You can either complain or do something about the problem: The choice is YOURS!

[tangfish]

One thing that strikes me after moving to Southeast Asia from North America (to follow my love for diving) is that it's much more of a young person activity over here. For whatever reason most western boats and resorts I dive at have an older median age, whereas when I go to all Asian boats or resorts the average age is younger than I am (sometimes by quite a bit). I'm 37. I wonder if people pick it up at a younger age over here or if it's a difference in disposable income or free time that drives the difference. Whatever the reason it has all kinds of ripple effects throughout the industry, both geographically and also in terms of how different businesses in the industry cater to distinctly different demographics.

It would be interesting to better understand the demographics of potential divers to better penetrate markets through traditional media, outreach and social media.

 

[Diving Dubai]

I feel that the whole subject of dwindling numbers is subjective and subject to location. If you take my location Dubai for instance we don’t see this; let me explain further;

I’m a member of a club, we have 110 diving members, and these members dive anywhere from weekly, monthly or occasionally. Each year we get 10 or so new members. These are generally OW (or equivalent) and we get them to AoW (or equivalent) the new members replace those we lose from people leaving the UAE (it being a transient place).

However there are many more divers than this here. Go to the LDS and each weekend you will see loads of cylinders being filled (Our club has its own compressor so we don’t have to go to the LDS) All these other people dive. Equally on a weekend you can see 2 or 3 commercial vessels out with 20 or so divers on each.

Now the UAE isn’t a diving destination, the West Coast has wrecks, which are all deeper than OW – the Vis isn’t’ great nor is the marine life. The East coast which is generally reached by day boats is better but still muck diving and macro (at Recreational depths) You have to go further afield and to be fair have some experience to Dive the Mussandam which is world class with Whale sharks and big life as well as nice reefs but unpredictable with currents as well as being true blue water.

My point here is that Dubai isn’t a diving tourist spot yet we seem to have a very active diving community. You could say people here have a good disposable income and free time at weekends, however this place offers lots to fill your free time within 30 mins travel. So I would say if you took this location as a litmus test then diving is booming!

Lots of people tick off the diving done that box by getting their OW on vacation – normally in clear safe warm waters with lots of life. Some keep diving every year on vacation – some having got the cert go try other things?

Going back to the program – how do you reflect diving? Like others have said watching divers for 10mins is about the max duration. Both National Geographic and the BBC both do fantastic nature programmes with lots of superb footage – isn’t that enough?
Furthermore you need to manage people’s expectations. It’s okay showing how great the Red Sea or Caribbean is for instance, but if they then turn up at the LDS and do their OW in a murky quarry seeing a rusty bus in low vis – will that keep the majority diving? I presume the vast majority who learn to dive locally get their cert to dive on vacation it is only the real diehards who are happy to dive anywhere?
And Diving isn’t just about diving it can be social – so having places where a group regularly hang out if they’re not diving also keeps retention. Certainly that Model works in the UK, it also works here – where although we can dive all year round people choose to do social things often with fellow divers away from the water.

So in summary, and to counter opinion I don’t see that diving is diminishing, I also see a range of ages diving both in our club and around the local community which probably emphasises the point that the popularity of diving is primary down to location, location, location?

 

[MrChen]

I believe he posted some time ago about his kickstarter project. My impression is it fell on deaf ears. I for one, don't even have cable. I cut the cord this year. Also, as a recreational diver, I'm ignorant to the issues the scuba industry faces. This leaves me wondering what I'm supporting and why. I think the original thread would have gotten a better response if industry folk jumped in to support it. When I looked at it, he had only a few dollars donated. NetDoc, your post garnered more attention than his original one, which is good if this is what the industry needs.

 

[flots am]

Over the past few years I've heard a lot of griping, bellyaching and complaining over how our industry is in an economic backslide. Some blamed the internet, some indicted DEMA and others have traced the source to any number of others, including ScubaBoard. It's blame shifting on an industry scale, and since we can't agree on the source, nothing get's changed and we continue to wallow in mediocrity.

The biggest problem is that SCUBA shouldn't be an "industry"

I wouldn't cry if all the shops, industry groups and certification agencies simply closed up, and SCUBA went back to the way is was before all the agencies decided to make it a business.

All it would take is a handful of manufacturers selling stuff online, and people starting local dive clubs.

flots.

 

[diversteve]

There needs to be an app for that instead. Seriously, I'm not kidding.

You won't even engage the attention of the current generation of potential divers with a video series. Which won't have distribution wide enough to be seen by anyone it's trying to reach. Whoever said put it on YouTube has the best suggestion.

It matches the attention span of the target audience and if one gets lucky and goes viral, there'll be more non-divers inquiring about it than any other medium.

Want to get someone's attention real fast? Figure out how to dive with Google Glass. With a drone hovering overhead recording it all. At least this year that might work...

Interesting aside...

I usually look for the post-show summary from the Scuba Events. The short interviews you posted with the various Long Beach Scuba Show participants this year were far more interesting than anything I've ever seen before. Were they 1/2 hr. long show summaries instead - you would've lost me.

And I'm NOT in the target demographic by several decades.

 

[The Chairman]

The biggest problem is that SCUBA shouldn't be an "industry"

You just might get your wish. But without the infrastructure, the manufacturers won't be able to stay in business long and find air becomes problematical. I remember the seventies well, and getting air in our tanks was always an adventure after the dive. It often meant driving back home to Orlando. Talk about a surface interval.

 

[redacted]

You just might get your wish. But without the infrastructure, the manufacturers won't be able to stay in business long and find air becomes problematical. I remember the seventies well, and getting air in our tanks was always an adventure after the dive. It often meant driving back home to Orlando. Talk about a surface interval.

Yes, it could create some problems. But I would much rather deal with providers who are more interested in satisfying demand than in creating it.

Losing a few manufacturers along the way might just be another benefit. I am confident that finding air in a area that at one time supported a number of shops will work itself out. I'd bet the surviving manufacturers and larger online retailers will put in an effort to help clubs get started to fill the voids of disappearing local retailers.

 

[diver 85]

IMO, it's the internet(or whatever you want to call it) ---->causing the availability of 'more retail outlets'----> causing 'locals' to sell less of their 'wares'---etc---etc---etc.....Example:...when we(wife, daughter, & myself) were certified in summer of '85, the day we finished our last OW checkout dives(on a Sunday), we went immediately over to the dive shop that we were certified thru & bought 3 sets of 'dive gear'--from wet suits thru tanks, regulators etc etc--EVERYTHING, for 3................lol, you think I'd have made that exact move last weekend?????????.......,.....no fricking way.....

 

[flots am]

You just might get your wish. But without the infrastructure, the manufacturers won't be able to stay in business long and find air becomes problematical. I remember the seventies well, and getting air in our tanks was always an adventure after the dive. It often meant driving back home to Orlando. Talk about a surface interval.

Enough manufacturers will survive to meet the demand (that's just the way it works).

There would certainly be tank manufacturers because they're used for all sorts of other purposes, and compressors just aren't that expensive anymore. If I'm just filling tanks for me and a buddy or two, a small compressor is just fine. Also if there are a bunch of divers that suddenly need to make their own air, I'd expect small, cheap compressors to start popping up.

As for manufacturers, I'm sure at least one manufacturer of each important type of equipment would survive and that's really enough.

flots.

 

[The Chairman]

Yes, it could create some problems. But I would much rather deal with providers who are more interested in satisfying demand than in creating it.

Enough manufacturers will survive to meet the demand (that's just the way it works).

So, you just want an industry on YOUR terms. Well, there are a number of us who want to increase the popularity of Scuba Diving. You can hope/pray for our demise, but we won't go quietly. 'Nuff said.