With a mission of getting everyone on the water, Vespoli is a boating company with a staff of rowing enthusiasts.Building American-made, single- to eight-person racing boats, Vespoli has a workforce of former coaches, rowers, engineers, and boat builders who also own a piece of the company, which moved to an employee-ownership structure several years ago.“Our […]
Get Instant Access to This Article
Subscribe to Hartford Business Journal and get immediate access to all of our subscriber-only content and much more.
- Critical Hartford and Connecticut business news updated daily.
- Immediate access to all subscriber-only content on our website.
- Bi-weekly print or digital editions of our award-winning publication.
- Special bonus issues like the Hartford Book of Lists.
- Exclusive ticket prize draws for our in-person events.
Click here to purchase a paywall bypass link for this article.
With a mission of getting everyone on the water, Vespoli is a boating company with a staff of rowing enthusiasts.
Building American-made, single- to eight-person racing boats, Vespoli has a workforce of former coaches, rowers, engineers, and boat builders who also own a piece of the company, which moved to an employee-ownership structure several years ago.
“Our mid-Atlantic sales rep still competes regularly. The rest row for enjoyment,” says CEO Dave Trond, a former head rowing coach at UMass Amherst, who joined Vespoli in 1991. “We do try to get to a local rowing club every couple of years and get all the employees out in a boat.”
Most of the staff, covering five U.S. and five international regions, attend all major regattas and provide on-site service.
As a rower himself, Trond tests out new designs and still participates in the sport.
“Last time I raced was with Greenwich Masters Crew a few years back. Working with a group toward a common goal and testing yourselves is fun,” he says.
Located in New Haven, the company’s 35,000-square-foot production facility provides boats to rowers of all calibers in the U.S. and abroad, and offers repair, restoration and refurbishment services.
“Innovation, craftsmanship, and service – it all goes back to keeping people rowing. We’ve been pretty steady for a number of years now,” says Trond, noting Vespoli is a $10-million business.
The company has experienced ups and downs due to foreign competition and the pandemic. However, with people seeking outdoor leisure activities due to COVID, and with recreational rowing being a multi-season sport, it has had an opportunity to grow.
“In North America there’s not that many boat builders. We want to get as many people rowing as we can and grow the sport,” says Trond, noting he’s seeing more adults participating in Master’s racing competitions and clubs.
Coastal rowing is also up-and-coming.
“It’s a new version of the sport,” which involves rowing along a sea coast and into the ocean, Trond says. Vespoli has designed boats for such open water rowing.
The company also expanded its involvement in Stem to Stern Rowing, a partner of USRowing that brings people together across racial and socioeconomic boundaries to help teams become more diverse and competitive.
Innovation, employee focus
Vespoli was founded in 1980 by Mike Vespoli, former coach of the Olympic men’s sculling team and gold medalist at the 1974 World Rowing Championships Eight. Upon discovering a U.K.-based Carboncraft carbon fiber boat, Vespoli left coaching and began manufacturing these ultra-lightweight boats in the U.S., opening a shop in New Haven.
Vespoli collaborated with America’s Cup-winning naval architect and hydrodynamics experts on rowing shell research and created the VHP series, featuring a boat that Trond says runs more smoothly and is quicker on the water compared to other boats.
“Mike was big on innovation. I have a lot of respect for him. Working with him I was driven to meet his vision in having a successful company,” says Trond.
In 2017, Mike Vespoli left the company, shortly after he converted the business into an employee-owned operation.
“Mike wanted to keep the company here and no one in his family wanted to step in,” explains Trond.
Every Vespoli employee is an employee-owner, which helps create loyalty. Employees reap the benefits of the company’s productivity. Profits go to a trustee and employees receive company shares.
“We want our employees to have a livelihood that they’re happy with and proud of,” says Trond. “They’re all very passionate about rowing. It’s become a family. We do everything we can to build and earn loyalty.”
Mitz Carr, a longtime customer from New Haven, purchased her first Vespoli single in the late 1990s, she said.
“I was actually test rowing it to see if I would recommend it and within about 50 strokes I was sold. It’s been my boat ever since,” says Carr, explaining the Vespoli felt faster, carried speed longer, and was a more efficient racing shell. “I've coached at Trinity College in Hartford, Hopkins School in New Haven, and Connecticut Boat Club in Norwalk and all of these programs use Vespoli racing shells primarily because of the performance and customer service.”
