Florida Ranks #1...

Today, Florida boasts 200-plus boat builders and a work force of more than 29,000, and ranks #1 in the U.S., according to the National Marine Manufacturers Association.

It is home to boating icons such has Bertram, Rybovich, Huckins, Boston Whaler, Chris-Craft, and Cigarette, as well as being host to many new companies such as Everglades, Edgewater, Concepts, and dozens of others. In fact, Florida alone has more boat builders than many countries.

According to the NMMA, fully half of the 3,000 boats (worth over $800 million) on display at this year's Miami Boat Show were built in Florida.

But a few other states have taken notice of boat-building's labor intensive demands and are offering huge incentives to lure factories to their depressed areas. The latest company to hear the siren song of North Carolina is Edgewater, which is contemplating a move to existing factory space in that state. Mako moved there some years ago because of an offer it's owners could not refuse. The furniture business in the western part of the state is in decline, so that's where the factory space and skilled wood workers are located.

In the custom sportfishing niche there are Rybovich, Garlington and Smith — and Bertram, Broward and Burger in the larger, luxury and megayacht sectors.

The state’s two major boat shows attract people from around the world. The Miami International Boat Show displays some 3,000 boats, half of them from Florida builders, and spreads over 2.5 million square feet with an estimated total product value of $800 million — and it may not even be the biggest boat show in the state.

The Fort Lauderdale Show claims to be the largest marine display in the world, covering more than 3 million square feet at six sites, with a boat value totaling more than $1 billion.

“Florida sells to a worldwide market, and it’s a hot market, as evidenced by these boat shows,” reports an industry spokesman “A third of the people at the Fort Lauderdale Show come from out of the state, and a good percentage of those people come from out of the country, too.”

Boating’s popularity in Florida has collided with concern for some of the region’s endangered species, manatees and right whales in particular, giving builders an incentive to try more species-friendly