Strong Start to 2010 Show Season

01/26/2010

From the Sunbelt to the Snowbelt, the 2010 RV show season is off to a strong start, according to participating dealers and show promoters.

"It was the busiest show I've ever worked," said Tim Veurink, president of Veurink's RV Center in Grand Rapids, MI, about the Grand Rapids Camper, Travel, & RV Show January 14-17. "We wrote some nice deals. You definitely feel it is heading in the right direction."

Thom Beckley of Endless Summer RVs in Frederick, MD, had a similar experience during the Washington Camping RV Expo in Chantilly, VA, January 15-17. As a Maryland dealer, Beckley could not take deposits or close deals during the show in Virginia. However, many of the prospects with whom Beckley spoke during the show traveled to Endless Summer on January 18 to make purchases.

"We closed a lot of deals on the lot," Beckley said. "It looks good for this year, I'm excited."

Attendance was up 12 percent at the 2010 Florida RV SuperShow January 13-17, and Florida RV Trade Association Executive Director Lance Wilson said, "There was more motorized selling than we anticipated."

Only 6 percent of the units exhibited at this year's Tampa SuperShow were 2009 models. Wilson assumes the 2009s sold at discounts, but he said dealers did not discount 2010 models because new product is scarce due to manufacturers facing supply chain issues and worries about over-building.

There also was a surprising amount of interest in motorhomes during the show in suburban Washington, D.C., said Lindsay Reines of Reines RV Center in Manassas, VA.

"Most of the dealers brought only travel trailers and fifth wheels, but the show attendees wished there were more motorhomes, which is very positive," he said. "But it's still early in the ballgame and the banks are still being very tight with credit."

Veurink was another dealer surprised by the amount of interest in motorhomes. His dealership did not sell any motorhomes during the Grand Rapids show, but that is not surprising because people living in the upper Midwest do not feel a sense of urgency to buy motorhomes during the middle of winter. However, Veurink said several show attendees made appointments with him to test drive motorhomes in the coming weeks.

Meanwhile, Indianapolis area dealer Ken Eckstein of Mount Comfort RV said he sold more units on January 16-17, the first two days of the Central Indiana RV Show, than he did during the entire nine-day show in 2009.

Attendance was up 21 percent at the Valley RV & Camping Show January 15-17 in South Bend, IN, said Mark Bowersox, executive director of Recreation Vehicle Indiana Council (RVIC), sponsor of the South Bend show and the Central Indiana show, which takes place in Indianapolis.

"The smaller towables are moving," Bowersox said about the South Bend and Indianapolis shows. "Motorized has not caught on yet. But overall, people were pleased."