Reaching back into its history, longtime truck camper specialist Lance Camper Manufacturing is resurrecting one of its venerable brands, Squire, as it seeks to broaden its market.
Lance debuted the Squire brand in 1984 but discontinued it in the late 1990s. Now, the manufacturer hopes to target RVers interested in “budget friendly” truck campers driving pickups such as the Toyota Tacoma, Ford Ranger, Nissan Frontier and Chevrolet Colorado/GMC Canyon.
The Lancaster, California-based manufacturer, founded in 1965 and part of REV Group since 2018, hopes the new line will increase its market share in the competitive truck camper market. The new Squire brand made its official debut at this year’s Open House in Elkhart, Indiana. Lance had previously teased its release with a test product at last year’s Open House and a soft launch at Pennsylvania’s Hershey Show in mid-September this year. The early results from potential end users look good, according to Lance officials.
“We received extremely positive feedback from consumers at Hershey,” says Gary Conley, vice president and general manager of Lance Campers. “It was like a validation and test marketing of the product.”
Lance touts Squire truck campers as combining premium construction practices such as “computer design and composite material cutting, with a more minimalist design and an approachable price point.” Included are tempered glass windows, fully fiberglass-wrapped nose caps and versatile Molle (modular lightweight load-carrying equipment) panel cabinets.
Traditional Quality
Recalling the original use of the Squire name, Conley says, “We had three trim levels at one time. We had Lance Legend, Lance Squire and Lance Squire Lite. It is a product line name that evokes a medieval theme, that went well with Lance, which is what you use in jousting.”
Development of the new Squire line, which also includes travel trailers, has been in the works for more than a year. Squire is in production, and Lance is already distributing units to dealers.
The MSRP for units in the new Squire truck camper line will start with a base price around $25,900.
“We have three models we will be introducing on the truck camper side,” Conley says. “On the travel trailer side, the base price will be around $42,000 for our 19-foot model. There will be some models that will be less than that, and some obviously will be more.”
Lance will build a 7-foot camper for the Tacoma, Frontier and Ranger-style trucks. There will also be a model 805 and a model 825 built for standard domestic trucks, mainly focused on the 150 and 1500 series. These campers may also be installed on larger trucks, Conley says.
With the return of the Squire name, Lance will feature two brand names with four products.
“We have Lance Campers, which is our truck campers, and Lance travel trailers. Then we have Squire travel trailers and Squire truck campers, all done by Lance Camper Manufacturing. The manufacturing part is what is being added to our company name, which has always been there. The brands will remain Squire and Lance.”
During the first year of production, Lance plans to build 400 to 500 units on the truck camper side. Conley says that if market conditions warrant, Lance will build around 2,000 units on the trailer side during the first year.
Lance has plenty of manufacturing capacity for the new models at its California facility, which is located about an hour north of Los Angeles. Conley says Lance revamped its facilities when business was slow, which created additional production capacity.
“The Squire line has our traditional Lance quality and building style,” Conley says. “Our Lance materials and construction methods will be the same, but the Squire will have new feature content. You are still getting a Lance, but you are getting more traditional components.”
The company describes the new 805 truck camper as being inspired by its roots, and designed to be a value choice for a large range of trucks. Iterations of the Lance 805 were built up to 2008. The new configuration for Squire is updated with the latest materials and innovations, including fully laminated and computer numerical control (CNC)-cut components. It features an all-aluminum frame and dual layer Azdel composite panel walls. Lance’s goal was to create a more “minimalist” space while remaining lightweight. It features 6-foot countertop, the longest of any of the company’s campers. It has a built-in sink, a two-burner cooktop, two drawers and two under-sink cabinets. Across from the countertop is large U-shaped matching dinette with Molle panels on either side to serve as structure for the cabinet.
Other highlights of the Squire 825 truck camper include a queen-size bed, a convertible dinette and a full kitchen.
Color-wise, the company will be segueing into a warmer range of colors.
“We are excited about the new color tones that we are going to be offering,” Conley says.
Growing the Pie
Lance is seeking new opportunities with dealers across all of its lines. Some of the company’s current dealers will carry both Lance and Squire models.
“We will be looking to expand our dealer body with additional dealers,” Conley says.
The dominant geographical market for truck campers is the western U.S., Conley says, but he describes the East Coast market as “good.”
On the Squire trailer side, the line will offer models ranging from a 14-foot trailer to a 30-foot trailer.
“It is a wide variety of trailers,” Conley says. “One of the big things in the Squire line is that we will be introducing flush floor slides on 26-foot and above products.
“Once you get into the 26-foot and above travel trailer, it almost doubles the potential market, so it is a huge opportunity for expansion for us. The dealers have loved what they have seen from us so far. It is a complementary product to our current line, so it is not like we are dividing the pie; we are just growing the pie.”
Conley describes Lance’s product development process as a combination of listening to feedback and input from consumer shows, analyzing feedback surveys from truck camper magazines and evaluating new truck and SUV sales.
“That all helps drive our direction,” he says. “We monitor all these things pretty closely.
“Our manufacturing name carries a lot of weight, but the distinction in our two brand names is really important especially as we move forward and start to branch out into other products. We already have more products in the Squire line on the drawing board. This is a huge opportunity to own a quality brand from a quality manufacturer.”
Lance showed some of the drawings of the proposed new models to dealers at Open House.
Conley describes the overall U.S. market for truck campers as stable.
“We have been doing it since 1965, and it has always been the core of our business. It has been a stable business for us. Regardless of what the market brings, the truck campers always seem to be stable. We don’t have the big peaks and valleys.”