Readers of this blog know that Libby and I are devotees of cruising as a life style. We're hardly along. In the 1970's Westsail Inc. conducted a wildly successful marketing strategy that sold people on the cruising life style, and only incidentally mentioned that they happened to sell boats. I don't remember if I posted that video before, so here it is below. It is an absolutely charming video, so if you haven't seen it before, I recommend it. It comes in two parts, about 10 minutes overall.
This week the hotel behind the marina is hosting a salesman seminar for Grady White boats. The hotel is full of Grady White people, and Grady White advertisements and literature. The slips in the marina are filled with Grady White demo boats including the one below with 1050 horsepower of outboards on the back (OMG!!!)
Their theme is "The Grady White Life" Then the link became apparent. Grady White is doing the same thing that Westsail did in th 70s. They are selling a life style first, and boats incidentally.
But the contrasts between these life styles could hardly be bigger. The cruiser's life style emphasizes frugality and self-sufficiency. It produces people like Libby who once did not want to leave a restaurant because she hadn't yet drunk all the water in her water glass. The Grady White life style is -- I don't know. 1050 HP!!! Words escape me. The two life styles could hardly be more different; yet they are linked with a common base - boating life styles.
I love the guy with the white skipper's cap and the narrator with the English accent.
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