26 Business View - February 2016
RETAIL
more time operating the tavern. He sold the boat busi-
ness to his sons, Tom and Jamie, who had grown up
at the lake. The two brothers grew their father’s small,
upstart business into a thriving rental operation. Then
Tom’s children, Tommy, Steele, and their two sisters,
further expanded it into a diversified company con-
sisting of a marina with 260 boat slips; a large boat
dealership; boat service, storage, and rental; a ski and
wakeboard school; a pro shop that sells and rents wa-
ter sports equipment; the Boat House Bar & Restau-
rant; the Cobalt Lounge, a private party room; and the
Bait Shop, a small, snack bar on the pier. “Back in the
day, Gordy used to lock the store around Labor Day, go
south for the winter, and come back Memorial Day,”
says Whowell. “But nowadays, we’re running all year
long with the size and diversification that our business
has grown to.” About 50 employees work year round
and that number swells to 250 during the height of the
summer season.
In 1997, Gordy’s picked up a Cobalt dealership, and
today rents only Cobalt 20 foot and 22 foot Bowriders,
which they also sell. A few years ago, the company be-
gan selling MasterCraft boats, as well. “We’re kind of
picky with the boat lines that we carry,” says Whowell.
“In a lot of cases, we said ‘No,’ because we didn’t think
it would o be a good fit with our team and our culture.”
On average, Whowell says they sell about 100 boats a
year – 60 percent that are pre-owned and 40 percent,
new.
Gordy’s has two storefront locations: one on Lake Ge-
neva and one in Fox Lake, Illinois. “Part of our territory
is the Illinois/Chicago market where most of our cli-
