Shogren Performance Marine and Pier 57 Merge

Two of the most successful dealers in the history of high-performance powerboats, Shogren Performance Marine and Pier 57 are joining forces. As this story went live, the Cigarette Racing Team and Marine Technology, Inc., powerboat inventories housed at Pier 57 in Counce, Tenn., were in the process of being moved to the Shogren facility in Waukegan, Ill.

The entire new business will be called Pier 57. The Shogren Performance Marine name will be retired.

“We chose to adopt the Pier 57 name with our merger because of its well-known brand position and for long-term branding opportunities we see within the high-performance powerboat industry,” said Scott Shogren in a press release. “This collaboration begins a new chapter—leveraging our combined strengths and well-known histories.

“David Woods (the owner of Pier 57) and I have been talking about this for three years,” Shogren continued in a telephone interview late this afternoon. “David doesn’t want the day-to-day headaches of running a dealership—he wants to go on poker runs and hang out with the customers who are his friends. He’ll continue to be involved in sales and marketing, just not in the day-to-day operation of running the business.”

While the former Shogren facility will house all inventory, the new company will maintain a “sales presence” in Counce.

In taking on MTI, Shogren said he had to withdraw from being a Nor-Tech Hi-Performance Boats dealer.

“Nor-Tech is a competitive brand with MTI,” said Shogren. “Unfortunately, I had to have that difficult conversation with them today.”

Shogren will continue to carry the Checkmate sportboat line, as well as its considerable inventory of pre-owned boats from various manufacturers.

“I feel very good about the merger of our businesses,” Woods said in the release. “Scott’s a very driven and motivated guy, and he’ll bring a ton of new energy to things. We’re going to keep doing what we do well. But now we’re doing it together, which makes it even better.”

Fred Kiekhaefer, the president of Mercury Racing in Fond du Lac, Wis., agreed.

“It makes perfect sense to combine the best performance boat salesman I know in David Woods with the best retail operator in the business in Scott Shogren,” Kiekhaefer said in the release. “Complementary talent, leading boat brands and outstanding consumer relationships—it’s a brilliant combination, and I’m glad I’m on their team.”

Likewise, Skip Braver, the owner and chief executive officer of Cigarette Racing Team in Opa-locka, Fla., said he sees the partnership as an excellent move.

“Cigarette Racing is strongly committed to the dealer model because we recognize the immense importance of a complete and well-managed sales and service offering,” said Braver in the release. “Their (Shogren and Pier 57) reputations are exceptional.”

Staffing within the merged organization will remain the same. A new website for the company is slated to go live sometime next week.