Legendary Marine wins prestigious award

Legendary Marine, with sales and service locations in Destin, Fort Walton Beach, Panama City and Gulf Shores, Ala., was named "Dealer of the Year" by Boating Industry Magazine as part of its annual TOP 100 awards program held in Orlando on Nov. 14. The Dealer of the Year award is the most prestigious and most highly coveted recognition in North America for marine retailers and is presented annually to only one dealer at an exclusive gathering of the marine industry elite.

"It was with great pleasure that we have chosen Legendary Marine as our 2012 Boating Industry Top 100 Dealer of the Year," said Boating Industry magazine Editor Jonathan Sweet. "Simply making the Top 100 list is an honor as only the best of the best make this elite list, chosen from thousands of dealers across North America. To be chosen as Dealer of the Year is especially impressive. We were so impressed by Legendary Marine's rapid growth, strong financials and heavy investments in marketing, education and service." Legendary Marine Managing Partner Fred Pace, his wife Leslie and the dealership's senior leadership team accepted the award at the

gala ceremony of more than 1000. "We are thrilled and honored by this distinction and credit our entire team for the achievement," said Pace. "It has been a challenging few years for dealers across the country, so we especially appreciate the recognition as our team has worked hard to not only survive, but to thrive. Our team is very pleased and humbled by this recognition."

It has been a year of outstanding recognition for Legendary Marine. Besides the culmination with this extraordinary honor, Legendary Marine won the No. 1 Dealer Nationwide for Sales from Sea Hunt Boats, Columbia, South Carolina and the No. 1 Dealer Nationwide for Everglades boats based in Edgewater, Fla. It also received the No. 1 Top Customer Service award for the region for Cobalt Boats, which is based in Neodesha, Kansas.

On a regional basis, Legendary Marine was voted by readers of Emerald Coast Magazine as the "BEST of the Emerald Coast for Boat Sales and Service." This is the tenth consecutive win in this category, along with similar titles for both Destin Magazine and the Finest of the Emerald Coast by readers of Northwest Florida Daily News.