🧾 What This Document Is

This is an 8-K filing, which is a report companies file with the SEC to announce major, shareholder-affecting news. Attached is Exhibit 99.1, the official press release with all the details. In simple terms, Off The Hook Yachts is shouting from the rooftops: "We just bought a huge boat service company to transform our business!"

🏢 What The Company Does

In simple terms, Off The Hook Yachts (OTH) is like the "Carvana" for boats, but with a major twist. It's a tech-powered marketplace for buying and selling used boats, but it's also deeply involved in the physical world of boat refurbishment. They use AI and data to move boats quickly. Now, they're going all-in on owning the repair shops.

🤝 The Deal: Acquiring Bellhart Marine

This is the core news. Off The Hook has signed a definitive agreement to buy Bellhart Marine Group and its affiliated service companies.

• Why it's a big deal: This isn't just buying inventory; it's buying the "engine" to fix up inventory. It transforms OTH from just a marketplace into a true vertical powerhouse that can buy, repair, and sell boats all under one roof.
• The goal: To create a "Mega Service & Refit Center" platform, the premier one in the Carolinas. Think of it as building a super-efficient "boat refurbishment factory."

🏗️ Building a Three-Location Service Network

The acquisition gives them three specialized facilities that work together like an assembly line:

• Cape Fear River Shipyard: The heavy-lift hub for big yacht refits and structural work. Can haul vessels up to ~70 tons.
• Market Street Facility: The high-volume shop focused on outboard engines, diagnostics, and sales.
• Sloop Point Marina: A dry stack storage and service hub that's expanding to ~450 racks. It will handle maintenance and new boat sales. 👉 Why it matters: Owning this network means OTH controls the speed, cost, and quality of getting a used boat ready for resale. No more waiting on third-party shops.

📈 Strategic Advantages & "The Why"

Management believes this move gives them a unique edge:

• Cost Arbitrage: Refitting boats in Wilmington, NC, is cheaper than in South Florida. They can even ship certain vessels from Florida to North Carolina for service to save money.
• Geographic Sweet Spot: They're strategically located between the huge Florida and Northeast boating markets, making it easy to move inventory.
• Airport Access: Being 5-10 minutes from Wilmington International Airport makes it easy for out-of-town buyers to fly in, inspect a boat, and fly out. 👉 Why it matters: Lower costs and better location mean higher margins and faster sales, turning their service centers into a competitive weapon.

🔗 Deepening Vertical Integration

"Vertical integration" means owning more steps in your own supply chain. This acquisition supercharges that strategy.

• They're adding nearly two decades of Bellhart's service expertise and deep diesel capabilities.
• This reduces reliance on outside vendors and should increase how many boats they can fix and flip ("throughput").
• It creates a more consistent, high-quality experience for customers, from purchase to after-sale service.

🌍 The Bigger Picture: A Tri-Regional Hub Network

This Carolina platform isn't standalone. It fits into a larger vision of a three-region powerhouse on the East Coast:

1. South Florida Hub (via Apex Marine Group acquisition)
2. Mid-Atlantic Hub on the Chesapeake Bay
3. Central East Coast Hub (This new Carolina platform with Bellhart) 👉 Why it matters: This creates a powerful, integrated network to source, refurbish, and sell boats across the entire boating corridor, maximizing inventory flow and efficiency.

💡 Why This Matters: From Marketplace to "Infrastructure" Play

This acquisition signals a major strategic shift. OTH is evolving from a tech-enabled marketplace into an infrastructure-backed platform. They're betting that owning the "garages" (service centers) is the key to scaling profitably and dominating the used boat market. It's about owning the entire ecosystem.

⚖️ The Details: Transaction Status

The deal is subject to standard conditions like due diligence and third-party approvals. It's expected to close "within a standard transaction timeline" — no specific date is given yet.

🧠 The Analogy

Think of Off The Hook Yachts as a used car dealership that just bought its own massive, state-of-the-art mechanic shop and body shop. Instead of sending cars to other garages (which is slow and expensive), they can now take trade-ins, fix them up quickly and cheaply on-site, and put them back on the lot for sale faster with a bigger profit margin. They're controlling the entire cycle.

📇 Key Contacts & People

• Jason Ruegg, Founder of Off The Hook Yachts
• Brian John, Chief Executive Officer of Off The Hook Yachts
• Chad Corbin, Chief Financial Officer ([email protected])
• Investor Relations ([email protected])
• Company Headquarters: Wilmington, North Carolina
• Ticker: NYSE American: OTH

🧩 Final Takeaway

Off The Hook Yachts is making a transformative infrastructure bet by buying Bellhart Marine. This moves them beyond just selling boats to owning the crucial service and refurbishment engine, aiming to control costs, speed, and quality to become the dominant platform in the used boat market.