Regarding “Javits Boat Show Bully” by Steve Cuozzo (Aug. 13), Gov. Cuomo’s decision to return the Progressive Insurance New York Boat Show to its traditional mid-to-late January dates will help reinvigorate the recreational boating industry, generating much-needed sales for New York’s small businesses. The annual NY Boat Show held these dates for more than 100 years until the Javits Center moved the show out of this timeframe in 2003.
If New York isn’t able to provide a viable marketplace for the industry to sell its new products, it’s a missed opportunity for the greater New York economy, for which the industry generates $5.79 billion in annual sales.
What’s more, it puts 1,856 marine businesses and 46,303 boating industry jobs across the state at risk.
We thank Gov. Cuomo for his commitment to the small businesses that make up 97 percent of our industry and for recognizing the importance of the New York Boat Show as a sales generator for the state’s recreational-boating businesses.
Thomas J. Dammrich
President
National Marine Manu-
facturers Association
Chicago, Ill.