07/08/2026
ISLA has added approximately 2,000 new customers over the last year many of whom are also new to Florida. By the end of this year, we are on track to having delivered about 16,000 charts into the market over approximately the last decade. Interest in our unique charts continues to magnify in an exponential way. We have a wide range of users from recreational boaters, to travelling weekend warriors, to lobster and scallop hunters, and hundreds of the best professional charter captains. About half of our users are Garmin converts and that pattern has remained consistent over the years. We continue to convert about 1,000 Garmin users every year who tell us they are switching because their Garmin map fails them. We get it. Years ago, it failed us as well and essentially that experience we had with the Garmin charts and the failure of Garmin to even acknowledge a single shortcoming in their chart when we called them for help was the genesis of the ISLA charts. We had no intention at that time of making any maps. We asked them to fix it. They told us their map was the best in the market as it was, we were the only guys complaining about it, and if we could show them something better they might entertain further discussion about it. That was the beginning of FMT years ago.
Because our chart product is highly unique and very different from the other charting products in the market and because it solved the boating and navigational issues for our users in such a substantive way, most were very surprised when they first started using it. FMT gets people talking. FMT’s popularity has not grown just because it has highly detailed Tracks. Although the Tracks are highly popular, FMT is really a combination of the Tracks with the High-Resolution Images and the accuracy of the other unique fine details we provide such as PVC stakes, local buoys and signs and posts. Our imagery is regarded as the best available image data set for Florida in the world. No other GPS chart has image quality and consistency close to what we provide because all of our imagery is completely unique being hand adjusted for quality/professional presentation, color, brightness, and contrast. When all of that detail comes to life for the first time on a boater’s console after that boater has used the general reference map products for so long, it can become personal. Many say FMT was the best money they ever spent and their boating and navigational issues are finally solved. They enthusiastically sell FMT charts to their boating friends. We are very appreciative of our users who also appreciate the work we do; they are our best advertising.
With so many new users coming into the FMT family of boaters in the last few years, we are fielding an increasing number of questions every month from users who are curious about the genesis of ISLA and how we do what we do. FMT changed the boating and fishing experience of so many in such a meaningful and personal way they are calling us to inquire how we did it. We are happy to tell the story but it is quite a long story to tell..
To this end, over the years, ISLA has done a few Podcasts which summarize the ISLA/FMT story and they are linked on our website ISLAmapping.com in the Press/Video section. The most comprehensive and insightful podcast was hosted by Dave Le Gear who runs the popular FlatsNation.com website where he has a number of podcast recordings that are relevant to all inshore boaters among a lot of other interesting articles, cool gear and photos. If you are an ISLA/FMT user, you owe it to yourself to check out FlatsNation.com.
If you are interested to learn more about ISLA, the entire story can be listened to at the link below on Dave’s site. It runs for more than 3 hours so if you are inclined to hear the story, it’s intriguing listening on a long car ride. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7JirK5KbxOo
Flats Nation Podcast, with our guest for this episode, Glenn of Flo...
