The business model for manufactured homes reminds me a lot of the yacht industry. After all, a yacht is essentially just a vacation home on a boat. The yacht industry has fewer logistical challenges compared to the traditional construction industry because boats can be transported by water, which is one of the cheapest forms of transport.
You might expect yacht manufacturing to be consolidated into giant shipyard "gigafactories" similar to what we see in the auto industry. However, that's not how the yacht industry is actually structured. There are only 5-10 major manufacturers that produce the core components like engines and propellers. But the final yacht assembly and customization is done by smaller, local businesses.
The reason for this decentralized approach is the highly bespoke, customized nature of yachts. I don't think a simple reduction in logistics costs will enable a fully vertically integrated "gigafactory" approach for home manufacturing the way it has for cars. But the "pop-up factory" model that the manufactured home companies are exploring makes a lot of sense. It allows them to push construction and assembly closer to the local market structure of the yacht industry, where customization is king.
Overall, I think the yacht industry provides an interesting analogy and potential blueprint for how the manufactured homes sector could evolve. It's a fascinating parallel that I hadn't considered before. What are your thoughts on the similarities between these two industries?
Phenomenal write-up! Even just the concept and execution of MMFs is so interesting.
Kick ass. This is so impressive. Really really hope these guys are the aggressive learners from other founders lessons.
Incredible. My favorite blog post yet.
Very happy to hear that! Cuby is an incredibly cool company.
Incredibly well written and appreciate you took the time to write in detail
Packy, 18 months on, it would be great to have your update on Cuby and the competitive landscape today.
Also my favorite Packy blog so far. How do I invest?
The business model for manufactured homes reminds me a lot of the yacht industry. After all, a yacht is essentially just a vacation home on a boat. The yacht industry has fewer logistical challenges compared to the traditional construction industry because boats can be transported by water, which is one of the cheapest forms of transport.
You might expect yacht manufacturing to be consolidated into giant shipyard "gigafactories" similar to what we see in the auto industry. However, that's not how the yacht industry is actually structured. There are only 5-10 major manufacturers that produce the core components like engines and propellers. But the final yacht assembly and customization is done by smaller, local businesses.
The reason for this decentralized approach is the highly bespoke, customized nature of yachts. I don't think a simple reduction in logistics costs will enable a fully vertically integrated "gigafactory" approach for home manufacturing the way it has for cars. But the "pop-up factory" model that the manufactured home companies are exploring makes a lot of sense. It allows them to push construction and assembly closer to the local market structure of the yacht industry, where customization is king.
Overall, I think the yacht industry provides an interesting analogy and potential blueprint for how the manufactured homes sector could evolve. It's a fascinating parallel that I hadn't considered before. What are your thoughts on the similarities between these two industries?
Damn. This is long. I skimmed.