Since the economic downturn we’ve seen a growing market for the club concept. Some people want to enjoy boating, but they have less time and interest in boat ownership responsibilities. For many of these people, it’s not a money issue as much as a time issue."
In business since 1966, Clemons Boats provides many services to its clients, including rentals, storage, dockage, and boat parts and servicing at its 10-acre facility on Sandusky Bay. Clemons continues, saying they had had internal discussions over whether to create a boat club of their own.
“Everyone in the group suggested it would be best if we partnered with Carefree Boat Clubs, saying we would benefit from their best practices rather than trying to create the club from scratch. Some also had experience with Carefree Clubs, saying they would be a good fit for our higher quality boats. Adding the reciprocity element, where our members can use boats at the Carefree Clubs, was one more benefit that made sense for us.”
As membership grows, they will continue to add boats to their fleet, but for now they will open with a variety of new or like-new boats at their disposal, such as a Cobalt 220, a Bennington 24SSL triple tube and a Boston Whaler 220 Outrage.
Doug Zimmerman, CEO and president of Carefree Boat Club, said, "The Clemons family has a long heritage of providing extraordinary boating experiences for their customers. Now boating enthusiasts can experience the Clemons tradition of superior service without having to purchase a boat. Their fantastic location at the mouth of Sandusky Bay facilitates protected water boating on windy days, yet is only a ten minute cruise to Lake Erie and within 45 minutes of 50 waterfront restaurants. We are very pleased to add them to our growing network of Carefree Boat Clubs."
www.carefreeboats.com
