RECREATIONAL BOATING INDUSTRY STATISTICS 2022

The International Council of Marine Industry Associations, ICOMIA, has released the latest edition of its Recreational Boating Industry Statistics. The ICOMIA Statistics report provides a wealth of industry intelligence in one useful reference document and is the industry’s foremost statistical reference report, used extensively within the industry for analysing export markets and externally for investment opportunities in the marine leisure sector.

The report indicates that throughout 2022 boat sales were still elevated despite fiscal pressure from inflationary increases and demand for new boats continued to outweigh supply.

Recruitment and retention of staff in all areas of the recreational boating industry remained sluggish with both large and small companies considering workforce challenges to be a significant concern.

The report shows the wider emergence of alternative boat propulsion technologies which ICOMIA has already discussed at length with the recent launch of the Pathways to Propulsion Decarbonisation for the Recreational Marine Industry report.

Also worthy of note is the increased shift towards chartering, boat rental and boat sharing opportunities. This is particularly popular with younger boaters and gives the recreational boating industry the ability to expand markets towards potential boaters that otherwise would not engage in what is traditionally seen as an expensive, time-consuming hobby.