September 22, 2026

The events of last week still seem incredible to me, but so much happened for Canada and Canadian businesses, that it’s hard to know where to start. First, I think we should divide our expectations into two parts; the immediate and inevitable reaction from the Trump administration to Prime Minister Carney’s many activities in Europe and the likely longer-term effects.

Will we align with Europe in a valuable and meaningful way, or will that incur the “wrath” causing tariffs to be doubled again? Or, will the Trump administration get significant voter pushback? We can only guess. The path we are on may be steep and strewn with sharp rocks, but it may be the best path in the long run. Last week, we announced in Boating Industry Canada News Week Digest that Maritime Marine Supply and CC Marine Distributors had joined forces in a positive move to expand their business to the marine industry. Both companies are already well established in Ontario and Quebec while Maritime Marine Supply is very well established on the East Coast and with a strong position in the commercial side of marine.

I see this as really big news and very well timed too. When I met the CC Marine team at their facility in Newmarket where Ron Savidant of MMS and his CFO were finalizing details, I felt proud to see this very Canadian move to secure and expand our industry’s access to the latest parts and equipment.

In this edition of Boating Industry Canada, we have a report from the CMRA and NMMA Canada. Those two organizations are aggressively on the tariff case and in contact with our Government to make sure the marine industry is being represented.

In my meeting with CC Marine, I asked about the impact of the tariffs and I was very pleased when Rick Chang told me that significant steel mechanical parts from the U.S. that CC Marine carries, were hit with a big tariff impact from steel and aluminum. But, he added that they had discovered they could get top-quality parts made and machined in the UK, that come to Canada tariff-free. There may be solutions to the current situation.

When I think about new boats, I need to stop and remind myself of great Canadian brands like C&C Yachts, CS Yachts, Hinterhoeller, Bayfield, Niagara and others.

Canada was a world leader in sail for a time. I don’t know if market forces will again favour Canadian boat builders, but I do feel certain that we have the knowledge and the talent to again have our own thriving boat building sector. Wouldn’t that be great!

Andy Adams – Editor