Hou Youlin, chairman of ARGO Yacht Club (referred to as ARGO), drove his sailboat "Wantong Baby", starting from West Coast Port and sailing along the West Coast to the groundbreaking ceremony of ARGO Yacht in Taichung Port on August 24, 2024. ceremony.
"Wantong Baby" was the first sailboat to sail into Taichung Harbor. Wang Yuming, deputy general manager of ARGO Yacht Club, shared an episode of the sailboat entering the port. On that day, the port authority did not know the sailboat's radio wave reception range, and it was 5 nautical miles away from the port. I kept calling "Wantong Baby" but got no response. In addition, since there are no entry regulations for sailboats or yachts, "Wantong Baby" has no choice but to line up with large container merchant ships to enter the port. These details reflect Taiwan's unfamiliarity with private yachts and sailing boats. If you want to develop the marine leisure industry, many rules must be discussed with relevant units from scratch. Although Taiwan is an island, the marine leisure industry is underdeveloped. This is due to the strict control of coastal defense policies in the past. People who want to go to sea need to undergo multiple reviews. Until 2012, the government revised the Ship Law, added a special seal for yachts, simplified the procedures for going to sea, and allowed private sailing and sailing of yachts. Sailboats just became feasible.
The process of establishing ARGO is like going to sea. Many new challenges often emerge after deciding to take risks. At that time, Hou Youlin, who loved sailing, saw this opportunity. At first he just wanted to buy a boat and go out on his own. However, considering that the ships needed to be docked for maintenance, he worked with the founding shareholders to build a dock, increase the number of ships, and then rent the ships to paying members. ARGO Yacht Club was established in 2014 and list on the Emerging Stock Market in 2020. It became the first yacht club in Taiwan to launch a trade. In 2023, its revenue reached 440 million yuan, setting a record high.
Terminal investment is time-consuming and costly, and early recruitment is considered a scam.
The yacht pier had not been completed before 2017. Wu Boxiu, executive deputy general manager of ARGO Yacht Club Business Department, said: "ARGO built a small club in the cargo ship tally area behind the Kaohsiung World Trade Exhibition Center and parked 2 boats at the nearby pier. , 3 boats, using this method to recruit members, many people thought the yacht club was a scam!" So the number of members grew slowly at first, with only 320 members in 2019.
Wang Yuming said: "One time when I took customers to visit the pier, they all laughed and said: 'Your boss really threw money into the sea!'" Because the pier does not have a construction license or usage license like a building, banks are unwilling to provide it. Loans and ARGO are all supported by membership fees, shareholders and the chairman's own pockets, so the financial risks and pressures are great.
In addition, most of the terminals are state-owned land, and operators must wait for the government's public bidding before they can operate them. However, the government usually does not take the initiative to invite tenders. ARGO must look for abandoned commercial ports and fishing ports to evaluate whether they have development value, and then write an investment execution plan to persuade the government to launch a new tender.
In 2014, ARGO applied to lease the terminal. It took two years before the government opened the bidding. In addition to ARGO, there were also builders with capital 30 times larger than ARGO. The key to ARGO's success lies in focusing on the development of marine recreation, not just land development. The first phase of Anping Terminal was only completed in 2019. ARGO only turned a profit eight years after its establishment (2021). After the terminal is completed, revenue will grow from 150 million yuan in 2019 to 440 million yuan in 2023.
After many hardships, ARGO has gained experience in marina leasing and location selection from middle school. In 2021, ARGO will have exclusive marinas in Tainan, Kaohsiung, and Penghu, and will obtain the investment and development rights for yacht marinas in Taichung and Taipei in 2024. In the future, ARGO will Major scenic spots in the west provide services to members, which has become an advantage that others cannot match.
The chairman personally takes guests out to sea, and new members need to take sailing lessons for training.
Not only the hardware is perfect, but the most unique thing about ARGO is the service. The chairman once personally took guests to Xiaoliuqiu and required every employee to take sailing lessons during new hire training, hoping to arouse colleagues' yearning for ocean life and in turn infect customers.
"Only through personal experience can we understand the charm of going to sea." Wu Boxiu said that he changed his career from the automobile business to promoting yacht services. It was only in ARGO that he began to learn to control sailboats and take customers to visit outlying islands.
"The craziest trick is that the customer called me in the afternoon and said, let's go to Penghu for dinner. After I notified the customs, I took a speedboat from Anping and arrived in about an hour." Wu Boxiu said that while traveling on the sea, there is no need to wait for a plane and you can go to Penghu at any time. Let's go, this kind of freedom feels very enjoyable!
For those who are unfamiliar with marine activities, ARGO will arrange a marine butler to provide customized itineraries, meals and accommodation services. Members can rent a seaside villa, park the boat in front of the villa, and experience a Venice-like style. If members have boat purchase, parking and maintenance needs in the future, they can also leave it to ARGO.
ARGO has gradually gained popularity through its professional and diversified services. Currently, 1/3 of its members are recommended by internal members. Membership fees are ARGO's main source of revenue, accounting for 70% of revenue. In 2024, the ARGO Lifetime Membership Card will be divided according to different rights and interests: Chief Card (2.1 million yuan), Dengfeng Villa Card (3.2 million yuan), and an annual fee of 20,000 yuan must be paid every year. ARGO's boats, villa rentals, and clubhouses with saunas and conference rooms are only open to members.
The maximum membership card value is 2.1 million yuan, and the number of members has tripled in the past five years.
Wang Yuming added that the yacht club membership model is similar to a golf certificate. Based on the existing service capacity, it is expected to recruit 3,000 members, and no more recruitment will be done when the quota is reached, so that the membership card can maintain its value. As services increase, ARGO adjusts membership card fees year by year. From 400,000 yuan in 2019, it has increased five times to 2.1 million yuan. Despite the increase in membership fees, the number of members has not decreased but has increased, tripling in the past five years from 320 to 1,052.
In order to let more people know about marine activities, ARGO has invested in education and promotion, established the Lohas Marine Academy to provide sailing courses for the general public, and introduced ASA international sailing certification courses. In addition, it sponsors small and elementary school sailing teams, organizes sailing competitions, raises public awareness of marine activities, and cultivates more talents in the marine leisure field. Wu Boxiu said: "I sometimes think the boss is stupid. He loves the ocean more than making money. He hopes that one day Taiwan will have athletes competing in the sailing Olympics."
Despite good results in 2023, when talking about future operations, Wang Yuming and Wu Boxiu said in unison: "We are still in the beginning, so it is still very hard!" Compared with South Korea's economic conditions, open sea rights during the same period, and only three sides of the sea, The number of yachts in Taiwan in 2023 will be 1,444, far less than the 34,000 in South Korea. This means that the Taiwan market has great potential. It is hoped that relevant industry players will invest together to promote the development of the marine leisure industry.
Only by personal experience can you understand the charm of going to sea.
