Top 10 Trailers of 2019: #6 – Hudson Boat Works Marketing & Mobile Repair Trailer

Note: This feature was originally posted on our blog in August, but since this trailer was voted to our Top 10 Trailers of 2019 list, we are resharing it. We love this trailer because, like the Spiderz Batting Gloves mobile retail trailer, it allowed our client to significantly improve their day-to-day operations and employee productivity.

Trailers can not only improve the functionality of a business and benefit an industry, but in the case of HUDSON Boat Works, a trailer can also raise the profile of both your business and your industry.

“Our trailer – or SHARKreational Vehicle, as we call it – has now become identifiable that if there is a major regatta, we are there,” said Matt Muffelman, Atlantic Sales Manager at HUDSON Boat Works. “And it actually goes conversely. Any regatta where we put the trailer people begin to assume that it's a major event, so we’ve been able to influence the market through its presence.”

HUDSON Boat Works has a rich history of producing cutting-edge rowing shells since the 1980s. In fact, more than 80 medals have been won at the Olympic and World Rowing Championships using Hudson boats.

In addition to producing innovative products, the HUDSON team visits high school regattas, community regattas, and large-scale events around the world. Last week, they were at the World Rowing Under 23 Championships in Sarasota, Fla. However, up until recently, their on-site activation hadn’t necessarily matched the quality of their product.

“For years upon years we just used a 10×10 pop-up tent – throw everything in the back of the truck, unload it, set it up, and keep going back and forth, doing that over and over,” Muffelman explained. “Throughout the years, when storms or bad weather comes through, it ends up either destroying things or getting us wet. We were at the mercy of the elements.”

That all changed when Hudson decided to upgrade their on-site operations to a trailer. Their technical services manager researched trailer companies and landed on Advantage because it met Hudson’s standards for quality.

The 20-foot ATC Quest aluminum trailer with custom cabinets and concession-style doors impacted their business in three key ways: functionally, perceptively, and professionally.

“We’ve been able to make sure that people have better racing, have their shells prepared better,” Muffelman said. “At the same time, it allows us to work harder for longer in the same elements because we have essentially almost a mobile home as opposed to a pop-up tent. It not only represents a better image and a better job, but as the main employee who works out of it, it has allowed me to do my job better for longer and stay happier.”

The trailer is divided into two sections with a pocket door in between. The front half of the trailer serves for marketing and gathering purposes. They invite coaches in, offer them coffee, refreshments, and a chance to escape the elements. The back half is a mobile repair center with all the tools and components to build and repair boats and a custom concession-style door just big enough to slide a boat shell out to a waiting customer.

The latter function has allowed HUDSON to send the trailer across the country in between regattas to help teams and clubs that don’t have the means to transport their equipment. The shark trailer can come directly to those teams to service and repair their boats.

The ability to improve work conditions, scale your business, and raise your profile in the industry is something any business desires, and this trailer allowed HUDSON Boat Works to do just that. Muffelman sees the need for Hudson’s operations in Europe, Australia, and other major markets to add trailers in the near future.

“Everybody has been blown away. Nobody has ever seen something like this before,” Muffelman said. “It was really innovative within the industry and everybody now associates us with another level of expertise, professionalism, and quality.”

There is no shortage of ways a trailer can impact a business in any industry. From increasing the product line of a small business to improving functionality and scalability of an established business to delivering marketing impact for a large brand, a trailer can be an incredible asset.

How can a trailer be your advantage? Give us a call at 630-524-2029 to get the conversation started.