The changing Scuba Industry

[diver0008]

In theory that what DEMA does........

I had heard of them. Now I know their stated purpose:

About DEMA - The Diving Equipment & Marketing Association

This appears to be their primary marketing tool, along with Fa%ebook:

Learn to Scuba Dive | Become a Diver | Try Scuba Diving | Go Dive Now

Other than that, they seem to offer a few data tools to retailers, and put on a show.

Interested in hearing from those directly involved in the industry if they are satisfied with this organization.

For the sake of comparison, here is a similar organization for the skydiving industry:

United States Parachute Association > About USPA > About Us

On Fa&ebook, DEMA has 8,000 "likes".

USPA has 37,000.

Miley Cyrus has 46,000,000

 

[cool_hardware52]

Interested in hearing from those directly involved in the industry if they are satisfied with this organization.

In my opinion DEMA exists to benefit a very few large players in the industry, and they don't even do that well.

The structure of the organization essentially taxes the membership for the benefit of those at the top.

I stopped funding them ~5 years ago.

Tobin

 

[mdb]

The same people are "elected" to the DEMA board, time after time.

Management is very well compensated for, essentially, doing little more than running
a annual trade show.

The attendance at the trade show has been dropping for years.

 

[Wookie]

DEMA has at best ignored the problems besetting the dive industry and at worst exacerbated them. They are still stuck in the 1980s model of bring them in, sell them a set of gear, and teach them to dive. Their head is firmly in the sand, and while the American Scuba market tanks, they whistle and point to Asia as a success story.

One of @CuzzA's mistakes is that he sees historical data of divers and tries to correlate that to the present or future. It doesn't work that way. Diving has always enjoyed a slow steady number of participants since the 50s when Sea Hunt and the Navy SEALs captured the imaginations of millions of Americans. What happened in the 80s and 90s was a explosion of divers because diving became safe, easy, and anyone could do it. Hell, back in the early days you made your own gear. This created a new normal that is and was unsustainable as we see. Anyone who loved diving could open a marginal dive shop, and PADI was making marginal dive instructors and marginal divers in droves. Other agencies, notably SSI followed in a race to the bottom. Even NAUI, long known for their integrity and adherence to their principles and sold out to the almighty dollar. None of that is sustainable. And we're seeing it now. Consolidation in diving manufacturers, manufacturers and agencies collaborating and buying each other, the "association" part being lost and becoming a publishing and card printing house.

In my opinion, we're headed back to the day when people can't/won't justify a $3500 dive package, and they will buy club or personal compressors and their own boats. Small manufacturers like Deep6 and shops like DRIS and DGX will do fine. The dinosaurs are about to encounter a meteor.

 

[admikar]

Like most industries the local community dive shops have suffered from the internet sales warehouses. My LDS has curbed this by price matching any competitor. They also discount certs if you buy the gear from them.

To me, that only means that particular LDS has been ripping you off before. Any business needs to operate with profit. If they are making profit now, or they would shut down, that means they made excessive profit before.

Trust me on this one. They are making money on trips and it can be substantial. Take the liveaboard example I gave earlier in this thread. If they chartered the entire liveaboard and sold the spaces for list price (what you could book it for yourself), they could make $15,000 and even send a trip leader for free.

One thing that keeps me from LOB is that most of them keep spouting about trip insurance. I found one operator that says in their policy that you should get trip insurance if they cancel for mechanical problems. I would like to see any car shop try that? Not only money paid to that operator, but any extra cost incurred (airfare, accommodation etc.). Good luck whit getting those back.

One thing here is forgotten, not only there is competition to LDS from internet, but there is competition to diving from internet. People get to know about a lot more stuff than before, so they can decide to go and do something else instead. I am lucky that I have means to do both flying and diving. If I had to choose, diving would be sacrificed.

 

[cool_hardware52]

In my opinion, we're headed back to the day when people can't/won't justify a $3500 dive package, and they will buy club or personal compressors and their own boats. Small manufacturers like Deep6 and shops like DRIS and DGX will do fine. The dinosaurs are about to encounter a meteor.

I agree the club based fill station is going to be the future, with the exception of destination compressors. On the manufacturing side however one needs a minimum critical mass. Drop below that and the "hard parts" will get expensive and rare. Most scuba gear is straight rebranded mass production items, or slight variations produced in the same contract facilities that turn out parts and products for *everybody*

Cross over stuff will be fine, i.e. masks and wetsuits and fins, as these items are used water sports other than scuba, but consider the R&D costs of creating a new dive computer from scratch vs approaching an exist maker for a software tweek and bold new graphics.

I hope I'm wrong, but that's what I see.

Tobin

 

[The Chairman]

Is there an umbrella organization for the industry that represents manufacturers and retailers?

Yeah... www.ScubaBoard.com

DEMA doesn't do jack, except maintain some salaries. Google anything Scuba: does DEMA come up? Does anything they have done come up? DEMA hates ScubaBoard and has actively us for years because we are their competition and their worst nightmare. Why are they on Facebook and not on here? Why did they start a competing forum when one already exists and has been a paying member since 2002? Ask them why they aren't on ScubaBoard and you'll hear that their lawyers won't allow it... but somehow they allow Facebook. It's sheer and utter BS.

 

[scubadada]

DEMA has at best ignored the problems besetting the dive industry and at worst exacerbated them. They are still stuck in the 1980s model of bring them in, sell them a set of gear, and teach them to dive. Their head is firmly in the sand, and while the American Scuba market tanks, they whistle and point to Asia as a success story...

Well, that's where we sell all our cigarettes too

 

[scubadada]

Yeah... www.ScubaBoard.com

DEMA doesn't do jack, except maintain some salaries. Google anything Scuba: does DEMA come up? Does anything they have done come up? DEMA hates ScubaBoard and has actively us for years because we are their competition and their worst nightmare. Why are they on Facebook and not on here? Why did they start a competing forum when one already exists and has been a paying member since 2002? Ask them why they aren't on ScubaBoard and you'll hear that their lawyers won't allow it... but somehow they allow Facebook. It's sheer and utter BS.

Well, and us non-professionals, cannot even attend DEMA to see what they have. Great show, feels like they are working against me.

 

[CuzzA]

To me, that only means that particular LDS has been ripping you off before. Any business needs to operate with profit. If they are making profit now, or they would shut down, that means they made excessive profit before.

That's a silly assumption. It's called adapting to compete against the online warehouses that have little overhead.

Most small retailers in any industry have had to adapt and change to stay competitive. The ones that don't usually go out of business.

But it's the new culture. People go into the shop to see and touch that reg or dc and then go buy it online to save 10%.

So doesn't it make sense to just match that price for those who ask and capture the sale right there.