More than a Vendor: How Partnering with Teak Isle Helps Sea Hunt Boats Maximize Resources and Improve Customer Service

Background

It’s become common in recent years to talk about almost any strong, mutually beneficial vendor-customer relationship as a “partnership.” Only in a few instances, though, do vendors become true partners to their customers. Teak Isle is proud to have risen to that level with numerous customers over the years, serving not just as a trustworthy supplier but also contributing meaningfully to customers’ success in other ways.

The company’s relationship with South Carolina’s Sea Hunt Boats — maker of the world’s best-selling line of center consoles — is a prime example. “We get a shipment from Teak Isle every two weeks,” says Purchasing Manager Chris Greer, “and it’s an entire truckload. We do a lot of business with them.” Among the parts on those biweekly trucks are tackle boxes, console doors, livewell lids, dash panels and more.

Streamlined Ordering Process

What makes this a true partnership, though, isn’t the sheer volume of parts; rather, it’s the way Teak Isle and Sea Hunt work together to ensure that Sea Hunt always has the right parts at the right time. To save work for Sea Hunt, Teak Isle independently developed an extensive, shared spreadsheet containing a bill of materials for all Teak Isle parts for each boat model.

Rather than compiling detailed orders, Sea Hunt simply inputs the boats it plans to build over the coming weeks and the spreadsheet generates a parts order in seconds. Because models, options, and parts change over time, the spreadsheet needs to be carefully maintained, a responsibility Teak Isle assumes. “They keep up with it,” says Greer. “We just let them know when there’s a change.”

Besides BOMs for current models, the spreadsheet also contains historical data for discontinued models, options, and parts. “You can go in anytime and punch in a part number,” says Greer, “and it will tell you if it’s active or not and, if it’s not, what models it was used on and when. It’s a nice tool to have and it saves us a lot of time.”

A Parts & Accessories Partner

In addition to helping streamline ordering, the Sea Hunt-Teak Isle partnership extends to accessory development and sales as well as parts sales. Rather than dedicating resources to designing, making and marketing aftermarket accessories, Sea Hunt has chosen to focus exclusively on what it does best — building and shipping boats — and instead turn to Teak Isle to meet the demand for accessories.

The two companies have partnered to develop a variety of desirable aftermarket products, including upgraded storage options that directly replace factory parts, an innovative, multipurpose transom table system, and branded helm pads, steps pads and console toppers. Instead of cataloging and stocking accessories, Sea Hunt simply directs owners and dealers to Teak Isle. In fact, the prominent “Accessories” link on Sea Hunt’s website takes users right to Boat Outfitters, Teak Isle’s consumer-oriented e-commerce branch.

Meanwhile, although Sea Hunt doesn’t sell the accessories itself, the company and its dealers benefit indirectly from the range of innovative accessories developed and marketed by Teak Isle/Boat Outfitters for its boats. The new multipurpose transom table, for example, is a part that Sea Hunt can’t realistically offer as a factory option. But knowing it’s readily available — and seeing it online or at a dealership — can sway buyers toward Sea Hunt. In fact, Sea Hunt actively promotes the transom table and other Teak Isle accessories through its own marketing channels.

Replacement parts are handled with a similar arrangement. In keeping with its “stay in your lane” philosophy, Sea Hunt has been reluctant to get into the parts business. At the same time, the company knows the importance of supporting customers and dealers with a full catalog of parts and knowledgeable service.

So Teak Isle/Boat Outfitters has stepped up as Sea Hunt’s de facto “parts department,” maintaining a catalog of not only all parts the company has ever supplied to Sea Hunt but also many replacement parts manufactured elsewhere, such as hinges, latches and other hardware. When Sea Hunt owners or dealers call the boat builder with parts questions, Sea Hunt staff direct them to Teak Isle/Boat Outfitters, confident they’ll get quick, knowledgeable service.