Dow Jones 8484.08 -18.91 10:00 am PST, April 30, 2003  NASDAQ 1465.72 -5.58 For info, visit access.smallcapnetwork.com S & P 500 917.39 -0.45 To be removed, please click here Russell 2000 397.27 +1.49 VOLUME 03: ISSUE 19  The Yacht in the Anaconda I'm a pretty simple fellow. As one who lives in the earthquake zone on the West Coast, I find as middle age greets me every morning now when I awake, I don't covet material things to the extent I did in my 20's and 30's. There is, however, one thing I really want: a fishing boat. And I expect a lot of other boomers want one too.  Different people have different visions of boating life. One sailor from around these parts bought a large cabin cruiser a few years ago. He then parked it at a marina, removed the engines and put in a wine cellar. Now that's a true renaissance man. I, however, just want to fish. Much as RV sales have seen good growth over the past few years, I believe that this will spread to encompass boats as well. The company that seems to be the leader as this trend develops is MarineMax (HZO: NYSE). With nearly 60 locations in 14 states, there's little chance you won't trip over a MarineMax retailer/boat brokerage if there's water nearby. Handling all the major brands, including SeaRay and Whaler-sales of which account for 65 percent of revenues-the company is also a distributor for big boats such as the 100-foot beauties made by Brunswick Hatteras Yachts.  What is a poop deck? Surprisingly, the sales of big yachts have been quite buoyant of late. There is still serious money out there. The pickup in transactions involving larger boats offset some sales softness in those types of boats that the rest of us buy.  MarineMax trades at $11 and has a market cap of $170 million. With a September year-end, the company posted 2002 sales of $540 million, up roughly 10 percent over fiscal 2001, but down from $550 million in 2000. For the first six months of fiscal 2003, sales are up 10 percent over the same period 2002-- to $257 million. Earnings for 2002 were $1.12 per share. They're forecast to be the same for 2003 and around $1.20 per share for fiscal 2004. The company's CEO, William H. McGill Jr., has guided that he expects MarineMax to meet that $1.10 to $1.20 for this fiscal year. The numbers give a price/earnings both now and against the future consensus numbers of around 10 times. I suspect the conservative ratio is due to the perceived vagaries of the boat market --a view that's consistent with any sector that might be considered luxury. Growth of the market could raise that ratio nicely in the future. Technically, the shares have posted higher lows and higher highs over the past 3 years. A run to the $13 level could be in the cards within the next six months.  Titanic-like quality sans the iceberg That said, the demographics should work to MarineMax's advantage. Retirees and younger boomers have always dwelled on what they will do with themselves come the golden years. Yours truly, and I suspect other retiree wannabes, likely intend to do a lot of fishing and boating. Lifestyle concerns, as well as conspicuous consumption, have been characteristics of the group since the eighties. I doubt that will change as the pig moves through the python.  As is the case with most lifestyle retailers, especially those dealing with discretionary or high-end items, MarineMax tends to want to keep in touch with the customer through a corporate club or association. This way, loyalty is built and maintained, and cross-selling opportunities become possible. Boats are high maintenance and subject to expensive service needs as well as eventual replacement as are cars and RV's. The quest for quality Boomers, unlike our children, tend to seek out quality and will remain loyal if the service and aftercare are there. Bright shiny objects and loud noises less attract us, so to speak, when making purchase decisions. While retailers' focus may have to change as we move through the next couple of decades, for now the boomers have the money and will spend it in places that treat them well. Then they'll return as repeat customers. And as we all know, the repeat customer is not only the manna of business, it is the Holy Grail. Seriously, though, you really do want a boat, don't you? Float those emails our way-here: editor@smallcapnetwork.com. We're going to write-up a semi-regular discussion of them every few weeks. The stock or strategy we next profile may well be the one you've brought to our attention. D I S C L A I M E R : The SmallCap Digest is an independent electronic publication committed to providing our readers with factual information on selected  publicly traded companies. SmallCap Digest is not a registered investment advisor or broker-dealer. 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