RV numbers keep increasing

Bob Martin, president and CEO of Elkhart-based Thor Industries, kept using the word "amazing" Tuesday afternoon as he spoke about the state of the RV industry.

February shipment numbers reported Tuesday by the Reston, Va.-based Recreation Vehicle Industry Association showed the best February wholesale shipment totals since 2006 with 32,045 units. That's a 4 percent gain over last year's February total and 12.5 percent over January of this year. Additionally, the industry has now gone 38 straight months showing month-over-month increases from the previous year. 

In a phone interview with The Tribune, Martin was hard-pressed to find a negative.

Demographics continue to show younger buyers, which he noted bodes well for the industry. "Probably the most encouraging thing is when you go out and attend the shows, you just see new customers come to the industry," he said. And the industry is already known for its high retention rate, he said.  "Once people start in the lifestyle, they typically own multiple units over many years."

Many new customers turn into the industry's best customers, he said. "So with the new people coming in, that just gives us that feeling that it can go on for many years."

He's heard estimates that the industry could keep growing for the next five to 10 years. And that, of course, bodes very well for Northern Indiana, which makes more than 83 percent of all new RVs in the United States.

Expansion in companies like Thor, one of the largest RV makers in the world, and in Forest River, one of Thor's main competitors, are proof of just how well the industry is doing, Martin indicated. "You can see there's a lot of optimism in the industry," he said. He called Grand Design, a startup two years ago that is nearing the 700 mark in employees in Middlebury, "amazing."

Other factors in the continued rise in sales are consumer confidence, low fuel prices and longevity of people in the same jobs, Martin said. And, there are still at least five more years of baby boomers coming into the industry, he said; that group typically buys more RVs than any other group. 

The expense of air travel and the uncertainty of life overseas, which make European vacations less attractive, also plays into the RV industry's hands, Martin said.  He also firmly believes the RV lifestyle is becoming more attractive to many people. 

"Spending time with the family, quality time, enjoying the outdoors, it checks a lot of the boxes that people are looking for," Martin said. 

The industry locally is doing so well, he said unemployment in the Elkhart area is virtually zero. Citing job fairs and numerous "help wanted" signs in the area, Martin said, "Anyone who wants to find a job can find a job."

It's one of the reasons, he said, Thor Industries is one of the companies participating in the RV training classes through Ivy Tech Community College. The classes train potential workers for the RV industry.

The only negative right now, he said, is that the Canadian dollar is weaker than the American dollar. That makes it tougher on Canadian dealers, he said. 

Other than that, all signs are pointing upward, Martin said.