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.