The Marine Retailers Association of the Americas and the North Central Marine Association announced today that the MRAA has been selected to assume the management of the NCMA.

The NCMA, based in Minneapolis, is a nearly 60-year-old marine trades association that serves the state of Minnesota and businesses from neighboring states. The award-winning trade association was managed for years by a local management firm, but when the recession hit, it narrowed its offerings to the services of a full-time lobbyist. Now, the NCMA is officially back up and running at full capacity, thanks to a working relationship between the two associations.

“We are honored to play a role in the rejuvenation of the NCMA,” says Matt Gruhn, President of MRAA and newly named Director of NCMA. “As a member of the Minnesota marine industry for the better part of the last 16 years, I feel connected and personally vested in the success of this group and its members. With the common interests shared by MRAA and NCMA, it is a natural progression for us to join forces.”

The MRAA will manage the NCMA’s administrative functions and bookkeeping responsibilities in addition to taking responsibility for the NCMA’s marketing, legislative efforts and membership growth. MRAA will also organize and produce all NCMA events, including the association’s annual meeting, golf outing, and annual awards and hall of fame banquet, among other things.

“This is a great opportunity for NCMA to get its feet back on the ground and begin its return to the prominent association that it once was,” says Jerry Rockvam, chairman of the NCMA board and president of Rockvam Boatyards, Inc., Spring Park, Minn. “With Matt’s knowledge of our members and our local market, MRAA’s access to resources to manage our efforts, and the revamping of our most critical member benefits, we are poised to once again unite the marine community in Minnesota.”