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History of Moomba Boats: Skier’s Choice, Inc. is located in Maryville, Tennessee, and is a privately owned company. The company manufactures two lines of inboard boats: Supra, the leading luxury line of wakeboard and ski boats, and Moomba, which focuses on providing "the best bang for the buck" in the ski boat market. Skier’s Choice, which sells to dealers both in the United States and overseas, is the fourth largest manufacturer in its inboard segment of the marine industry and the fastest growing. The company currently has 230 employees, most of whom come from Blount, Loudon and Monroe counties in east Tennessee. Although the history of Skier’s Choice is brief, the Supra brand dates back to 1981. Supra Sports, Inc. was started in Greenback, Tennessee, after George Fowler recognized a need for a larger, family ski boat to fit the luxury market. Supra Sports, Inc. designed the first open bow inboard boat and made the boat almost a foot deeper than the average “competition” ski boat of the time. The unique look and design stood out from the competition and accommodated more passengers. In the late 80’s to early 90’s, inboard boats were becoming increasingly expensive due to features and finer appointments. Inboard boats priced under $25,000 were scarce, and as a result, manage- ment recognized the need for a price point boat in the marketplace. In November of 1989, Supra Sports, Inc. developed the Moomba name brand and started work on the first model, the Moomba Boomerang, which was finally introduced in 1991. The Boomerang instantly became the industry leader in value-oriented ski boats. Inboard Marine purchased Supra Sports in 1992 and continued to manufacture the existing product lines until 1995. The management operations were taken over in 1995 by a marine group out of Chicago, Illinois, and United Marine Corporation of Tennessee was formed. United Marine quickly hired a group of former MasterCraft employees led by Rick Tinker as President and Dan Miller as Vice President of Sales. The company’s headquarters were moved to Maryville, Tennessee. The new breed of ownership became apparent with the introduction of the 1998 Supra Comp, a major redesign of the high end tournament level boat that had pulled the world championships only years before. In December 1999, the management that came in 1995 completed a buyout of the company from United Marine Corporation of Tennessee and changed its name to Skier’s Choice, Inc. September 2003 marked the move to a new production facility in the Blount County Industrial Park in Maryville, Tennessee. The new facilities have more than doubled the company’s space to over 142,000 square feet, allowing it to expand production without increasing overhead costs. In the future, Supra’s reputation of being very responsive to market demands will continue to grow as new high-performance luxury models are introduced. Innovations and Awards 1981- Introduction of the Supra Sport, the first Supra boat. Development of the adjustable wake plate. Introduction of a rear ski locker. 1982- The new Supra Beast model is the first boat to have a big block engine. Supra Allegro was also introduced. First cuddy cabin inboard ski boat. 1983- Introduction of the Supra Rider. First open bow inboard in the industry, features a playpenbow design. 1984- Introduction of the Comp ts6m model. Development of the SupraTrac hull design. Supra boats feature Kevlar in hull design. 1985- The Supra Comp awarded “Ski Boat of the Year” by Powerboat magazine. Introduction of the Supra Sunsport. 1986- Comp ts6m pulls the World Cup. 1987-1989 Supra boats tow the World Waterski Championships. 1987-1988 Comp ts6m wins “Ski Boat of the Year.” 1989- Moomba brand developed by Supra Sports, Inc. 1989- Mariah is the first open bow model to win “Ski Boat of the Year.” 1990- Sunsport wins “Ski Boat of the Year.” 1992- Developed all-fiberglass construction in several models. Introduced a limited lifetime warranty on all models. 1994- First year for fuel injected engines. 1997- Introduction of the all new Moomba Outback 1998- Introduction of the newly redesigned Supra Comp; introduction of the tower for wakeboarding 1999- Introduction of the Supra “Launch,” the first boat designed specifically for wake- boarding. The first Supra featuring a V-drive, the Santera, is introduced. 2000- Supra and Moomba are selected as Official Towboats of the America's Cup. 2001- Introduction of five new models including the Supra Launch SSV and Supra Sunsport V, both featuring stadium seating. Introduction of double up seating. 2002- Introduction of the walk-through transom in the Supra Santera. Supra and Moomba are sel- ected as Official Towboats of the 2002 Gravity Games competition. 2003- Supra and Moomba are selected as Offical Towboats of the 2003 Gravity Games competition. Skier’s Choice moves to new 142,000 square foot facility located in Maryville, Tennessee. 2004- Supra continues its sponsorship of the Gravity Games competition held in Cleveland, Ohio, beginning September 15th .
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© 2006 Skier's Choice, Inc.
All Rights Reserved |
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