inside costco

Costco and Sea Ray offer a selection of 10 sport-boat models with special pricing in all Costco states except Alaska.

awards for customer service, design and quality assurance.

“A Sea Ray strong point is the great care we take with customers, before as well as after the sale,” says Mike Burke, vice president of sales and marketing. “That’s because we want customers coming back to buy their next boat from Sea Ray.”

 

Think Costco for Sea Ray boats

 

GIVEN THE POPULARITY of pleasure boating in the U.S., it makes sense that Costco would be attracted to bringing value to that industry with an approach that parallels the successful Costco Auto Program (CAP).

Costco joined forces with boat manufacturer Sea Ray last summer to test the waters via a regional promotion on the West Coast. A boatload of boat sales was the result, and now the program is available in all Costco states except Alaska.

Sea Ray is the world’s largest manufac-
turer of quality pleasure boats, producing
more than 40 models ranging in size from 17
to 60 feet. Founded in 1959, Sea Ray, a divi-
sion of Brunswick Corporation since 1986,
was one of the first boat builders to use fiber-
glass and other composite materials in boat
construction. Innovations in styling and per-
formance plus breakthroughs in technology
and quality control have kept Sea Ray an
industry leader for more than a half century.

How it works

If you’ve bought a car through CAP before, the process is similar. Go online to Costco.com and enter “Sea Ray” in the search box, or call toll free 1-800-816-5177 to find the participating Sea Ray dealers near you.

The benefits of the Costco-Sea Ray program include:

• Exclusive Costco member-only pricing on select Sea Ray sport boats

• Additional Costco member-only incentives up to $3,000

• Any additional national Sea Ray incentives

• A $500 Costco Cash card for complet-
ing a post-purchase survey
If you’re ready for your first boat or a new
boat, be sure to check out the great value in this
new program from Costco and Sea Ray.

—David Wight

Offer subject to change without notice. Terms and conditions apply.

Financing boats and RVs

SNOW IS GONE, the days are getting longer and soon we’ll be getting back to our favorite outdoor activities.

If your recreational preference includes a boat or RV, Essex Credit Corporation has a program to give Costco members a leg up on financing a new purchase or refinancing your current boat or RV. Serving all 50 states, Essex has exclusive rates and no loan-processing fees for Costco members. Essex can make an instant loan-credit decision when applications are made online, and offers extended payment terms.

Here’s what two Costco members have to say about Essex Credit.

ments. They indicated what was available to us, and everything was outlined clearly. It was all really quick and very pleasant.

Julie Butschli Blaine, Washington

I tore out an article I read in The Costco Connection, and initiated contact with Essex online while on a trip to San Diego before finding the boat we wanted. When I got back home, I realized we had only a two-week window before the state sales tax would be increased. We found the boat we wanted and Essex put it all together at a rate that beat my bank and the credit union.

Carol Lehman Redding, California

MEDI ABAKERY

I am an avid Costco shopper and saw the Essex ad in The Costco Connection. I had already asked my credit union about RV financing, but it seemed like a tedious process. Essex was quite simple by comparison, mostly over the Internet, and we faxed in a few docu-

Costco Executive Members can earn a
$100 Costco Cash card from Essex for each
funded boat or RV loan; Business and Gold
Star members can earn a $50 Costco Cash
card for each funded boat or RV loan.