Dr. Curtin’s annual shipment forecasts often missed the mark during the past decade...
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Monday, January 4, 2010
Brian Wilkins, owner and general manager of Wilkins RV, saw sales increase at his dealership in 2009 thanks in part to a focus on used and repo units.
Members of the...
Monday, January 4, 2010
Fleetwood President John Draheim stands next to the company’s new Encounter crossover motorhome, which it unveiled at the National RV Trade Show.
The past six months have been a whirlwind of activity for Fleetwood RV Inc. and its new...
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Scott Tuttle, president of Livin’ Lite Recreational Vehicles, is pictured next to some of his company’s lightweight camper units, which are proving very popular with customers who want something that can be towed by cars and minivans. Overall...
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
The Omniscope by Silverleaf Electronics is a laptop-based diagnostic tool for RV-C. A technician can use the device to troubleshoot the generator, inverter/charger, air conditioning, transfer switch, and more all at once. He can run diagnostic tests...
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
The Side Shifter is a motorized, four-wheeled assembly that attaches to a towable unit’s frame, up between the axles. It can be bolted on or welded on. The Side Shifter is equipped with its own hydraulic system, but does tie into the camper’s 12-...
Bob Barouti, president of Giant RV, is pictured at the dealership’s Montclair, Calif., location. Giant RV lives up to its name: its five locations in Southern California are on track to sell a combined 1,000 RVs in 2009.
Giant...
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Income for the traditional F&I department seems to becoming more limited each month by the amount of advance the lenders are giving. So what are our current opportunities?
Credit Monitoring
With 53 percent of the population being concerned about the possibility of...
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
It is all being “reset”: Wall Street, the automotive industry, the housing industry, and yes, the RV industry.
Most motorhome and towable dealers still in business have taken care of the expense side of the business. That leaves the revenue side of the...
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Bankers with some of the biggest national financial institutions say they’re still interested in doing business in the RV market, but those same bankers are also quick to point out that they’ve had to change the way they do business because of the turbulent...
Thursday, December 3, 2009
I headed to the dealership looking for my first wake boarding boat. I made the job easy for the sales person. I had my family with me, so no “thinking about it” or “asking my wife for permission” excuses. It took about 2 hours to buy the boat and get...
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Faced with its own shortfall of RV technicians and other key employees, RVDA of Canada has developed recruiting materials it hopes will bring new talent to the RV industry. There’s no plan to adopt the materials in the U.S. currently, but officials here say the...
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Photos by Wendy Marshall
Mid-State RV Center finds that ongoing educational programs allow the dealership to increase its profitability.
When Lee and Tina Pickard opened Mid-State RV Center in February 1989, the couple was confident that the five years Lee spent...
Thursday, December 3, 2009
The RV Dealer Association and the RV Industry Association have partnered to introduce an Internet-based training course they hope will make it easier for technicians to receive training and become certified for the betterment of the industry.
Beginning Feb. 25, working RV...
Thursday, December 3, 2009
(Issue: October 2009 - Author: Bradley Worrell)
As in years past, there will be a changing of the guard among the RV Dealers Association Board of Directors when the group meets in Las Vegas this month in conjunction the RVDA Convention & Expo, held at the Rio All...
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Raising fees, like raising taxes, is hardly a way to win a popularity contest these days, so perhaps it’s no surprise that the decision by the RV Industry Association Board of Directors to temporarily raise the seal fees it assesses on new RVs from just over $4 per...
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Established in 2004 by the RV Dealers Association, The RV Learning Center continually works with The Ohio State University to do task analysis, formulate training materials and develop tests for certifying various positions with dealerships of all sizes. Dealership...
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Service Managers, this one’s for you. The owner and the GM both think that Service can’t make money. You know it can, you think you have, but you just don't know where it is. Here are some places to look:
Completed operations. This is your inventory of...
Thursday, December 3, 2009
One of the most important and complex responsibilities for today’s RV dealer is the education of the consumer in the proper selection, use and maintenance of their towing equipment. While consumers may believe they have the necessary expertise to tow and RV (...
Thursday, December 3, 2009
RV-C technology would allow technicians to diagnose problems with system components with one diagnostic tool. It also would let various networked components “talk” to each other for improved RV performance.
Imagine being able to...
Thursday, December 3, 2009
In today’s market, it’s not enough just to have a website. Steps must be taken to drive business to the website and to turn viewers into buyers.
Everybody tells you that you must have a website, but hardly anybody tells you what it takes to have one...