RVBusiness, January/February 2018

Kurt Walker plant manager looks over the production line at the new 50000 square foot Braxton Creek plant in Shipshewana Ind A Braxton Creek technician builds window coverings for the companys new line of travel trailers The manufacturer currently employs 35 workers and anticipates growing to around 50 said President Marvin Metzler 44 RVBusiness J A N U A R Y F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 8 room and a dinette slide spacious kitchen with pantry rear mounted sofa side bath with neo angle shower and a front bedroom equipped with a queen bed A third floorplan was set for year end Other discerning features that will be standard across the line include the use of a Norco Next Generation frame constructed with huck fasteners that will last forever according to Dorton along with tongue and groove plywood flooring screwed and glued cabinetry and 16 inch on center construction Again its all about quality of construction which gives our units high end fit and finish said Metzler Weve had dealers tell us when some of the competitors units arrive they require two days of work When our product arrives all they have to do is wash it park it and sell it That objective carries through to service after the sale as Braxton Creek has several programs in place to take care of the end user including a two year warranty We are also offering a two year Personal Assistance Program that gives customers 24 7 access to a concierge service Metzler noted If they have a problem like if their vehicle needs service or where to find the nearest campground they just call in and can get immediate assistance That program extends Braxton Creeks use of outsourcing which applies to a wide range of administrative departments such as accounting accounts payable payroll HR and IT Were running a lean staff from an administration standpoint Metzler said Its definitely a cost savings and gives responsibility to people with an area of expertise Its all about doing things differently and in our opinion doing things better There is a growing demand for quality with consumers and we think they will recognize thats what sets us apart RVB pliers The mentality for a lot of OEMs is to just focus on price versus overall quality and getting units out the door Thats not our mindset We dont want to be the lowest priced trailer out there We are looking to establish lasting partnerships with suppliers and working closely with them to find the right product for our trailers If we treat them right they will treat us right As most RV companies can attest to one of the biggest challenges in a marketplace experiencing historic growth is finding qualified workers We currently have 35 workers and are looking to grow to around 50 Metzler said We are blessed that we have been able to assemble such a talented and dedicated work crew We conducted more than 100 interviews including eight people for plant manager We knew what we wanted we wanted people that take pride in their work Braxton Creeks timetable initially called for the company to build up production levels for the 26 BH nonslide bunkhouse model that carries a 4480 pound dry weight and retails for approximately 18000 Its made to sleep eight to 10 people Dorton said specifically addressing the units queen size bed along with a 70 inch jack knife fold down sofa and two large bunk beds in the rear of the travel trailer The interior is designed to be very durable with high quality leatherette upholstery We also went with a lighter bright wood that dresses up the interior The roof is one piece aluminum which eliminates issues with leaks and tears posed by a rubber roof But the main thing is that its a complete package including a fully equipped kitchen with Dometic appliances The only option is an upgrade from a 13500 Btu air conditioner to a 15000 Btu unit That was followed in quick order by the 24RLS which features a rear living That background in turn allowed the company to leap over one of the more daunting hurdles in the rollout of a business plan cementing key relationships in the retail and supply segments Dealer relationships are key offered Dorton We have concentrated on building our network from Day One focusing primarily on mom and pop dealers One of the main reasons we decided to pursue this is that dealers in that small to medium size category were telling us there was a vacuum in the stick and tin segment They were looking at large backlogs from other OEMs and long wait times Our goal is to allow dealers to make quick turns maintaining a four to six week lead time on product It was interesting because during Septembers Elkhart RV Open House we showed a couple of units in the parking lot at the plant he added We were able to get a couple of our dealers that we had already partnered with to come out They went back and started telling others that we really had something different here It kind of snowballed and we were able to sign up several more dealers Metzler added From working for so many years at MITO one of the main things I learned was how not to treat sup The 24RLS Braxton Creeks newest model is like the 26BH built on a Norco NXG frame and features a 34 inch deep dinette slideout spacious kitchen rear mounted sofa and front bedroom