Mastercraft Boat Company history

In 1987 Chuck West was hired to run the firm, which had annual sales of approximately $15 million and was the established sales leader in the ski boat market.

In 1989 MasterCraft parent the Coleman Co. was sold to financier Ron Perelman's MacAndrews & Forbes Holdings, Inc., which later made the firm part of its Meridian Sports unit.

MasterCraft boats continued to be regarded by many as the best in the industry, with the 1991 MariStar 210 named ski boat of the year by Powerboat magazine in a typical accolade for the firm.

In June 1993 MasterCraft bought a 150,000-square-foot manufacturing plant on Tellico Lake near Monroe, Tennessee, from competitor Sea-Ray, where it moved early the following year.

After the company recalled every single boat built for additional work, production was halted in the fall of 1995.

To meet the unique needs of this sport, which required a strong, steady wake behind a tow boat, in 1996 the firm introduced a new rear-engine boat with an adjustable ballast system that it would dub the X-Series.

MasterCraft had begun working with the University of Cincinnati to eliminate sources of onboard vibration, and its 1998 models boasted reduced levels of up to 80 percent.

In March 2000 Dorton led a group of about 20 company executives to purchase MasterCraft from Meridian Sports, with backing from Pouschine Cook Capital Partners, who took controlling interest.

Davis, Elizabeth L., "MasterCraft Celebrates Success of X-Series Boats for Extreme Wakeboarders," Associated Press Newswires, August 30, 2003.

"MasterCraft Reports Sales and Earnings Increases," Boating Industry, July 27, 2007.

MasterCraft unveils all-new, conceptual 2013 XStar.

MasterCraft awarded the illustrious and coveted 2015 IndustryWeek Best Plants Award, being recognized for operational excellence, customer satisfaction and a rewarding workplace.