Springfield-based Tracker Marine Group, the boat manufacturing division of Bass Pro Shops, purchased five dealerships from Minnesota boat retailer Crystal-Pierz Marine, Bass Pro spokesman Larry Whiteley confirmed Tuesday.
Whiteley, who declined to disclose terms of the purchase, said the dealerships will retain the Crystal-Pierz name because of its notoriety in the Great Lakes region.
"It's a well-known brand name in that part of the country, and we'll continue to utilize that name," Whiteley said. "We'll own them and offer all of our other lines of products."
Tracker Marine sells boats under the Tracker, Sun Tracker, Nitro, Tahoe and Mako brand names.
Both companies involved in the transaction have been hit by the overall downturn in the boating industry.
Crystal-Pierz shrunk from 14 locations in 2005 to seven before the purchase, according to a report from the Minneapolis-St. Paul Business Journal, and the company projected 2008 revenues of $40 million, down 56 percent from three years ago. The other two locations remain with Crystal-Pierz owner Luke Kujawa, the paper reported.
Tracker, one of the country's five largest boat manufacturers according to previous SBJ coverage, also has had to downsize in recent years. The company closed its Bolivar plant in February 2008, according to previous SBJ coverage, and consolidated the operations into its plant in Lebanon. An additional 45 employees from both Bass Pro and Tracker were laid off in March 2008 as part of an internal consolidation.
Whiteley said the latest purchase was the result of taking advantage of an opportunity.
"(Minnesota) is an area we haven't been in too much, so we were looking to expand into that area," he said.
