Is there any work and or need for marine service anywhere on the islands? I would love to sell my business in the states and either work for a shop or start a new one.I have been in this line of work for over 17 years. Any info would be greatly appreciated.

Hi Lou in PA,

What sort of Marine Service do you do? There's always a need for these services near the water.

Best of Luck,

I own a small dealership selling and servicing Yamaha,Suzuki,Mercury and Mercruiser. We do repairs to almost all brands. Is there many places to currently get boats repaired in Belize?

There are a lot of backyard mechanics..... No real store fronts like we are used to in North America. I guess on the positive side is that keeps the overhead costs down. I think in general the prices are good. However, as a North American (Canadian) I'm used to getting estimates/knowing the cost of hourly labor/seeing the broken parts afterward. Sometimes it is hard not to get the impression that you have been ripped off. The price slowly climbs as they find "things" that are broken. On the other hand that happens in North America as well and at the end of the day I would bet the mechanics here work for a lot less! If you can come down and fix things for next to nothing there are always a lot of people who want everything for nothing! Myself included! : )

Carlos

We have many "mechanics" here who say and apparently honestly believe that they are competent to work on particular engines, but it's too often just not true. And several of the ones I know (I've owned five working boats here) are well capable of creating work for themselves. For example, I used to have to replace control cables quite frequently, till I discovered that the mechanic was fitting ones a little too short, so the curves were too tight. And another one removed all the sacrificial zinc and didn't replace it.

If you can provide a sound and well informed service then you will be able to operate here. Don't expect to earn a lot though.

Could someone make a living just off service ? I am not looking to get rich off of it, just support my family. I guess I could also work on other small engines ect. to stay busy. Is there an actual marine dealer on the island? Where do you buy parts, oil ect? Thanks for the info so far.

hey lou - where in PA are you? i'm in PA also...wishing you luck.

I am between Allentown and Philly.

cool - we're in central bucks - nice to meet ya! you one of those marine dealers on rt 309?? again, good luck.

Nope, My place was on 222 between Reading and Fleetwood. I hope I can get something going over the next couple yrs. I am getting burned out here.

Lou, There's a place I know of off Island called "Marelco Ltd."
http://www.marelcobz.com/ If you're down in BZ look me up and I'll treat you to a beer. - Vince Pachuilo - pachuilv@hotmail.com or Nekton_Vince@NektonAdventures.com

PS: I'm originally from Reading PA - Berks County. My family had a Marina in Muhlenberg Township called "The Boating Center" I worked there while I was attending college. I did glass work, now I work for a university supervising the finance department, boring!

I remember that place. I bought A&D Marine from Phleger in the early 90's. I spent many days on the Schuylkill. I will take you up on the beer. I would love to leave this rat race. I am currently selling off items to start nest egging my "Belize Fund"

I hear you on the rat race stuff. My plans kind of dovetail with yours, I'll need help from somebody like you. Later

I'm not sure you're getting a full picture of the Industry from the posts here, and I'm not an expert so could be well off but I would say it's a pretty competitive market. All of the major marine compaies are represented here via Agents that I pressume in true Belize style, have exclusive in country contracts. ie Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki, Mercury etc. These retailers are pretty much all large Companies (for here) and in Belize City and each has its different manufacturer. In Belize there is also Duke Marine who build boats, trailers and mechanic shop(?) and is also a general Marine Store. Cucumber Beach Marina is in Belize (the largest and perhaps only one) who will also offer similar and more specialist services.

Here on the Caye we have our own West Marine in Captain Sharks who have a large range of products and also have a Boat Yard where they build boats, do general repairs, paint shop etc. A lot of the Hardware Stores also carry an ever growing amount of Marine Products too. There are a handful of other "Backyard" Boatyards who will do fibreglass repair, painting and mechanic work and keep busy. There are a handful of certified mechanics on the Caye that are company trianed and affiliated to the Belize City Dealers, but independant - the two I have had dealings with over the years are Osmin and Caesar, and both have been great. I personally know both are certified Yamaha mechanics (my engine is a Yamaha) and have travelled as far as Japan for detailed training. There are even more non certified great mechanics, especially with the two strokes, as just about every fisherman on the Caye has been working on their own engines for decades before the current level of support was there.

So as you can see it's a pretty vibrant industry as there are a lot of boats in Belize per capita - you'd expect nothing less with such beautifull Water. Room for another? Sure. It at least gives you a few more contacts or names to look into and if you have a specialist skill that could enhance one or perhaps offer a new service company.

Very few people here competent to work on diesels.

Captain Sharks really does not currently do any real motor repairs or maintenance. If I were you I would contact them as they are also an authorized Yamaha dealer. They have the largest marine supply store on the island and one of the largest boat manufacturing facilities in the country. In my opinion this is a great fit.

I am hoping to come down in the next 4 months to look around at some property. I had my heart set on one but it was a little more than I could afford. If anyone comes across what they think might work as a shop area and place to live please drop me a line. I am on line looking for property daily. Does anyone have any thoughts on a trustworthy real estate company? Thanks Lou

Email me and I'll tell you what I know about realtors.