the boats - Hustler Powerboats

all relative
From vacation to
business to weekend
trips, the LoGiudice
family behind
New York-based
Hustler Powerboats
is as close-knit as
it gets—as is its
extended family of
owners worldwide.
words Jason Johnson
Hustler Powerboats (top), Jay Nichols (right)
A
common response the
first time someone sees
Tony DeMatteo’s 50-foot
V-bottom Wild Trips from Hustler
Powerboats, is “what a monster.”
What’s amusing is when the
comment comes from someone
without any performance boat
knowledge—the fisherman in
the marina or the woman at the
gas station. Little do they know,
that’s the name of the model—a
50 Monster.
Featuring a trifecta of 800-hp
engines from Innovation Marine
in Sarasota, Fla. DeMatteo’s
boat is the second 50-foot
For the last four years, Paul LoGiudice (left) has been working alongside his
uncle, Joe, who has owned Hustler Powerboats since 1997. According to
many customers, the duo has made doing business with Hustler a pleasure.
Hustler he’s owned. He had a
40-footer from the Calverton,
N.Y., company for 17 years
before that and chances are
he’ll never own anything but
a Hustler.
You see, DeMatteo—and
any Hustler owner for that
matter—is family. In DeMatteo’s
case he practically is family
as he’s been friends with Joe
LoGiudice since 1995, before
LoGiudice acquired Hustler
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speed on the water
a couple of years later. Back
then LoGiudice also owned a
40-footer Hustler.
“I met Joe when he joined
me and the old owner of Hustler,
Mike Pandolfelli, to run our
40-footers around the Statue
of Liberty,” said DeMatteo who
resides in Villa Park, Ill., and
spends most of his time on Lake
Michigan although he’s boated
all over the country as well as
Canada. “There ended up being
The Hustler Family
Hustler Powerboats (top), Jay Nichols (right)
Dean Bowen, who owns this 29 Rockit powered by a Mercury Racing 525EFI engine, said Hustler exceeded his expectations.
17 of us on the run, which we
turned into a great day trip.
We went from Sag Harbor out
through the Long Island Sound,
up the Hudson River, around
the Statue of Liberty and back
around to Sag Harbor.
“I started doing more poker
runs on behalf of Hustler and
Joe was doing some as well,”
he continued. “We did poker
runs from Canada to Sarasota
(Fla.) together and have been
friends ever since. What I liked
about Joe is he does what he
says he’s going to. And from a
business standpoint he doesn’t
lie or BS you. There aren’t a
lot of guys like him around. He
truly cares about what he builds
and it shows in the quality of
product. He once told me he
gets the most pleasure out of
seeing the customer’s look
on their face when they take
delivery of their boat. And he
means that.”
THE FAMILY
A New York native, LoGiudice,
67, was born into a manufacturing family so building things
Hustler displayed a stunning 388 Reloaded at the Miami International Boat Show.
is in his blood. Among other
production facilities, his father
and uncle owned a large plant
that produced parts for Singer
sewing machines. LoGiudice
and his brother Rich, went into
the tool and die business as
well, manufacturing full-size
satellite dishes. As the dish
technology became smaller,
the brothers decided to enter
the distribution business.
Today, All Systems Satellite
Distributors, which is based
in Brooklyn with eight offices
48
speed on the water
throughout the Northeast,
supplies DISH Network products
and a variety of accessories.
It also leases nearly half a
million square feet of real
estate that the company no
longer needs for manufacturing.
The business is owned 50/50
between Joe and Rich, along
with Global Marine Power, the
parent company of Hustler and
Checkmate Powerboats, which
it acquired in 2013. Rich runs
the satellite business and Joe
handles the boat building.
Tony DeMatteo (top, middle), Hustler Powerboats (bottom)
The Hustler Family
But the family ties don’t stop
there. Joe’s wife, Mary Ellen,
handles administration for
Hustler, and his nephew, Paul,
who joined the company in
2010, is an integral part of the
day-to-day operations, managing
marketing, graphic design and
customer relations. Corrie,
Paul’s older sister by exactly
three years as they share a
birthday, has much of the same
responsibilities at All Systems
Satellite Distributors.
“We have a very good family
working relationship,” said
Joe, who is as hands-on as
any owner in the boat-building
business. “My brother and I
have been in business for close
to 50 years, and you may not
believe this but we’ve never
got into a fight or an argument.
Prior to that my uncle and father
were in business together and
they were the same way. We’re
a very close family, there’s
almost nothing that could ever
separate us.”
It’s clear that Joe, who
doesn’t have kids, appreciates
having his nephew involved in
the business.
“Paul brings a younger
person’s point of view, which
is very important since I’m
not getting any younger,” Joe
laughed. “I couldn’t ask for
a better nephew or a better
person to be working with me.
He’s very mechanical and he
can handle all of the computer
side of things. You know all
of the social media, newergeneration stuff that I don’t
really understand.”
Paul, who graduated from
Penn State University in
2007, said he enjoys working
Blast from the Past
From top to bottom: Joe LoGiudice first met Tony DeMatteo and his family
during a day trip around the Statue of Liberty in their Hustler Powerboats
40-foot V-bottoms with then-Hustler owner Mike Pandolfelli and Hustler
founder Paul Fiore. DeMatteo and his family, including Anthony Jr., shown
steering LoGiudice’s boat, have remained close friends of the LoGiudices.
LoGiudice is more at home in a bilge compartment than he is in an office.
50
speed on the water
The Hustler Family
Like this 388 Slingshot that raced in the former Powerboat P1 series overseas,
Hustler Powerboats’ models have a long history of success in offshore racing.
alongside his uncle and
learning things about the
boat business everyday.
“It’s always such a pleasure
to see my uncle’s passion
and joy for what he’s building,”
said the 29-year-old who
cleaned boats and handled
various odd jobs around the
shop in junior high and high
school. “Nothing is ever a
problem for him—he’s always
thinking of a solution and trying
to make something stronger or
better. He has such a passion
for working on and building
boats. That’s what makes
showing up for work enjoyable.”
Powerboat P1
THE BOATS
For 30-plus years, Hustler
Powerboats has been making
waves in the boat business, and
under the leadership of Joe,
who bought the company in
1997 and moved it to Calverton
in 2000, Hustler has taken
steps to remain at the forefront
of the powerboat industry.
When it comes to testing
the water, so to speak, Joe has
never been afraid to try new
things. Whether it’s embracing
diesel power, perfecting rigging
techniques or researching the
best equipment and materials
available, Joe continues to
push the envelope.
And although his passion
lies in the offshore beauties
between 29 and 50 feet that
Hustler has delivered over the
years, he’s embraced another
customer all the way up to a 28
in the Checkmate lineup then
he can swing over to our 29 or
34 from Hustler. Our goal now
is to get more young people
involved. The entire industry
needs to look at how we can
attract new boaters.”
Joe admits he doesn’t get on
the water nearly as much as he
used to, and while he still enjoys
a day trip here and there, he’s
just as happy building boats as
“Everyone at Hustler believes in
what they are doing, and they
work very hard at it. Joe puts his
heart and soul into all of his boats.”
side of the sport since acquiring
Checkmate Powerboats in
Bucyrus, Ohio.
“I’m excited about the future
with both companies,” Joe
said. “Checkmate gives us the
opportunity to bring some new
life into this sport. We’ll take a
51
speed on the water
he is driving them.
“We really try to make each
boat special,” he said. “We’re
not making thousands of the
same piece, so we can treat
each one like a piece of art.
The goal is that every customer
is happy at the end of the day.”
The Hustler Family
Jay Nichols (top), Hustler Powerboats (bottom)
THE CUSTOMERS
It’s obvious that both Joe and
Paul do everything they can to
keep their customers happy.
Longtime boater and first-time
Hustler owner Dean Bowen of
Grand Forks, N.D., provided
an “above-and-beyond
expectations” example put
forth by Joe last summer.
Bowen, who owns a 29
Rockit with a Mercury Racing
HP525EFI engine, said that Joe
exceeded expectations when
he had an engine problem a
week before the Fourth of July
holiday, one of two weeks he
dedicates to boating each year.
“I went to my local dealer
and they said it would be about
a week before they could look
at my boat,” said Bowen, who
owned a twin-engine PlayCraft
pontoon boat before purchasing
the Hustler. “So I called Joe and
he asked me to troubleshoot a
few things. We determined what
the problem was but rather than
tear the motor down and order
new parts, which would have
forced me to miss the week,
Joe asked me to bring the boat
to his shop so he could install
a brand new motor for me. He
knew how important that week
was to my family and me.
“I’ve been extremely
satisfied with Joe, Paul and
everyone at Hustler,” Bowen
continued. “I’ve been boating
for more than 20 years and I’m
one of those pain-in-the-ass
customers who wants everything perfect. What’s nice is that
if you call there you can talk with
the owner. And there wasn’t a
question Joe couldn’t answer.”
Jason Yates of Alexandria,
Va., has owned a couple of 50
Monsters—his current boat has
A mainstay at the Miami International Boat Show, Joe LoGiudice (top) is proud
of Hustler Powerboats’ growth in the last two decades with help from his wife,
Mary Ellen (left), and nephew, Paul (right), who officially joined the team in 2010.
triple Mercury 700SCi engines
and the previous one he owned
for 10 years had triple Mercury
575SCi engines—and has
nothing but good things to say
about Joe.
“Everyone who works at
Hustler believes in what they are
doing, and they work very hard
at it,” said Yates, who has taken
boating trips with his wife, Loren,
up and down the East Coast
and the Florida Keys. “For the
15-plus years I’ve owned a
Hustler we’ve experienced
relatively trouble-free boating.
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speed on the water
They have the most impressive
customer service you can
imagine. Joe puts his heart and
soul into all of his boats. He’s so
proud of everything he builds.”
Clearly Yates’ comment
is true. But even more so,
Joe takes pride in the family
business he’s helped build
upon over the years. From
working alongside his brother
and nephew and being able to
take family trips, including an
upcoming cruise from New York
City to Bermuda this summer,
it doesn’t get any better.