RVBusiness, March/April 2019

The Aftermarket is a Big Benefactor of Record RV Sales Look inside most RVs and its obvious owners love aftermarket accessories Stores connected to rolling stock dealerships are veritable playgrounds for RV enthusiasts I ts hard to imagine a lifestyle more compelling than RV ownership and travel and the reasons for doing so are varied Those who travel on weekends and vacations use their RVs for getaways with family rather than deal with hotels and airplanes Makes sense RV travel is much more convenient and cost effective Snowbirds have different passions many times propelled by the excitement of meeting up with old and new friends and of course escaping cold weather And fulltimers simply just cant stay still for long and usually find living in a stationary home boring In all cases making an RV a home is a rite of passage for owners Look inside most RVs and its obvious owners love aftermarket accessories Stores connected to rolling stock dealerships are veritable playgrounds for RV enthusiasts whove been known to ply the aisles hungry for stuff that makes or is perceived to make life on the road more exciting and convenient Not surprisingly RV shows are great venues for owners to find things that they either need or think they need Most of these events have rows of booths staffed by vendors selling just about anything A trip to the long running annual Quar tzsite Spor ts Vacation and RV Show last January in the seasonal RV oasis of Quar tzsite Ariz netted me a number of products needed to replenish bedroom and kitchen items worn out from full time use At earlier shows across the country I managed to fill a number of bags with stuff Im a glutton for gadgets Of course over the years Ive learned that not all purchases are wise and the products are rarely of high enough quality to truly fulfill their intended objective I have a big box marked crap to prove that theres too much junk on the market many of which are spinoffs or counterfeit items from Asia Years of frustration dealing with products that dont work as designed and or advertised have given me a very myopic attitude While the items I bought at 106 RVBusiness M A R C H A P R I L 2 0 1 9 BY B O B L I V I N G S T O N Quartzsite this year were actually pretty good I equate the money I spend on some of the gadgets to a gambling limit money that can be wasted without impacting the monthly budget I prefer to focus heavily on higher quality products and have become a walking billboard for excellence Im simply not a fan of cheaply made products whether OEM or aftermarket Amazingly RV owners seem to have a pretty strong tolerance toward accessories and appliances that dont work well which will likely change as buyer demographics shift While component improvement might be a tall order in todays market where buyers exercise price resistance and fall prey to products that have good eyeball but limited longevity Ive made a case study of WeatherTech a company that bucks the trends and thrives because of it In a manufacturing community where Made in America is difficult to be in vogue WeatherTech has prospered by focusing on manufacturing all its products in the U S from U S sourced goods and machines and makes a big deal about it by advertising aggressively in just about all media sources Im a real believer that higher quality products will serve owners better and make loyal customers For example I recently bought one of WeatherTechs Pet Comfort dog feeding dish systems that cost more than 100 Why would anyone pay five times as much for a product that could be easily found online It took me about 30 seconds to realize that the dish exceeded expectations and function The same thing happened when I received the companys Seat Protector for my truck Super high quality and it fit as designed without struggling Worth the extra bucks You bet WeatherTech is probably best known for its durable floor mats and the founder CEOs message in the front of the companys product catalog is convincing The Made in the USA mantra is very clear along with the companys commitment to the environment Of course not everything has to be built in the U S A to be good and there are number of companies that supply components to the industry that exude exceptional quality The RV industry is American bornand bred and it too gets kudos for providing jobs and its large influence on the U S economy And movement into using sustainable building materials is going in the right direction While manufacturers should consider upgrading components to enhance the ownership experience the aftermarket is a big benefactor in response to the record number of RVs that have been sold during the last few years Refreshingly there are creative companies introducing new products that have strong influences on appliance and accessory performance and hopefully that trend will continue to grow Products that improve connectivity smooth out the ride for trailer owners add Bluetooth convenience and appliance drivetrain serviceability are highlights But buyers still need to be aware when scouring the Internet for items that promise a lot and deliver much less Clearly the opportunity exists for clever entrepreneurs to develop and market products to the RV industry in response to a higher quality commitment Id like to think that I am not overly naïve in believing that the RV community is ready to embrace a fresh paradigm when it comes to system par ts and accessory sourcing Its all about positive experiences and as the market corrects in response to buyer psychographics making people happy with their RV investment will be vital RVB LIVINGSTON REPORT Bob Livingston is the former group publisher and senior VP for GS Media and Events publishers of Trailer Life and MotorHome magazines and their respective websites After retiring from his publishers post last December he started a consulting company that focuses on product development and marketing projects in the RV industry He and his wife Lynne spend most of the year in their fifth wheel trailer