Hi All,
I've been considering an Arima purchase for a year or two, and arimaowners.com is a great resource. Thank you all.
My question is: Does anyone have insight on the level of support from the factory going forward? I am asking because the website appears to be almost completely unmaintained, and they just took down their web accessories store. When was the last time they produced a color brochure?
As a newbie, it is really hard to get detailed information on current offerings, along the lines of the PDF brochures of yesteryear. That seems weird to me, and suggests that Defiance is only lukewarm about the Arima brand.
I'm not trying to open a can of worms, at all. Just want to understand why very outdated brochures posted on a user site are way better than the marketing materials from the factory. Wouldn't it be great to have a current PDF with an options grid and interior layouts?
Thanks again to all of you for the great info, Adam
Adam,
The key people are still working there so the new product is good quality, and parts are still available from the factory. Don, Belinda and Terry (COB on the forum) are all great Arima people that can answer just about any question you would have. If you walk into the showroom and say you want to go tuna fishing the sales guys are going to tell you to buy a big Defiance or Allied boat. Tuna trips can still be done on a good day in an Arima so it's all about what your fishing needs are. In my opinion Arima's are hard to beat...it's a do it all Ocean, Puget Sound and Columbia River boat. Best of luck in a search for your new boat.
I just had a boat built at the factory a couple of months ago and here's my opinion. The service and support I received from Terry (COB) at the factory was great. He would send me pics and updates of the build process almost daily. Also gave me a few options on a few things I wanted done to the boat. What other boat brand has that kind of 1 on 1 personalized customer service. You can call Belinda at the factory for any parts or questions you may have. Also this forum is amazing as well, lots of good people willing to help with anything you can imagine. I'm sure folks here would be able to answer any questions you may have about boat layouts, seating, etc. Chief of the Boat, (Terry) and Belinda from the factory monitor this site also. The dedication and support of the Arima brand is definitely still strong IMHO. I don't usually do social media. I've only been on this forum a short while and have over 400 posts. It's like your not only getting a great boat , but like joining a family of Arima enthusiasts. :twocents:
Defiance bought Arima a few years ago when Juichi Arima wound down the company sold the molds during the recession. Defiance later hired most of the old Arima factory staff back and restarted production. Was a good move by Defiance, as Arima's are a well-known Pacific Northwest brand and basically sell themselves. They made some design improvements (replaced the remaining wood in the boat with composite, new hardtop designs, etc...)
However, Arima is a low-volume brand and the boats are very labor intensive. Defiance' own boats are bigger, much more $$$$, and aimed more at ocean use. They are trying to build up that brand (and get into the tin can market through their new Allied line of boats). My guess is both these product lines offer much higher margins than Arima, and have the potential to sell a lot more boats. So that's where their marketing budget goes.
As far as the online parts store and such, scroll down and you can see where Belinda was on the board announcing that change. The reality is that only a few thousand Arima boats have been built, total, in the history of the brand. It isn't like there is a giant market out there for this service. You can still buy parts direct from Defiance, you just need to call.
Thanks everyone for the great answers. The marketing makes more sense now that I understand the low volume/low margin aspect.
My "problem" is that I can't find the info I want without personal contact, and I'd love to browse from a distance before I take that step. Prime example is that I have no clue what current interior layouts are available, and it would be great to show that kind of stuff to the wife as a warm up. So, I look at ~20 year old brochures and browse photos from existing owners (and thank you all again for the great info). I can get part of the way there, but it's a lot tougher than having up to date info on what's currently available.
-Adam
Adam, I'm not completely sure but I really don't think much has changed in the layouts. Maybe someone with more knowledge can confirm. I referenced several photos online before my purchase also, and don't see any major differences aside from starboard panels instead of wood, and composite transom
Corrected my post... Arima never declared bankruptcy. A former employee corrected me... Mr. Arima wound down the company with their debts paid in full. Defiance later bought the molds.
To AdamInBellingham. New Brochures are made up every year or two since we need them for dealers and boat shows. Just send me an email with your address and I will get a brochure out to you!
Belinda
belindadefiancemarine@gmail.com
360-813-3600
Thanks Belinda. I just emailed you.
-Adam
Adam, as a proud new owner of an Arima, I can tell you Belinda, Don and Terry were awesome to deal with. They helped me and answered every question I had. My wife and I were even invited to the factory to see our boat being built. The personal attention given to us was more than I expected, and the whole group of Arima/ Defiance made our purchase a very pleasant and memorable experience. It's more like a family than just buying a boat from someone you would never meet and know.
Hi Adam
Welcome aboard... You have raised a number of interesting questions
Floor plans: They have not changed since the first couple of years, nor are there much in the way of options for modifying the basic floor plan until you get in to the 22SL.
A couple of top options are available in all the other models(sizes)
This keeps the production needs to the basic molds, thus keeping costs down and the benefit of: If I am talking about a change to a 17 SC, everyone who has one knows pretty much what I am talking about.
StreamFixer
Folks, I got the usual RNRI ("right now, right information") from Belinda this week on a kicker bracket and skip top price and availability.
This is a comfort!
I know what you mean - the photos on the Arima website have been the same since the Internet was invented! It would be easy and inexpensive to upgrade the website to something fresh and up to date.
Yeah!! All they have to do is hire someone with the skills to do a professional web page job... Which takes away from the $$$ available for production skills... When they are just barely keeping up with orders as it is...
Hmmmm :stooges:
StreamFixer
Fixer; Wouldn't it be possible (and perhaps more economical) to simply hire an outside contractor to upgrade the Arima website? I mean.....hiring an employee for this?? Just sayin'.
Yat
Sure, and I suspect that is how they would go about it... It's all a matter of prioritizing cash flow and employee focus. Since I have no dogs in the fight, I will get back on my porch and tie up my dog... :smile1:
StreamFixer
Having worked with Arima and Defiance Marine on a professional level in the past, I'll keep my personal feelings about the ownership and sales staff to myself. But I will say that Belinda and Don are both fantastic to work with and are focused on not just customer service after the sale, but putting out a quality product at a reasonable price. On top of that, they're just plain nice people.
I was so pleased when I came here and saw that they were active posters.
Did they move their parts website somewhere else or is it just me? I click on the "parts" section of the ArimaBoats.com website and it goes to a third party website that you can "buy the domain."
they got rid of the parts pages and just want you to call them to inquire about part availability. I think it sucks.
Going to manual human powered order taking seems opposite of Google's Go Grocery store model that doesn't even have cashiers. Maybe Arima is on to something?
If you need Arima parts call Belinda at the Dealership.
I spent a half hour with her (Belinda) at the shop this last weekend and she is a huge reason why I still have an Arima boat. I hope Defiance understands what they have!
Darren
Spent some time with Belinda and Don today. Over the years they have always been knowledgeable and helpful
Thanks for the kind words from many of you. If you do not want to call, just email me. I'll do my best to get back to you.
Belindadefiancemarine@gmail.com
360-813-3600
Or message me through this site.
I'll post newest brochure tomorrow so you can browse newer photos. The truth is, we do not change things in these boats just to say we changed for a model year. We try for continuity. That being said, some changes have been made, over the years, due to availability of parts. Some get discontinued while others we have upgraded due comments from owners. What we have not changed, is the design, except a few tweaks over the years.
Belinda
Yep, they are both awesome with encyclopedic knowledge of all things Arima. It's just that online ordering would be so easy for the customer and the business. What happened with that?
Too much credit card fraud. Not with the Arima parts since basically only Arima owners buy them but we offered other items of tackle on the site as well and that is where the problems were. After months of irritation in our accounting office, the decision was made to cancel that site.
Sorry. I liked having that method of selling our parts too.
Belinda
If I was in the market for a new boat {21SR skiptower}(unfortunately I am not) an Arima would be at the top of the list. I still shake my head about threeweight buying a new tin can. Yes Steve I know your reasoning :shrug9: :smile1:
Quote from: Markshoreline on February 15, 2018, 10:11:16 PM
Yep, they are both awesome with encyclopedic knowledge of all things Arima. It's just that online ordering would be so easy for the customer and the business. What happened with that?
Belinda is the only Arima related sales/service person I've dealt with but she has been awesome so far. As for the online ordering thing, I agree completely. It'd be really nice to have a parts site with pictures and prices for us who like to browse. For instance, the other day we were talking about steering wheels on a post and it got me thinking about how much a wrapped steering wheel would cost as mine is the aluminum one. That's when I noticed the parts website no longer existed. And I guess I'd feel bad calling up someone and wasting their time on a part I wasn't 100% serious about buying and just curious about.
Quote from: mustang65fbk on February 16, 2018, 07:20:52 AM
Quote from: Markshoreline on February 15, 2018, 10:11:16 PM
Yep, they are both awesome with encyclopedic knowledge of all things Arima. It's just that online ordering would be so easy for the customer and the business. What happened with that?
And I guess I'd feel bad calling up someone and wasting their time on a part I wasn't 100% serious about buying and just curious about.
In my brief dealings with Belinda I've got the feeling that regardless whether she is selling parts or giving out advice and suggestions it's all the same to her. She really understands the concept that even if you don't sell something to a person, if you treat them well they will come back to buy something eventually or pass on the excellent experience.
Folks, put Belindas Ph # in your contacts on your phone. It will be easier to find than looking through this site when you need it..........