Locals invite members to experience a summer of boating without the hassle of ownership

Photo: Penticton Boat Club

One of Penticton Boat Club's models available for use, the 2020 Super Air Nautique GS 22

The first of its kind of a new style of boat club has launched in Penticton, with a membership-only boat sharing club that invites people to spend their summer with their fleet of boats without the hassle of ownership.

Jordan McCallum and Mark Melissen are locals who have already dipped their toes into the boat business but thought they could bring a new concept to the lakeshore, starting the Penticton Boat Club.

“Club membership was a concept that Jordan and I were discussing that seems to make sense for 90 per cent of boaters. It's a lot of hassle-free boating experience and still be able to get on the water with premium boats,” Melissen said.

Members will be able to access the company’s fleet of boats from May 1 until Sept. 30, booking through the Boat Cloud app to reserve a boat for the day and time you want.

“It's a really easy and hassle-free experience so people don't worry about trailering, moorage, storage, cleaning, boating insurance, all of the things that make boating challenging for some people,” Melissen added.

“The membership program is really the closest thing you can get to a real experience of owning one of these premium boats without any of the pain that's normally involved,” McCallum said. “This is a more cost-effective way, you get more of an experience, you feel like you're an owner without actually having to own anything.”

“With a rental, you're not getting a full membership experience like that you would with a yacht club.”

The boat club also includes a social membership at the Penticton Yacht Club and a $150 food and beverage credit at the restaurant.

“The other really neat thing about it is you have access to multiple boats,” Melissen said, pointing out the opportunity for people to try to experience different boats before purchasing. “You kind of get the best of both worlds, going out on a pontoon boat one day and surf boat the next day.”

“Come do a summer with the boat club and see which boat really fits your family's lifestyle the best. “

The company also has different membership options, with the gold level allowing unlimited seven days a week and silver for unlimited weekdays.

“We also include shared membership that either two family members or two friends could share,” McCallum explained.

“Either option allows three reservation bookings at a time so what that means is you can hold three spots in the reservation system at any given time so what that does is make sure the days don't get plugged up and there's plenty of usage for everybody.”

The company just did a soft launch with social media announcing the business and said they have had ‘tremendous interest right out of the gate.’ They expect that as the weather starts to change, more people will be looking into boating options for the season.

“Being in the rental industry, you kind of see the interest that people have and I kind of see all the boats sitting around the marina that aren't doing anything and you realize there's a lot of people out there that want to do this, they want to experience this,” McCallum said.

“This is just going to make sense financially for those people coming to visit, for those who are already in town here, it's a good way to save some money, get those experiences and even share it with people that come to visit you.”

For more information on the Penticton Boat Club and its memberships, visit the website here.