US-headquartered Freedom Boat Club is to expand to the UK with its first location here due to open this summer.

The new club will be located at Trafalgar Wharf in Portsmouth, with membership sales currently underway. The club investment is part of Brunswick-owned Freedom Boat Club’s expansion strategy in Europe, which already includes locations in France.

“We believe the UK and Europe is a prime market for the growth of Freedom Boat Club,” said Jason Worthy, vice-president of boating services EMEA. “This is the first in what we expect to be multiple new locations in and around the United Kingdom.  We are excited to introduce our award-winning Brunswick brands and the Freedom Boat Club model to boaters across the UK.”

According to British Marine, UK boat sales rose by almost 10% in 2020, demonstrating that boating in the region continues to grow in popularity. With Freedom Boat Club entering the region, consumers who want to enjoy the water without owning a boat will have more opportunity to do so.

Freedom Boat Club of the UK is now Freedom’s sixth corporate owned territory, joining Southwest Florida, Southeast Florida, Raleigh, North Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina and Chicago, Illinois in the US.