RVBusiness, March/April 2020

TOPNews of the IN BRIEF RVIA Analyst Curtin Sees RV Shipments Stabilizing In 2020 THOR Industries Launches Hymer USA Brings Euro Practices to U S Operations THOR Industries Inc has announced the formation of a new subsidiary called Hymer USA focused on producing and marketing RVs utilizing European manufacturing practices automation and quality control standards a unique new twist for North Americas RV industry Hymer USA will be based in Bristol Ind with initial product availability expected in the fourth quarter of 2020 The announcement follows THORs February 2019 acquisition of Germanys Erwin Hymer Group EHG which created the worlds largest RV manufacturer with leading market share positions on both continents The Hymer brand and product offering has already received very positive feedback from our North American dealer network stated THOR President and CEO Bob Martin in a corporate release Delivering to the North American market the innovation design and quality for which the Hymer brand is known will benefit consumers and dealers and further enhance THORs leadership position within the market which we believe will provide strong long term value to our investors Bob Martin THOR Industries Inc president and CEO We anticipate significant benefits in working together with our German team learning from each other and ultimately offering unique products to provide years for our customers added Martin RV shipments are expected to stabilize in 2020 according to a new forecast prepared by longtime RV industry analyst Richard Curtin PhD a professor at the University of Michigans Survey Research Center Curtin writing in the current RV RoadSigns newsletter projects total RV shipments will range between 380300 and 420200 units this year the most likely final total being 410100 units a significant increase from his December projections That would represent a one percent increase over the 406100 units shipped in 2019 Towable RV shipments of 366900 units and motorhome shipments of 43200 units are predicted for 2020 Curtin believes that steadying RV sales will be due to positive economic indicators including job and wage growth as well as low interest rates and inflation The upcoming presidential election and potential impact of the coronavirus are uncertainties that will likely impact the market in the second half of 2020 he stated RVB Blue Dog RV Opening New Sites in Pa Mont Blue Dog RV which currently retails and services RVs in seven states and 15 locations announced the opening of dealerships in Fleetwood Pa and Kalispell Mont The Fleetwood location formerly Maiden Creek RV Marine will be known as Blue Dog RV of Pennsylvania and was scheduled to open in February while the Kalispell site formerly Pierce RV was slated for a March 1 opening RVB Dutchmen Introduces Yukon Fifth Wheel While the introduction of a new product line in mid February is a bit out of the ordinary Josh Staley of Dutchmen RV said there is no time like the present to launch the new Yukon luxury residential fifth wheel We know that there is strong continued on page 80 In 2019 Retail Registrations Surpassed Wholesale Shipments by 45000 Units In a true sign that the industry was experiencing an inventory rebalancing in 2019 the data shows that there were 45377 more retail registrations last year compared to the number of wholesale shipments According to Statistical Surveys Inc SSI the Grand Rapids Mich based purveyor of industry data in 2019 there were 451417 retail registrations in all 50 states and Canada Meanwhile the RV Industry Association RVIA reported 406070 wholesale shipments last year which itself was a 16 decline from the 483672 units in 2018 The difference again being 45377 more units were sold at retail versus shipped wholesale Interestingly in the motorized segment there were 524 more shipments 46629 than retail registrations 46105 last year Towable data showed a large discrepancy in the other direction with 359411 units shipped vs 405312 units retailed a difference of 45901 Looking ahead RV wholesale shipments are 6 RVBusiness M A R C H A P R I L 2 0 2 0 expected to see a minimal drop in 2020 according to December projections by Richard Curtin director of Surveys of Consumers at the University of Michigan The double digit percentage declines seen throughout 2019 will ease substantially as RV shipments are expected to dip 39 to 386400 units in the most likely scenario 60 probability of Curtins ranged forecast The aggressive outlook of the forecast 15 probability shows a slight rise in 2020 shipments to 404600 continued on page 16 continued on page 18