These are not times for the faint of heart. As the dollar continues its nosedive against global currencies and creates inflationary pressure, as the subprime mortgage crisis leaks into the larger economy, and housing woes deepen, some are predicting recession and few are optimistic. So count Randy Borges as a nonconformist.
The co-founder and president of Portsmouth-based Waterline Systems, he has found opportunity in difficult times. His company manufacturers and upgrades sailboats, some with price tags of more than a quarter-of-a-million dollars. And business is booming.
To a large degree, he is the beneficiary of the fall in the dollar’s value. With a huge sale sign on American products, Europeans are on a shopping spree and account for 80 percent of sales of his top-of-the-line boat.
Sales are so brisk, in fact, that Waterline has quadrupled its manufacturing work force. But success has not just been a consequence of being in the right place at the right time. Because Waterline, which Randy Borges runs with his brother Gordon, has spent the last two decades expanding its product line, innovating and building a reputation for quality, the company has positioned itself perfectly to take advantage of the current currency realignment.
The message is not hooray for the dismal dollar. But there is a lesson to be learned (or at least reinforced), and it is the same in good times and bad: Understand the market, fill niches, innovate, and provide quality products and services, and you will be much better able to withstand a downturn and ready to cash in when opportunity knocks.
