Johnny Morris, who founded Bass Pro Shops in the back of his father’s liquor store in Springfield, Missouri, in 1971, just bought Hatteras Yachts, one of the most respected names in boating.
The purchase was announced by North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper at the Hatteras factory in New Bern, N.C. The actual purchase was by The White River Marine Group, which is owned by Bass Pro Shops. The seller was Versa Capital Management LLC, a Philadelphia venture capital firm, that bought Hatteras from Brunswick in 2013. The terms were not disclosed; all the entities involved are privately held.
White River said it would spend $35 million to modernize the Hatteras factory. It also said it would add 500 new jobs in New Bern over the next few years, working with area community colleges.
White River owns Tracker, the number one fishing boats in the past 45 years in terms of units sold, and Mako, Ranger, Triton, Nitro, Tahoe and other boat companies. It will move Mako and Ranger Saltwater to the New Bern plant.
Gov. Cooper said, “Boat and marine manufacturing require specialized and experienced workers, and White River Marine knows our state can deliver the people they need to successfully expand their business in New Bern.” He estimated that the regional economy would benefit from more than $22 million in additional payroll in a few years.
Morris, an offshore angler (pictured above), said that he’s investing in Hatteras for the long term. “Our focus isn’t on the next few months. It’s for way out there in the future and we’ll reside here for a long time.”
He also said, “We’re committed to support Hatteras in staying true to its roots as a legendary saltwater brand built by a passion for fishing, while expanding our operations to better serve all those who love the sea.”
Hatteras now makes yachts from 45 to 105 feet. Morris said White River will make “a limited number of exceptional Hatteras yachts,” with the focus on the “next generation” of sport fishing yachts.”
Morris’ deal with Versa and the state had been in the works for the past 45 days or so. Morris is known for buying struggling brands and turning them around. For its part, Versa specializes in rescuing companies from bankruptcy.
A legendary builder, Hatteras was founded by Willis Slane, an ardent fisherman and hosiery manufacturer in landlocked High Point, North Carolina, a furniture and textile center. He wanted to build comfortable and rugged offshore fishing boats that could handle the waters off Cape Hatteras out of fiberglass on a production line. In 1959, he brought together 25 stockholders and started building Hatteras yachts in a 10,000- square-foot garage in the center of town.
Slane hired naval architect Jack Hargrave, and the first Hatteras, named Knit Wits, was launched in 1960 as a Hatteras 41 Convertible Yacht Fisherman. It was the world’s largest production fiberglass boat at the time.
AMF bought Hatteras in1972, and moved some operations to New Bern, on the water. Irwin Jacobs bought the company from AMF in 1985. The Wall Street Journal called him “Irv the Liquidator,” since he specialized in buying company and then slicing them up and selling the parts. He consolidated all Hatteras operations to New Bern in 1997. (Jacobs’ owned his marine companies under the Genmar umbrella; he died in April, 2019.) Jacobs sold Hatteras to Brunswick in 2001, and Brunswick sold it to Versa in 2013.
For his part, Morris has been expanding. Bass Pro Shops bought Cabela’s for $5.5 billion in 2017. He appointed Lauren Good, a 12-year veteran of the company, to run the Hatteras expansion as the director of operations. Read more:
