Boat Brigade

Family-owned Fish Tale Boats capped a strong first year at its $5 million Tamiami Trail dealership in Fort Myers by opening a showroom on Naples' boat-dealer lane.

The opening, on Davis Boulevard in Naples, follows Fish Tale Boats' move at the start of 2017 to go from a 2-acre location on Fort Myers Beach to the former home of Scanlon Acura at 15581 S. Tamiami Trail, near the corner of Tamiami and Briarcliff Road. In moving to the 7-acre site, Fish Tale traded in water access for 700 feet of highway frontage close to Interstate 75.

The much larger mainland inventory, mix of models and increased new parts offerings helped compensate for the absence of waterfront. Another asset is the company's new strategy, in which Fish Tale service technicians go to customers when they call, says Travis Fricke, co-owner and vice president of operations.