Editorial

 Make Success Happen -- It's an Attitude

      Don Magary, Editor

 The 1997 shipments of RVs by RVIA member manufacturers are in -- and guess what? Based on these numbers, 1997 is the second best year for RV shipments in the decade of the nineties. RVIA is reporting that the total number of RV shipments is 254,500 units, a 2.8 percent increase over 1996. The only year in the decade that has outperformed 1997 is 1994 when manufacturers shipped 259,400. (For more details on the 1997 figures Shipments.)

So the nineties have been good to the industry. The decade started a little shaky, and it took a couple of years to gain momentum, but for the past five years the industry has been on a roll.

What this means is that 1998 is shaping up to be a good year. As I talk to dealers, suppliers and distributors around the country, all report especially good sales. Some are already talking record sales.

And the really good news is that dealers seem to be optimistic about 1998. Retailers with aftermarket stores are especially optimistic. At the January warehouse distributor shows, both Coast and StagParkway report dramatic increases in sales at their annual shows. Northern Wholesale and Arrow Distribution who also had recent shows echo the sentiment. Aftermarket dealers are buying product. RV News interviewed a lot of the attendees to the Coast and StagParkway shows, and there seems to be a universal theme -- dealers are optimistic and they came to buy (see Rumble).

I'm convinced that having the right attitude is a major part of success. If you think something good is going to happen it usually does. And if you think something bad will happen . . . well, you know the scenario.

And why not be optimistic? Look at the numbers the RV manufacturers are posting. In this month's RV News we are reporting that Coachmen Industries broke all records in 1997 and has had 24 consecutive profitable quarters.

National RV is riding the crest of success, like never before. National's sales more than doubled in 1997 from 1996, jumping from around $137 million in 1996 to $286 million last year -- a 108.6 percent increase. And yes, some of that was due to the acquisition of Country Coach, but National RV's product line has never been as popular as it is today.

Fleetwood RV sales were up 17 percent in the third quarter over the second quarter and they have already crossed the $1 billion mark in sales in the first nine months.

Then take a look at what Lazy Days RV Center did last year. Unbelievable! Here's an RV dealer in one location that topped $300 million in sales in 1997.

You can get more details on these fantastic results in this month's "Yellow Pages," but the point is, these are great times to be in this industry. Business is good and bound to get better. Those baby boomers that we have been talking about for the past ten years are starting to spill over into our primary marketing demographic area and they will be buying RVs; the only question is what can we do to increase the percentage.

And the industry is not just standing idly by waiting for them. You know the efforts of the Market Expansion program, which can't help but benefit everyone in the industry. Those ads that are running are great, and people are responding to them by requesting the free video and visiting dealer lots. Nearly 50,000 people last year requested the video, and we are told that a respectable percentage of them ending up buying an RV in 1997 -- our message is working.

This may be the best time ever to be in the RV industry. While we may never see the total number of shipments the industry enjoyed in the 1960s and 1970s, I believe the potential for profit is better today than it was then.

So let's believe that 1998 is going to be the best year of the decade and I think we can make it happen. Get an attitude -- an attitude of success.

  RVN