New electric boat club in Seattle launches with assets acquired in wake of Pure Watercraft demise

A new electric boat club is ready to make waves in Seattle, partly riding on assets acquired from the demise of Pure Watercraft, the startup that set out to revolutionize the pleasure boating industry before going under last year.

Aurelia Boat Club recently launched as a cheaper, quieter, cleaner, tech-enabled platform to compete with traditional gas-powered boat clubs on Seattle waterways, where members pay to access boats without having to own them.

The startup was co-founded by Danylo Kurgan, a former financial analyst at Pure who was running day-to-day operations of that company’s boat club at the time of its unwinding, and Mrugesh Desai, a technology executive and startup investor who met Kurgan as a member of Pure’s boat club.

Founded in 2011, Pure Watercraft set out to develop electric propulsion for motorboats with an ultimate goal of replacing gas-powered systems and disrupting the $46 billion global leisure boating industry.

The startup raised $37 million, and General Motors acquired a 25% stake in November 2021 in a cash and payment-in-kind stake that cost the automaker $150 million, and raised Pure’s valuation to $600 million at the time.

But the company led by founder and CEO Andy Rebele hit rough waters, and by last summer was being sold for parts after entering into receivership in King County.

Enter Kurgan and Desai with a plan to keep the boat club afloat and ambitiously scale it under their direction.

“When the opportunity arose to have discussions with receivership, Dan and I had a very quick conversation and said we’d love to be able to continue this,” Desai said. “We have a long-term vision about making this more than just another boat club.”

Kurgan said they got the last four Pure outboard motors at a facility in Tukwila, Wash., along with pontoon boats and inflatable craft that were used by Pure’s R&D department. They also acquired other non-IP assets, including several battery systems, spare parts, the digital club infrastructure, and the existing member base. 

Desai, who led negotiations with Turnford Consulting, the court-appointed receiver, said they got a “very good deal.” Court documents reveal a boat club asset purchase price of $67,000. Desai added that they’ve committed an additional $200,000 to support member events, marketing and more, with plans to raise money next summer to further grow Aurelia.

Some of Pure’s other assets were sold to Raider Outboards, a family owned business in Florida that designs and produces lightweight engines for the military and plans to set up a full production line for electric outboard motors.

Aurelia had no interest in entering a manufacturing space with Pure’s technology. The goal was the club, and growing the fleet of available boats will involve working with other electric boating manufacturers. Desai and Kurgan mentioned Flux Marine and Arc as potential future suppliers.

Desai and Kurgan view Aurelia as a very tech-enabled platform, with a fully digital, self-serve member experience — from booking to check-in to unlocking a vessel. The goal is to reduce overhead and make boating simpler and more intuitive. They also envision future tech-powered innovation to enhance the club, with ideas such as integrated smart mapping, real-time marine wildlife spotting, and personalized trip planning and routing.

According to a price comparison on Aurelia’s website, membership in the electric boat club could save users more than $8,000 over three years when compared against a traditional gas-powered boat club. There is a one-time Aurelia initiation fee, reduced 50% until June 1 to $979, and monthly dues of $279 per month, plus $25 per outing.

“The core function of our club is affordability,” Kurgan said. “We want to be really affordable, and electrification allows that,” he added, noting not just what it costs to purchase and maintain a boat but what it costs to fill a traditional club boat with marine grade fuel these days.

The startup is building the necessary charging infrastructure from the ground up, working with two marinas in Ballard and on Lake Union.

Since launching, Aurelia has more than doubled its membership in the first month, and it plans to focus on an organic growth strategy in the Seattle area for the first year. They hope to eventually acquire smaller, privately owned boat cubs where they can apply Aurelia’s electrification and tech model. And they have their sights set on expanding across the nation, giving local boaters and traveling members easy access to the platform on waterways in numerous locations.

As a former employee of Pure Watercraft, Kurgan said it was sad to see how things ended for the innovative startup. He called it an unfortunate series of events and tough market that all came to a head.

“It’s an amazing product. We hope to build on the legacy of some of the electrification that they built on, just in the most positive way,” Kurgan said of Pure. “They did some cool stuff, and we want to do some cool stuff as well.”

Previously:

• Electric boating insiders react to Pure Watercraft’s demise as court documents reveal sell-off details
• GM-backed electric boating startup Pure Watercraft selling assets as part of receivership process
• Pure Watercraft raises $23.4M to power increased interest in boating with its electric outboard motor