Tell us a bit about Exalto Emirates.
Exalto Emirates is a specialised distributor in marine equipment for the pleasure and commercial marine industry. We supply marine equipment and accessories from over 90 international manufacturers to boat builders, service companies, fleet owners, and other trade customers. Last year, we launched the region’s largest E-commerce marine website which is also actively used by retail customers such as boat owners and other boating enthusiasts. In fact, we are launching a major upgrade to the website whereby we have greatly enhanced our search function and we have given every single product a unique product page. Of course we provide full technical support and after sales service for all our products.
What is the outlook for the boat market in the UAE in 2019?
I think it is no secret that the region has been facing economic difficulties over the last two years and this has also put some pressure on the marine industry. Additionally, there have been specific challenges affecting boat ownership such as availability of berthing space, cumbersome boat registration procedures and a lack of boating destinations. But, fortunately there is good news. As you know there are many new marinas being built which is very positive for boat owners.
How was your business last year? What is your forward order book looking like?
As I mentioned earlier there are challenges in the market which meant that we had to face them head on. As a result we have become a better organized, more efficient company during 2018. Especially in the second half of last year our efforts have really paid off and results improved dramatically.
As a company we can say that 2019 has seen a good start and the first two months of the year have been very busy and we hope that this trend will continue throughout the year and beyond. We are working on several larger projects and especially production of custom made decks from Seadek always keeps us very busy.
As a company we can say that 2019 has seen a good start and the first two months of the year have been very busy and we hope that this trend will continue throughout the year and beyond.
Could you tell us about the products you have launched recently in the market?
We see it as our duty to always help our customers use the newest and most technologically advanced products on their boats. Especially boat builders have come to expect this of us. Therefore we are always on the lookout to see what is new out there and thus we keep in close touch with all relevant marine manufacturers. By doing this we are always fortunate to introduce to the market the most innovative and exciting new products. Especially this year I feel that we have succeeded and we will have a dedicated area on our stand on the boat show to introduce new products. Amongst some of the newest products is an Anti-Drone Detection and Mitigation system to ensure that superyacht owners, and basically anyone that is worried about their privacy and safety by the growing numbers of drones flying around, may have peace of mind. This system was developed by Martek Anti Drone Systems from the UK and we are proud to be able to distribute within the region. Also very exciting is the introduction by Lumishore Underwater Lighting of the Lumi-Link Command Center which as a first in the world provides full integration of all Underwater, Down, Courtesy and Strip lighting into one system.
Vetus has recently launched the BOWPRO bow thruster using the latest inverter technology with unlimited run time and having proportional control. The BOWPRO won the Innovation Award at last year’s Miami boat show.
In what sectors of the market do you see demand?
We supply not only to the leisure market but also to Oil & Gas/commercial and the military marine sectors. I would say that demand is sort of even across all of them. A lot of investment is happening in the Abu Dhabi Offshore Oil fields so we do anticipate an increase in opportunities there. For the leisure market we expect things to remain fairly stable for now but looking at positive signs around us we are optimistic that there will be an upsurge later in the year.
For more information on Exalto Emirates, visit Exalto-emirates.com
