Company manufactures $2 million houseboats in middle of the desert
You might wonder why a builder of big houseboats would set up shop in the middle of the desert, miles from the nearest navigable lake or river.
The answer, it turns out, has little to do with water.
Skilled labor availability, or the lack thereof, explains the Arizona location of Bravada Yachts’ boat-making factory in an industrial section of Tolleson, among warehouses and other manufacturing sites.
“We’re here because we can’t find a workforce in Page to accommodate what we do,” said Mia Gutierrez, the company’s business-development officer. She stood in a steel-framed boat under construction for an interview, talking above the buzz of drills, the beeping of forklifts and noise from other machinery.
The company’s staff of roughly 70 includes welders, metal framers, carpenters, painters, electricians and other skilled laborers.
Page, or more specifically Lake Powell in far northern Arizona, is where most of Bravada’s houseboats wind up, although the 15-year-old company also has boats destined for Roosevelt Lake, Lake Pleasant and other waterways closer to metro Phoenix.
Regardless of the destination, getting them there isn’t easy. Completed
houseboats are shipped in sections on specially built trailers, typically in the middle of the night with police escorts. Transportation and other costs run tens of thousands of dollars.
“It’s a very intense process,” Gutierrez said. “You can’t just throw them on the back of a truck.” Especially Bravada’s vessels.
These aren’t the boxy pontoon boats that many people envision as houseboats. They are large, sleek structures equipped with granite countertops, multiple TVs and other high-tech electronics, water slides, fire pits and, on some models, hot tubs, helicopter pads and up to 16 beds and five bathrooms spread among four decks. Construction can take up to a year or more.
They’re also vessels not made of wood but steel framing and various composite materials that are water-proof as well as fire and mold resistant.
Nor do they sell for the $300,000 to $500,000 for standard houseboats but rather $900,000 to $2 million or so, Gutierrez said. She estimates 40% of Bravada’s buyers own their houseboats outright, while the other 60% of vessels are jointly owned in arrangements somewhat similar to resort timeshares.
Coronavirus’s effect on company
It’s a niche market for sure, but one that is faring well during coronavirus lockdowns in particular.
“We’re seeing an explosion of lake boating,” said CEO Aaron Browning, one of Bravada’s two owners, along with Gutierrez’s husband, Robert, another company officer. “But it’s also a long-term activity that people don’t get tired of.”
In fact, the company has struggled to keep its operations humming amid the coronavirus pandemic that has led to sick-time absences for some workers while delaying shipments of raw materials and components, some of it imported.
Deliveries of steel that normally take two to three weeks lately have been running up to eight weeks, Gutierrez said.
One British supplier of specialty marine paints has been “struggling to stay open,” she added.
Bravada makes eight to 10 boats in a typical year but didn’t share a number for 2020, when production slowed owing to the pandemic.
Boats combine leisure, business uses
Spending a week or more a houseboat can be a nice way for families and friends to ride out the pandemic while avoiding busy airports, restaurants, hotel lobbies and the like.
A houseboat also can be a great way to host business clients.
Justin Tom lin son, a 52- year-old pharmaceutical industry consultant who splits his time between the Salt Lake City area and Switzerland, uses a week on a houseboat at Lake Powell to entertain small groups of executives, without spouses, to conduct various think-tank sessions.
He’s a co-owner in one of Bravada’s Atlas-V houseboats, which feature five bedrooms, two bathrooms and 2.5 levels.
“Lake Powell is like the Moon for many of them,” Tomlinson said of his European guests. “They’ve never seen anything like it.”
Guests like to congregate and discuss business around eating areas and on the open-air top deck, Tomlinson said, and the visitors enjoy hikes in nearby box canyons during his week in August. “They get out in nature and let their guards down,” he said.
Like Tomlinson, many of Bravada’s Lake Powell customers come from Utah.
Other costs of houseboat ownership
Some boating enthusiasts buy vessels individually while others, like Tomlinson, purchase shares at a cost of $100,000 to $160,000 or so each. That gives them use of maybe seven to 10 days annually during the peak boating season during warmer months, plus various other days at other times of the year.
As an example, one boat recently shipped to Powell has 11 owners, Gutierrez said. Bravada helps to arrange shared ownership.
Bravada employs about 50 people in Tolleson plus a couple-dozen more in its transportation arm. The private company doesn’t provide revenue or other financial numbers, but Browning said it is poised for a strong 2021.
There are various ongoing expenses for owners, including pumping fees, slip fees, repairs and expenses to clean between owners. These and other costs might average around $3,000 to $6,000 annually per owner in sharing arrangements, she said. Single owners would face around $35,000 in annual expenses.
And while manning a houseboat is something that owners can do themselves, some opt to hire a captain at additional expense.
Tomlinson said members of his ownership group agreed to hire a captain to minimize the risks of collisions or other mishaps that can lead to costly repairs and drive up insurance costs.
Most manufacturers in eastern US
Houseboat makers aren’t as numerous as those producing sailboats or more traditional motor boats. Most houseboat manufacturers are located in the eastern U.S., especially in Mississippi River watershed states including Kentucky, Missouri and Tennessee. There’s also a notable cluster in northern California.
Given the high costs of transporting boats great distances, especially over mountains, the industry is a highly localized one.
“Competition isn’t something we really worry about,” Gutierrez said. “There’s enough demand for everyone right now.”