Ocean Yachts Boatyard Sale Being Discussed With Viking Yachts

               Ocean Yachts in Mullica Setting a New Course

  MICHELLE BRUNETTI POST, Staff Writer
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MULLICA TOWNSHIP — Tucked away on 80 acres off Green Bank Road near the Mullica River, the Ocean Yachts boatyard has provided work to as many as 200 people in the 1980s and 1990s, and as few as a dozen today.

But now the facility, which has the ability to run three production lines in sprawling buildings in the Pinelands, could be gearing up for active boat-building again.

Viking Yachts in Bass River Township has signed a letter of intent to buy the land and structures. It would build some of its smaller yachts there, Viking spokesman Peter Frederiksen said.

“We are kind of at full capacity here. We wanted to spread out a little bit,” said Frederiksen. “We would build Vikings there. We are not buying the product line, just the land.”

While the sale would mean the Ocean Yachts name would end, boats would be built again on a significant scale in Atlantic County, said co-owner John Leek IV, the 14th generation boatbuilder in his family.

While the sale would mean the Ocean Yachts name would end, boats would be built again on a significant scale in Atlantic County, said co-owner John Leek IV, the 14th generation boatbuilder in his family.

It could mean as many as 200 new jobs at the Mullica facility, said Leek, 35.

Both Leek and Frederiksen stressed that the deal isn’t final yet. The two families that own the companies have been friendly and have run the Viking Ocean Showdown fishing tournament in Cape May for 26 years.

The recession hit Ocean Yachts hard, and the company has averaged construction of just two to three boats per year for the past several years, Leek said.

It’s a trend that has played out across the nation and state, with many manufacturers going out of business in the 2000s, Frederiksen said.

About 300 companies nationwide were building boats in the 40-foot to 75-foot range about 15 years ago, and now there are only about 100, he said.

“Viking is the largest manufacturer of that type of boat,” Frederiksen said of the 51-year-old company still owned by the Healey family. It was started by brothers William and Robert Healey on April 1, 1964, he said.

In the 1980s, 13 or 14 companies were building such yachts in New Jersey, and now Viking is one of the last left, he said.

Boats are still being built in the Egg Harbor Yachts building on Philadelphia Avenue in Egg Harbor City, but on a smaller scale than in the past, said owner Ira Trocki. In 1999, he purchased the company, started in 1946 by a group of men, including one of Leek’s ancestors.

Trocki now owns the Egg Harbor Group, which calls itself a “group of premium yacht companies including Buddy Davis, Silverton, Ovation, Predator, Topaz and Egg Harbor.”

“Egg Harbor Yachts used to have 200 employees,” Trocki said. “This area of South Jersey used to be a mecca for building yachts and sports fishing boats.”

 He declined to say how many people work at the Egg Harbor City facility now, but said about 10 boats are now under construction and the company is hiring experienced fiberglass patchers.

An influx of foreign-made boats has hurt U.S. boat builders, Trocki said. Many companies are subsidized by their governments and don’t have to pay the high tariffs U.S. companies must pay to sell boats internationally, he said.

“It’s a shame to see an era has ended,” Trocki said of Ocean Yachts being sold. “It’s a wonderful family and a wonderful name.”

For the past several years, Ocean Yachts has mainly focused on reconditioning yachts and servicing them, Leek said. The company’s likely final project will be renovating a 55-foot yacht built by Ocean in 1982.

“This one came back to be restored,” Leek said last week, as he stood in front of the boat built in the early days of the company. “In a lot of ways, we came full circle with this boat.”

The 55-footer was a very successful model for Ocean. It was the company’s premium model and was in production for 10 years, Leek said.

 Its price tag in 1982 was about $350,000, but it would cost about $2.5 million if built today, he said.

If the Viking deal goes through, Leek will take a job there, and after completing training, will be back working at the Mullica Township facility. His family home is nearby.

The Leeks have been boat-building on the Mullica River since the early 1700s. Early generations were artisans working on a small scale.

“My grandfather’s grandfather was the founding father of modern boat-building in our family,” Leek said of Charles Pratt “C.P.” Leak, who built boats in Lower Bank, Burlington County.

C.P.’s grandson — John IV’s grandfather — John Leek Jr. and his brother Donald started Pacemaker Yachts and built it into a success, then sold it to Fuqua Industries of North Carolina, Leek said.

Then his grandfather opened Ocean Yachts in 1977 with some partners, Leek said. Ocean Yachts has been more of a value-oriented builder, while Viking has created a niche for itself at the high end.

 We had banner years in the 1980s, with more than 150 boats a year; we had another banner year in the late ’90s, with more than 100,” said Leek. “Those times were really good for all the boat builders.”

But the value segment of the economy hasn’t recovered as well as the high end, he said. Viking is doing well in current economic conditions.

“They have done an excellent job of becoming the No. 1 player in their type of boat,” Leek said. “They have earned their market share.”

Viking built 65 boats last year, ranging from 42 feet to 92 feet. The price range is $1 million to $11 million, said Frederiksen.

The 52-acre manufacturing site in the New Gretna section of Bass River Township employs about 1,000 people. It includes four buildings and four production lines. In addition, Viking has two service and renovation facilities in Florida.

“About 70 percent of our boats, when they leave here, wind up going past that point (Florida), said Frederiksen. “Boats go in there for service on the way South or North. We also do major renovations, engine installations and interior construction work. It’s a lot like a house.”

Contact: 609-272-7219

MPost@pressofac.com

Twitter @MichelleBPost

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10/16/16 Positions open at Viking Mullica Yachts
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