Market Insights

Pontoon boats are flat-deck boats containing two or more floating hulls or tubes typically powered by an outboard engine. They generally have either square or rectangular shapes, which make them less suitable for choppy or rough water; however, they are widely preferred in lakes where they are used for varied functions, such as entertainment, fishing, and lounging. These boats have large deck space, which adds more seating space, luxury, comfort, extra storage space, and additional room for various activities as per users’ interest.

The pontoon boats market has grown tremendously in the past years, it is among the first in the boating industry to rebound from the downturn in sales caused by the Great Recession (2008). As per our pre-COVID-19 estimates, Stratview Research forecasts indicate that the demand for pontoon boats could hit many untouched landmarks over the next five years, reaching close US$ 3.5-billion-sales figure by 2025. The market was likely to exhibit impressive growth in 2020, compensating the marginal decline faced in 2019.

However, the COVID-19 outbreak has devastated the growth trajectory of the entire boating industry, ruining the tireless efforts of one decade of industry stakeholders. Pontoon boats could not prevent themselves from those tendencies and are estimated to experience a hefty decline of -25.5% on a YoY basis in 2020, crushing the market to below the year 2015-value.

It is also estimated that the pontoon boats market is likely to mark the fastest rebound among all boat types in the post-pandemic scenario. The market will find some solace with some driving factors including expected growth in the HNWI population, increasing boating participants, increasing share of pontoon boats in the outboard boats, versatile usage of pontoon boats, advancements in the boat engine technology, and higher affordability of pontoon boats. As a result of that the pontoon boats market is estimated to reach an estimated US$ 2.5 billion in 2025, offering good opportunities for the market participants in the long-term scenario.

Pontoon boats have been gaining share in the outboard boats market, and their attractiveness has led to the entry of boating players in the market. After the recession, the sales of pontoon boats were so high that even the established industry players in fiberglass boats also began to enter the pontoon boats market:

• Larson Boats of Little Falls, Minnesota, now offers two types of pontoon boats with various deck configurations.
• Cobalt Boats, a long-time manufacturer of high-end runabouts and cruisers, now builds fiberglass and aluminum pontoons.
• Carolina Skiff designs fiberglass-hulled pontoon boats targeting coastal buyers.

Segments' Analysis

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Pontoon Boat Market Share by Application Type

Stratview has firstly segmented the pontoon boats market based on the application type as family-fun, fishing, cruising, watersports, and others. Family-fun application is likely to remain the dominant segment of the market by 2025. It is expected to be driven by the USA, where there are more boat partying and holiday culture with a high preference of pontoon boats for the same. Fishing is another key application of pontoon boat which also covers a significant share of the total market.

Pontoon Boat Market Share by Tube Type

Our analysis based on the market segment of the tube type suggests that two-tube pontoons are expected to remain the dominant tube type segment, whereas three-tube pontoons are expected to be the faster-growing segment, owing to their larger capacity, space, and efficiency coupled with the trend of larger and high-performance boats.

Pontoon Boat Market Share by Size Type

Based on the size type, the market is classified as <20 Feet, 20-25 Feet, and >25 Feet. The 20-25-feet pontoon boat segment is likely to remain the most dominant size type in the market in years to come. Most of the applications fall under the size range and its excellent affordability has led to the huge dominance across the major application verticals.

Regional Insights

In terms of region, North America is projected to remain the largest market for the pontoon boats market during the forecast period. The USA is the world’s largest market for both pontoon boats as well as recreational boats. The country is marked by the presence of a large number of small- to big-sized players serving the market. Asia-Pacific is likely to be the fastest-healing region in the market in a post-pandemic scenario.  Australia, New Zealand, and China are key countries in the region, generating a considerable market demand.

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Market Scope & Segmentation

The pontoon boats market is segmented into the following categories.

Pontoon Boat Market Size, Share & Forecast by Application Type:

• Family-Fun Pontoon (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
• Fishing Pontoon (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
• Cruising Pontoon (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
• Watersports Pontoon (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
• Others (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)

Pontoon Boat Market Size, Share & Forecast by Tube Type:

• Two-Tube Pontoon (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
• Three-Tube Pontoon (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)

Pontoon Boat Market Size, Share & Forecast by End-Use Type:

• Private (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
• Commercial (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)

Pontoon Boat Market Size, Share & Forecast by Size Type:

• <20 Feet Pontoon Boats (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
• 20-24 Feet Pontoon Boats (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)
• >24 Feet Pontoon Boats (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)

Pontoon Boat Market Size, Share & Forecast by Region:

• North America (Country Analysis: The USA, Canada, and Mexico)
• Europe (Country Analysis: Germany, Switzerland, The UK, Spain, and RoE)
• Asia-Pacific (Country Analysis: Australia, New Zealand, China, and Rest of Asia-Pacific)
• Rest of the World (Country Analysis: Latin America, The Middle East, and Others)

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Key Players

The supply chain of this market comprises raw material suppliers, tier players, pontoon boat manufacturers, distributors/dealers, and end-users.

The key players in the pontoon boats market are-

• Avalon Pontoon Boats
• Brunswick Corporation
• Forest River Inc.
• MasterCraft Boat Company, LLC
• Polaris Inc. (Boat Holdings, LLC.)
• Smoker Craft, Inc.
• Triton Industries Inc. (Manitou Pontoon Boats)
• White River Marine Group.

The development of high-performance pontoon boats, expansion of distribution network, regional expansion, and execution of mergers & acquisitions are the key strategies adopted by the major players to gain a competitive edge in the market.

Research Methodology

For calculating the market size, our analysts follow either Top-Bottom or Bottom-Top approach or both, depending upon the complexity or availability of the data points. Our reports offer high-quality insights and are the outcome of detailed research methodology comprising extensive secondary research, rigorous primary interviews with industry stakeholders and validation and triangulation with Stratview Research’s internal database and statistical tools. We leverage multitude of authenticated secondary sources, such as company annual reports, government sources, trade associations, journals, investor presentation, white papers, and articles to gather the data. More than 10 detailed primary interviews with the market players across the value chain in all four regions and industry experts are usually executed to obtain both qualitative and quantitative insights.

Report Features

This comprehensive report, from Stratview Research, studies the pontoon boat market over the trend period of 2014 to 2019 and the forecast period of 2020 to 2025 in terms of both, unit shipments as well as value. The report estimates the short- as well as long-term repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic on the demand for pontoon boats at the global, regional, as well as country level. Also, the report provides the possible loss that the industry will register by comparing pre-COVID and post-COVID scenario. The vital data/information provided in the report can play a crucial role for market participants as well as investors in formulating short-term as well as long-term growth strategies.

The following are the key features of the report:

• Market structure: Overview, industry life cycle analysis, supply chain analysis.
• Market environment analysis: Growth drivers and constraints, Porter’s five forces analysis, SWOT analysis.
• Market trend and forecast analysis.
• Market segment trend and forecast.
• Competitive landscape and dynamics: Market share, product portfolio, product launches, etc.
• Attractive market segments and associated growth opportunities.
• Emerging trends.
• Strategic growth opportunities for the existing and new players.
• Key success factors.

Report Customization Options

With this detailed report, Stratview Research offers one of the following free customization options to our respectable clients:

Competitive Assessment

• Competitive Benchmarking of key players (up to 3 players)
• SWOT analysis of key players (up to 3 players)

Market Segmentation

• Current market size (2019) of the pontoon boats market in any of the application types by size type.

Custom Research: Stratview research offers custom research services across the sectors. In case of any custom research requirement related to market assessment, competitive benchmarking, sourcing and procurement, target screening, and others, please send your inquiry at sales@stratviewresearch.com.