MATTHEW SHEAHAN

WHAT DO THE CHANGES ON SHOW AT BOOT DÜSSELDORF MEAN FOR THE NEXT YEAR OF YACHTING?

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Close to the Spinlock stand at Boot Düsseldorf earlier this year were three white plastic dogs, canine mannequins sporting three sizes of the Spinlock 'Fido', the company's dog flotation vest. Despite being featureless statues, when real dogs passed by they seemed to know exactly what they were looking at as they stopped to take a sniff. Even when there was more than one dog present, they still explored the mannequins rather than each other. It was comical to watch.

Once Fido had been inspected by each real dog, it was time for a quick drink from the strategically placed water bowl before moving on – at least they would have done had their owners not inevitably been distracted in the meantime by the Spinlock stand’s wares.

“It’s been like this all week,” said one of the Spinlock staff. “We didn’t intend this to happen, we just brought the models to exhibit our new lifejackets. But the response has been impressive and has brought all kinds of people onto our stand.”

As I strolled through the show’s 18 huge halls that provide a spectacular reminder as to just how big the water sports scene is, it was also apparent that tough times often bring out the most creative solutions. Boot Düsseldorf 2025 had plenty of examples of this.