By Pepper Fisher
PORT ANGELES – When the Seattle Boat Show gets under way this Friday, among the many products featured will be aluminum boats built right here in Port Angeles by the New Zealand company Stabicraft.
For the past year or so, the 36-year-old company has been quietly establishing its first base of operations outside of New Zealand in a 16,000 sq. ft. building leased from the Port of Port Angeles. The goal for 2023 is to build 100 Alpha 1 boats, the first model built exclusively in North America.
Company founder Paul Adams says that is just the beginning.
“So, Port Angeles is it’s a little bit further out than on the I-5 corridor, for instance, but the Port of Port Angeles has been fantastic. We’ve got a wonderful facility down here on South O Street. You know, it’s almost better than our facility in New Zealand in some parts. And so, yes, it’s a great starting point. We have opportunities for the operation of grow in this facility as well, not only thinking about the short-term, thinking about the long term. It’s very easy to step up and continue as we go.”
Stabicraft has become New Zealand’s largest boat building company, with 160 employees producing over 1000 boats per year.
Adams says the demand for his high-performing offshore boats in the Northwest and British Columbia has already proven itself but, until now, the company has not been able to keep up with demand. In fact, they’ve been filling orders at the Port for some time, but with boats manufactured at their facility in New Zealand.
“We actually already import, I think last year was around 250 boats, into the Pacific Northwest. It all comes through this facility to be assembled and delivered to our dealer network. We already have six people employed and we’re looking at another three to four in the next one to two months. So, we’re already an employer in this area. We’re looking forward to joining up with the Chamber of Commerce. Yeah, we want to sort of blend ourselves into the community as part of the local community and using its services and working with its people.”
To learn more, go to stabicraft.com.
(Pictured; The Stabicraft Alpha 1 model, built in Port Angeles)