Barletta Pontoon Boats, a brand new pontoon boat company located in Bristol, Ind., and SkipperBud’s Boating SuperCenter, headquartered in Winthrop Harbor, Ill., have agreed to partner together to bring the dream of boat ownership to people across the United States.
Started in 1959 by the Pretasky family, SkipperBud’s has become one of the largest sales, brokerage, service and marine groups in the Midwest. Over the years, substantial and consistent growth has led to a network of 17 locations across the midwest region. Boaters and prospective boaters alike can find the hottest products on the market today represented by an experienced and knowledgeable sales staff in Illinois, Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin.
Currently led by Mike Pretasky, Jr., SkipperBud’s continues to re-invest in core facilities with expansion/remodeling, while keeping sales and service a priority.
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“When we were approached by Barletta Pontoon Boats to discuss the possibility of carrying their line, we were immediately intrigued,” stated Pretasky, Jr. “Everything about the company was a concept - they hadn’t even produced one pontoon boat - but there was a buzz in the air about their entry into the industry. After meeting with their team, we knew almost immediately that they were different, and we wanted to be a part of that.”
Barletta Pontoon Boats burst onto the scene with their product launch in January of 2018. Led by Bill Fenech, an RV industry veteran of 30 years, and supported by an experienced team from around the marine industry, Barletta Pontoon Boats was recently awarded the 2018 NMMA Innovation Award. This annual award recognizes groundbreaking, new consumer marine products and is presented at the Minneapolis Boat Show. Fenech brings a unique customer-focused/dealer-centric approach that he most recently utilized with tremendous success at Grand Design RV, located in Middlebury, Ind.
“What can I say about SkipperBud’s that probably hasn’t already been said,” stated Fenech. “They are exactly the type of dealership that we are committed to partnering with. They invest in their business, they invest in their people, and ultimately, they take care of the customer the way we would take care of the customer. We couldn’t be more excited to be partnered with the team at SkipperBud’s. We’re going to do great things together.”
