Two Brunswick Corporation Emerging Leaders Named to Boating Industry’s 40 Under 40 List

METTAWA, Ill. – March 24, 2023 – Boating Industry Magazine today announced its 2023 40 Under 40 list recognizing two emerging leaders within Brunswick Corporation (NYSE: BC) among the industry’s top young professionals. Rusty Kucher, Pontoon Category Director, and Nick Hooge, Franchise Owner, Freedom Boat Club of Seattle, were selected as award recipients among the hundreds of nominations.

Kucher joined Brunswick in 2017 after building his engineering and project management experience across major firms in the Chicago area. Since joining the Company, Kucher has held a variety of strategy, development, and marketing roles within the pontoon portfolio, and now serves as the Category Director of Pontoons supporting product development for Harris Boats.

“I am incredibly grateful to be recognized among my industry peers as one of the 40 Under 40 recipients this year,” said Kucher. “I’ve been fortunate enough to have the opportunity to expand my skillset and work alongside some of the top talent in recreational boating throughout my tenure at Brunswick, and I look forward to continuing to make meaningful impacts in developing products and solutions to expand the industry and attract the next generation of boaters.”

Hooge has been with Freedom Boat Club since 2015, initially starting his career as one of the leading membership executives for Freedom’s corporate territory in Southwest Florida before embarking on his business ownership journey to establish Freedom’s footprint in Seattle. Since opening in 2017, Hooge has grown the Seattle territory to 13 locations with 160+ boats that serve families on more than 15,000+ boat trips per year.

“I’m thrilled and honored to be recognized as a 40 Under 40 award recipient as a result of my passion and work ethic to deliver tremendous value to thousands of our loyal Freedom members,” said Hooge. “At Freedom, we are committed to creating remarkable member experiences and making boating accessible for all, and our success in the Pacific Northwest and ability to execute on that mission is my life’s greatest work. This award is truly a testament to my talented team and their efforts to deliver exceptional on-water experiences one boat ride at a time, and I look forward to all that we will accomplish together in the years ahead.”

Each year, Boating Industry’s 40 Under 40 features young leaders in the boating industry who stand out among hundreds of peer nominations for their multitude of accomplishments and promise to push the boating industry forward. The award and feature can be seen in this month’s edition of Boating Industry Magazine or online at boatingindustry.com/digital-archives/boating-industry-march-2023/.

About Brunswick

Brunswick Corporation (NYSE: BC) is the global leader in marine recreation, delivering innovation that transforms experiences on the water and beyond.  Our unique, technology-driven solutions are informed and inspired by deep consumer insights and powered by our belief that “Next Never Rests™.” Brunswick is dedicated to industry leadership, to being the best and most trusted partner to our many customers, and to building synergies and ecosystems that enable us to challenge convention and define the future. Brunswick is home to more than 60 industry-leading brands. In the category of Marine Propulsion, these brands include, Mercury Marine, Mercury Racing and MerCruiser. Brunswick’s comprehensive collection of parts, accessories, distribution, and technology brands includes Mercury Parts & Accessories, Land ‘N’ Sea, Lowrance, Simrad, B&G, Mastervolt, RELiON, Attwood and Whale. Our boat brands are some of the best known in the world, including Boston Whaler, Lund, Sea Ray, Bayliner, Harris Pontoons, Princecraft and Quicksilver. Our service, digital and shared-access businesses include Freedom Boat Club, Boateka and a range of financing, insurance, and extended warranty businesses. While focused primarily on the marine industry, Brunswick also successfully leverages its portfolio of advanced technologies to deliver an exceptional suite of solutions in mobile and industrial applications.  Headquartered in Mettawa, IL, Brunswick has more than 18,500 employees operating in 29 countries. In 2022, Brunswick was named by Forbes as a World’s Best Employer and as one of America’s Most Responsible Companies by Newsweek, both for the third consecutive year. For more information, visit brunswick.com.