Company: American Tugs, Kadey-Krogen Group
Business Type: Boat Builder
American Tugs was founded in 1999 by marine industry veterans whose mission was to design top-of-the-line pleasure craft based on the rugged, reliable hulls used in the Alaska salmon fishery. It now has five models, ranging from 36 to 48 feet and including the AT362, 395 and 485, created in its 28,000-square-foot facility in LaConner, Washington.
Kurt Dilworth, co-founder and CEO of American Tugs, along with Jeff Calvert, the current sales manager, will remain on board to ensure a smooth transition.
The Kadey-Krogen Group, which manufactures Krogen trawlers, including the Krogen 44AE and the Krogen 50 Open, was founded in 1976, and it recently introduced the Summit Motoryachts series of performance cruising yachts.
The acquisition will not impact the production of either the American Tugs, Krogen, or Summit brands, and the Kadey-Krogen Group plans to continue to market each brand separately.
Tucker West, Kadey-Krogen Group’s President, said:
“It’s really an exciting opportunity for us to acquire such a successful boatbuilder, led by a team that we’ll be collaborating with on day one. They have a healthy backorder of boats, a great reputation in this market and, most importantly, a customer base that really loves its American Tugs.
“We immediately identified how our companies will complement each other and, most importantly, how the customers will benefit. This includes expanded distribution for American Tugs through Kadey-Krogen’s sales offices in Portsmouth, R.I.; Annapolis, Md.; Seattle, Wash., and Stuart, Fl. We are also working with American Tugs’ leadership to expand service and refit offerings for Krogen and Summit customers at their LaConner facility and leverage their west coast sales.”
Fran Morey, Production Manager at the trawler manufacturer, commented:
“We are certainly looking at ways of combining forces on the production side where it makes sense.
“Initially, we see opportunities through purchasing, and even on tooling on new models. American Tugs has a world-class team of engineers and builders, and we’re looking forward to working with them to create some incredible boats.”
Anchors Aweigh Capital, led by Skip Sorenson, provided advisory services to American Tugs during the acquisition process.
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