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If Mike Boatman were to write a book on what he’s learned from 30-plus years in the marine fabrication industry, it would be one page with a single line: “Don’t be a jerk.” This short and simple philosophy has grounded him through the ins and outs of navigating a family business and cultivating a strong network.
Boatman grew up working at the marine canvas shop his father founded in Oklahoma City in 1974. After earning a business degree, he became a full-time employee with a verbal commitment from his father that the business would someday be his. But when it came time to transfer ownership, the absence of an official exit strategy led to a long and complicated process, during which Boatman went out on his own and started Boatman Marine Canvas in 2017.
Instead of dwelling on the difficulties of starting over, Boatman focused on building his business.
Charting a new course
With the support of longtime employee and upholstery expert Dwight Miller, as well as Boatman’s son, Gavin, he has expanded from custom boat covers, bimini tops and interiors into EVA flooring and shade sails.
“I’m trying to be the shade sail guy in Oklahoma. This trend started on the coasts and is making its way here,” says Boatman, who primarily works on lake boats no larger than 40 feet. With little to no shoreline nearby, customers trailer their boats to and from the shop, adding to the complexity of attaching shade sails on older boats. “I love the challenge, and I know the work will be worth it as the trend takes off here.”
Boatman also knows he can lean on the expertise of industry peers to further hone this—or any—skill. His first order of business as an owner was investing in a Marine Fabricators Association (MFA) membership, and his life hasn’t been the same since. “When I finally went to my first conference, my mind was blown,” he says. “I had found my people. I was home, and I wasn’t going anywhere.”
Collecting keys to success
Now an MFA board member whose team has earned several MFA Fabrication Excellence Awards, Boatman still feels he has a lot to learn from the many skilled fabricators across MFA. “When you hear someone say, ‘Here are the three keys to success,’ I know there are more like 1,000 keys to success, and I collect as many keys as possible every time I go to an MFA conference or workshop,” he says.
With the friendships he’s formed through the association, Boatman continues to learn outside of these organized events by visiting shops around the country or simply having phone conversations to get one-on-one training and tips from other members. “I was intimidated to share my work with anyone when I saw how amazing everyone else was,” he recalls. “But the only way to get better is to go for it and ask for help, and everyone in this organization is more than happy to help.”
Boatman has also enhanced his digital skill set through MFA connections. After speaking at a conference alongside Johannes Lombard, Boatman hired Lombard to build his new business website and improve its search ranking. “It’s a big investment, but when you realize that over 85% of people use their phones to search for services, you must show up on the first page of results,” Boatman says. “And we do.”
Boatman also regularly publishes blogs and social media posts to attract customers. “Boat shows are a great way to meet people, but someone is inevitably going to lose my business card. When they get on their phone to search ‘custom boat covers near me,’ I’m going to pop up and they’re going to call; that’s the game I’m playing,” he says. “The internet arena is incredibly important to future-proof our company, and I’m not backing away from it.”
Balancing vision with values
Boatman plans to invest in digitizing the shop’s operations as well. He is learning PhotoModeler and CAD not only for his benefit but for Gavin’s too. “When my son eventually takes over, I want him to be set up for success with the best digital equipment
and experience.”
To ensure a smoother transition than his own, Boatman is also developing a formal succession plan and training his son in both essential technical skills and broader business knowledge. “I want him to understand what took me a while to learn: The boat business is not just building a boat cover or bimini top; it’s understanding the business side of business,” he says. “The accounting, insurance, liability, workers’ comp, financials … the list goes on. You have to study and become an expert in that as well.”
While Boatman is carefully planning for the future, he’s not stepping away anytime soon. “I want to grow as much as I can and see how far we can go,” he says.
As customer needs evolve, Boatman Marine Canvas is embracing the challenge to innovate and push creative boundaries. “I remember over 30 years ago when someone bought a boat, that’s all they got—a boat. No cover, no bimini top, nothing. That’s where we would come in and provide those products,” he says. “But now when you buy a boat, everything comes with it. So when these boats come in for work in the future, it’s our job to do better work than what originally came with the boat when it was purchased new.”
As an example, Boatman Marine Canvas won its first Fabrication Excellence Award of Distinction for a black-and-white flame interior that wowed a customer, thanks to Miller’s upholstery genius. “I’m excited about what else we’ll push ourselves to do,” Boatman says.
Above all else, he maintains one priority: treating customers with respect and giving them the best product possible. “This will ensure they keep coming back year after year and generation after generation.”
Whether he’s crafting a superior product or building meaningful connections, Boatman is making the most of every opportunity, a mindset that grew stronger after he experienced a near-fatal heart attack last year. “You never know if you get a tomorrow, so always do the most you can today,” he advises. “When I show up to an MFA event and say, ‘I’m happy to be here,’ I really mean I’m happy to be here.”
Holly Eamon is a business writer and editor based in Minneapolis, Minn.
Photography by Charlie Neuenschwander.
SNAPSHOT: A surprise in every stitch
For Mike Boatman, owner of Boatman Marine Canvas in Oklahoma City, Okla., a customer relationship can make or break a project, no matter how challenging or rewarding the work itself. For this transformation of a 20-foot 1995 Sea Ray® Ski Ray, which earned a 2023 MFA Fabrication Excellence Award, the customers were the best part. “This job will always stand out because the couple who owned the boat were fun and hilarious to deal with,” Boatman says. “They had great personalities and were open to letting us do whatever we wanted.”
The couple asked to update the look of their boat as much as possible with a refreshed interior and new cover and bimini top. After choosing core colors and requesting a diamond design for the interior, they set Boatman and his team loose, with no idea what their boat would look like two and a half weeks later.
“To go with the theme of the boat and match the interior, we did something we had never done before: a diamond stitch for the boat cover center stripe that was encapsulated by stitching foam, which gave it a puffy look. We did the same for the bimini top, and when the customers came to pick it up, it was like one of those big-reveal TV shows,” he says. “They were so happy and could not stop smiling.”
Boatman and his team used Sunbrella® Horizon® vinyl for the interior, Marine Mat for the flooring, Aqualon® Edge for the boat cover and Sunbrella for the bimini top.
Q&A: What is something people might be surprised to learn about you?
I have been a Toastmaster for 18 years, competing and placing in the top 10 of 30,000 international contestants two separate times. I’m really proud to have developed these skills, which have been extremely valuable when presenting at [Marine Fabricators Association] conferences.
I also went to auctioneering school and have done several live auctions to raise money for charity over the years. I even did a charity auction with NBA star Shaquille O’Neal.