(Warren, RI) – The annual Sail America Industry Conference (SAIC) landed in Annapolis, MD in mid-April, bringing the industry together for an engaging two days of camaraderie and learning. Attendees hailed from around the country and enjoyed all that Annapolis has to offer. After a day of beautiful weather and variable wind conditions on Tuesday afternoon, the highly contested industry regatta was held at The Annapolis Sailing School, followed by an awards ceremony and opening reception for all attendees. Wednesday opened with a presentation from our Keynote Speaker Michelle Alexandrowicz, ENGAGE. Michelle’s keynote, “Recruit and Retain Your Talent, Team Culture and Communication in the Workplace” was followed by Chris Watson, KVH who spoke on “AI for Maritime: Applications, Ethics, and Guardrails for Use”. The afternoon was filled with lively panels including “Today’s Business Environment: How Tariffs are Affecting your Business”, “How to Bring Your Best to a Boat Show”, “Finance and Insurance”, and concluded with Kevin Williams, NMMA on “How Discover Boating’s Work on Behalf of our Industry is Designed”.
Following an exciting day of content at the Annapolis Yacht Club Sailing Center attendees moved to a reception and raffle with prizes generously donated by Sail America members and conference attendees. Our featured raffle item was a six-night, seven-day bareboat yacht charter aboard a 45′ sailing monohull in the British Virgin Islands—a trip valued at up to $8,000!
The conference continued Thursday with a short morning of panels and presentations before attendees went out to explore The Annapolis Spring Boat Show in the historic seaport of Annapolis.
The next Sail America Industry Conference, with dates and location, will be announced early this summer.
This year’s conference was presented by Yanmar (Vetus, Maxwell, Flexofold, Smart Gyro) with additional sponsor support from Shore Premier Finance, SailTime, National Marine Manufacturers Association, The Moorings, Jeanneau, Hilb New England, Madeplus and Gill.
