Future and confidence bright for future of RV industry

Jayco, Thor Industries' Keystone RV and RV supplier Dometic all announced expansions last week. That's on the heels of the last year when Thor, one of the world's largest manufacturers of RVs, and major supplier Lippert Components, among others, made a series of major moves increasing production.

So it would appear that both suppliers and manufacturers not only have confidence in the industry right now, but for the long run.

"I think most people will tell you we are in a long-term growth mode that goes back to probably mid-2010 going forward," said Mark Bowersox, executive director of the Recreation Vehicle Indiana Council. “Factors that are fuelling the RV industry right now are favourable into the foreseeable future, perhaps as long as 2022.

"You've got baby boomers retiring at a record rate," he said. "You've got the RV industry getting younger and pulling in younger demographics and getting more inventory turned,” he explained

An external factor, like the stock market, is essentially at an all-time high, Bowersox added. And then, to him, there's this other very important intangible: "Consumer confidence is more flexible than before."

Bob Martin, president and CEO of Thor Industries, agrees that the industry is in a good place now and looks strong for the future.

"The RV industry is linked to macro economy, so it is subject to any blip that could happen throughout the world," he said. But he quickly added, "Barring that, we see slow and steady growth for the industry for many years to come."

Like Bowersox, Martin cites the baby boomers. "We still have five years of baby boomers buying into our demographic, which helps us," Martin said. "But then there's also the shifts in products that we're building that appeal to younger generations."

The result is a lot of first-time buyers, he added. "And that's what's driving a lot of the optimism from dealers, manufacturers and everybody," he said.

So don't expect a slowdown in expansion of the RV industry anytime soon.

Read the entire report by Jim Meenan.