For Kathleen Messmann of Knott’s RV Center in Fort Wayne, Ind., the annual RV and Camping Show at the Memorial Coliseum is a chance to show people an experience.
This story by Dave Gong originally appeared in The Journal Gazette.
“We really just love camping ourselves, so it’s an opportunity to talk to people and give them the chance for an adventure,” Messmann said.
Thousands poured into the Coliseum on Saturday, browsing hundreds of RVs, campers and trailers from 11 dealers.
Business was booming, John Swygart, a salesman at Fremont-based Barton Lake RV said.
“This is our Super Bowl and it happens to be during the Super Bowl weekend,” Swygart said, noting that Barton Lake RV had 21 different models on display. “We have 9,000, 10,000, 11,000 people coming through in a weekend and we’re only looking for a few sales out of that number.”
This is Knott’s RV Center’s fourth year participating in the show, which adds to the dealership’s visibility, Messmann said.
“It’s a great idea for people to come out and give them a chance to compare models, compare prices and get to know the people,” Messmann said. “When you’re getting to that type of a purchase, you really want to know that you can trust the people and know that they’re out for your best interests.”