HUMBLE BEGINNINGS…

This day started out like any other, helping around the house, playing with friends and even getting into a little bit of trouble, but at around 4 pm this day in 1967, a legacy began…

Roger Parks, your average 14 year-old saw his dad coming home from work and noticed he was carrying the materials that he had been waiting for! Finally, his childhood dream was becoming a reality, a small wooden fishing boat made with his own two hands.

Ever since he could remember, he wanted to build boats, just like his dad. In this small town in Arkansas, the local boat plant was just about the only livelihood. In fact, it was quite a shock on a day when at age 10 or so, Roger realized that there were people that did not make their living building boats. That was fine for them, but not for Roger! With those final pieces of scrap materials, enthusiasm and determination, Roger’s career as a boat builder and the foundation for Blue Wave Boats had begun.

Now his first creation was a little rough around the edges, but it gave Roger something to perfect upon… And perfect, he did! With each boat came more and more ideas. How could he improve the design? How could he improve the process? During the next years he continued to create and develop new designs, honing his skills in boat building. Early on in Arkansas, he helped his father to launch a small custom shop building boats known as the “Rebel”, “The Confederate” and a boat called the “Sidewinder” for a small dealer in Oklahoma. To this day you can still recognize their boats by the coast guard assigned HIN# (Hull Identification Number) PSF on the stern of the boat. For the next 6 years, this father-son team worked side-by-side. Just when things were getting a little rough, Roger came upon the unfortunate day that a son is never prepared for. His father had a heart attack and passed away. Roger continued on as President of the company for the next 4-years, but the time came to move on with his life and his families. Another brother Mike then took over the family business and with plans of opening up a small boat repair shop, Roger, his wife Pam and their two small children set out on this new adventure that led them to Oklahoma.

Shortly before their arrival in the “Sooner State” the unexpected happened. Investors convinced Roger that instead of opening a repair shop, he should utilize his talent and experience to start a boat manufacturing plant here in Oklahoma. Roger along with his wife Pam as always, was up for a challenge. They learned a long time ago that when you have family and others that believe in you, you can accomplish anything, so with a handshake agreement they was off. For the next eight years the Park’s family operated with the investors a small but successful boat-building shop.

After over 20 years of dedicated service, working with 2 small boat manufacturers and attaining the title of President at each, you would think that Roger would be pleased with his accomplishments. Maybe ready to retire? Maybe step back a little and enjoy the sweetness of success? Not in a million years. Roger and Pam have always looked for ways to improve upon anything and everything possible and in 1992 came to a realization. Even though his wife, and brother were working right beside him, something bigger had been missing. In the organizations he has been employed with, a true sense of family and teamwork, a quality-first attitude, safety, benefits and employee loyalty led his list of items that needed improvement. He now understood that ownership would be the only way to create this ideal working environment. On September 10, 1992 in the small town of Checotah, Oklahoma, Parks Manufacturing Inc. d.b.a. Blue Wave Boats was born.

THE CHALLENGE BEGINS…

The Parks family agreed at the start of this venture that producing a quality boat that met the specific needs of the customers was their key focus. So Roger sat down with a homemade drawing board in a garage-sized shop and began to pour through detailed information he had compiled for years. He had been particularly fascinated by customer needs and special requests, and thank goodness, never threw anything away! It did not take long to realize that he had the perfect resource to establish the parameters for his new designs and to create a unique boat that provided what people really wanted and needed.

From the moment Roger and Pam told dealers that they had done business with for years that they would be building their own boats, the dealers let them know they would be more than happy to handle their boats whenever they were ready. Their loyalty and support was overwhelming and enabled the Parks family to proceed with confidence. This also allowed Roger the time he felt he needed to continue to develop his designs.

One chilly evening out in the shop, Pam Parks remembers watching Roger working on his new creations and their sons Richard and Steven, then 14 and 11 years old, were coming up with ideas for a name for their boats. They had been trying to come up with a name they could agree upon for weeks now. Then all of a sudden Steven says “Blue Wave! What do you think?” They all just kind of sat there for a minute. “Blue Wave,” she thought, “not bad at all.” It was unanimous! Shortly after, the “wave” began to appear magically in the design. It wasn’t long before the actual hull of the boat had a wave, the console had a wave, the seat base and many other components, which added a originality flair and created continuity in the designs.

While Roger, his brother Greg and son, Richard were putting the finishing touches on their 1^st Blue Wave boat, Pam and Steven were setting up an office in their mobile home and completing the final paperwork to register their designs and logo. In just three short months, the entire Parks family saw their dreams becoming a reality.

THE MOMENT OF TRUTH

On December 19^th, 1992 Roger and Pam loaded up there one and only Blue Wave 189 Classic and headed for a small dealership in Rosenberg, Texas. The dealer took delivery of this special package in preparation for the debut of the new line at the Houston Boat show. Just a few days later the Parks’ were headed back home with a check in hand and now needed to build 2 more boats for other dealers to take to their up coming shows.

It’s exceptionally cold on this day in January 1993. The grass is brown, the trees have been bare for months and the lakes are thinly coated with ice. Not the scene you would picture when you think of heading out to premier a new line of boats. But on this cold winter day, the Parks family did just that. They loaded their precious cargo of two more boats onto a trailer and headed south. Their destination was the Houston International Boat Show in Houston, Texas, one of the largest shows in the country! There was no telling how this would turn out, or if they would even sell one boat, but they did know that failure was NOT an option.

With this determination and unbelievable enthusiasm, Roger and Pam left the Houston show with not just one, but FOUR boat orders! They now had several dealers wanting to represent Blue Wave Boats and an eight-week order backlog and two boats still on the trailer to deliver. Not bad for 2 weekends of work and months of preparation.

A SOLID FOUNDATION

The Park’s family immediately jumped into action, filled their first orders and secured more at additional showings. Within a year and a half of its inception, Blue Wave now employed 18 full time boat builders; making this the largest boat company the Parks’ had ever worked for. For them this was exciting new territory and they wanted to do things right! Roger and Pam not only aspired to build the best boat on the market, they also desired to be recognized as a company that cares. The Parks’ realized that to achieve this they needed to focus on three key areas. They must continually establish a strong quality base within their products, they must ensure their dealers are treated with a great deal of respect and professionalism, and instill pride in their employees by providing opportunity for growth with the company and security in their future. With uncompromising quality and by promoting a “Team” and family style environment, Blue Wave continued to experience steady growth in their market. Before long, a significant order backlog was their biggest concern. What a great problem to have!

It was not long before the Parks family realized that their organization is only as strong as it’s relationships; relationships with their dealers, employees and customers. To express their gratitude and appreciation for the loyalty they have shown, Blue Wave makes a point to recognize these groups that are key to their continued success.

For the dealers, Blue Wave provides training and development programs and hosts an annual event to show appreciation for their loyalty and to reward their outstanding sales and customer service achievements. For their hardworking and dedicated employees, they have established several training and recognition programs to promote growth in their organization. Bonus programs, an excellent benefit package, and quarterly family gatherings tops the list of incentives offered to each employee. For their loyal customers they have created a Family Fun Owners Tournament. This yearly event is now a family tradition that Blue Wave owners look forward to for months every year. This tournament, held in the Gulf of Mexico, has quickly become a landmark event, the largest on the Gulf Coast, and has broken attendance records each year. It’s a tournament like no other! (If you own a Blue Wave you can go next year!) Nothing makes the Parks’ happier than one of their boat owners approaching them at the tournament to tell them they just bought their 2^nd or 3^rd Blue Wave.

GIVING BACK TO THE COMMUNITY/COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT

From humble beginnings and a solid foundation, over the last ten years Blue Wave Boats has grown into a modern plant with the latest in machinery and safety equipment. They have expanded from a 1500 square foot shop building on 1 acre to an 80,000 square foot plant spread out over 30 acres of land. They were recognized for being #27 of the 50 fastest growing companies in the state of Oklahoma and have received awards from the Muskogee Development organization due to recent additions and expansions. Because the Parks’ have worked hard to ensure that the plant is environmentally friendly and to provide the safest possible work environment for their Blue Wave team members, they are now not only one of the largest but also one of the most respected employers in the area.

Blue Wave is a proud supporter of their local community and is committed to community service. Regular contributions are made to support school, city and county functions, in addition to sponsorships and donations for local sports teams, children’s programs, churches and other non-profit organizations. By encouraging development and supporting local causes, Blue Wave continues to have a positive impact on their community.

FUTURE GENERATIONS

Blue Wave Boats has been under the leadership of Richard and Steven Parks (3^rd generation boat builders) since the year 2000. With their enthusiasm and new ways of looking to the future, Blue Wave has developed many new models over the years. Their sons’ attention to detail and commitment to quality, along with their dedication to employee and plant safety has enabled Roger and Pam to focus on other aspects of growing the company. Richard and Steven both being fathers know the value of making a dependable boat that fits the needs of the family while providing a ton of fishability.

Their new upholstery division was soon up and running. This department has not only allowed Blue Wave to improve and enhance the quality for the boats, boat covers, and sun tops, but the addition has also generated new jobs.

A PROMISING FUTURE

As a company that is aggressively planning for the future, Blue Wave is aware that the marine industry must compete with other recreational industries for the consumer’s recreational dollars. To ensure solidity in their market place, Blue Wave is a member and a strong supporter of many fishing organizations, along with business and industry groups dedicated to promoting and growing the marine industry. They also promote Coast Guard Boating Safety Programs to help make the waterways a safer place.

The Parks family believes that boating should be safe, fun and enjoyable for all. The final result of their efforts is to enable individuals to have fun out on the water. Because of the uncompromised quality in every Blue Wave Boat, they are continually recognized for their outstanding customer satisfaction and have earned the title of being the “Best Selling Boat in Texas” for the last eight years in a row. (According to TP&W new boat sales) To date they are the only boat manufacturer to have accomplished that feat.

With the leadership of Richard and Steven Parks, who are dedicated to continuing the family tradition, over 35 years of expertise in every boat, and a company that is committed to excellence, Blue Wave Boats is truly an organization with a promising future.