RVBusiness, March/April 2020

reception at NTP STAGs Expo Jan 12 at the Gaylord Texan in an effort to get a better handle on this timely and rather trendy new organization that elicited the following responses Jordyn Foos a media consultant for RV PRO magazine as well as a cofounder vice president and head of the sponsorship committee for RVWA The idea came from a group of women We all got together at RVDA the RVDA Con Expo in Las Vegas about two years ago now And I guess this establishing a womens group had been tried before in the industry although not really successfully But we got a group of about 15 ladies really onboard with the idea of this Womens Alliance We named it and launched it officially in March of 2019 so weve been around for about a year now What the Womens Alliance really means is we want to elevate the roles and contributions of women in the RV industry In order to do that we need support from not only women but the men in this industry I cant stress that enough Thats probably more important than having female members having the men in this industry really jump on board and its going to be a ripple effect And we should add its a hot topic right now not about Me Too Thats not why we started this We wanted a safe place for women to feel included I remember being posed with a question How do we get more people like you Jordyn in this industry a Millennial whos motivated and hardworking I said Ive been an athlete my entire life and where I felt the most included and wanted was on my teams where you have somewhere to belong And as far as when I joined the RV industry four years ago I looked around the room and I was not one of the majorities I was one of the minorities in the room based on my gender So this is why we started this group As we know throughout history segregating doesnt work We dont believe in that So although Womens Alliance is in our title its about men and women working collectively together to boost women in this industry Tracy Anglemeyer director of aftermarket at supplier Furrion How much do women bring to the table in the workforce When you look at the United sumer buying decisions correct So then look at the RV industry as a whole The buying decision in 80 of the RVs that are purchased are made by the female in the family correct States women make 80 of the con 78 RVBusiness M A R C H A P R I L 2 0 2 0 Those studies have all been done But then on the other hand we need females in these different places including OEMs as well as suppliers transport media and everywhere coming into the different segments of the RV industry on the back side who are going to help promote and advance the RVs themselves so that the retail consumer is going to purchase more They women see things differently Theyll look at a new model under development and say Oh my gosh this isnt my grandmas sofa anymore Lets make it look more like a residential home Lets make it feel more that way And its not just the RV itself its the components that go into it Its the appliances Its a whole big picture thing Its not just one part here and thats what I love about this industry and about the RVWA itself It encompasses everything At one of our last RVWA meetings we had a transporter a female tech someone in bank finance and sales on the supplier side as well as media Its the whole industry Its not one small segment of the industry that are members here that are pushing for this and are really helping to grow the industry Were all growing the industry This isnt just about ladies this is about the industry itself and making the industry better Jennet Lewis director of West Coast sales for NTP STAG and chair of RVWAs membership committee As a director of sales for NTP STAG and I think over the years being in leadership in general Ive often been in a position to mentor others The majority of the employees who work for me are women And what I found is that a lot of times women including myself were not the best advocates for ourselves We balance a family at home and children and because of that we often ask for some of those workplace concessions to support our families that sometimes we think were not in a good enough position to fight for and to show our value in the workplace So well often stand back and let a male counterpart step in even though we have the skills or the ability or the desire to do the job That goes back to us as women we dont advocate for ourselves So in RVWA weve found a group where we get support from others to remind us that yes theres plenty of opportunity for us and yes were worth it I think to Jordyns point having male support is key to that Having a spouse at home that supports that having a male boss that supports that having male coworkers in support just makes a tremendous impact in the workplace It increases morale Again when you look at your own workplace how many women make up that workplace Youve got to recognize it and you got to recognize the different aspects that women do bring to the table And as Jordyn said this is nothing about Me Too This is nothing about men in that sense We want men to support us and I think companies have got to take a hard look at the women in their companies who are contributing and capture their influence because theyre going to help you tap into a female market that you havent been able to reach yet So thats what youre gaining and thats what this is all about This organization helps reach other women within the industry and helps remind them that women have something to offer and what they bring to the table is going to help us tap into a whole new markets in this industry and help us all grow and were all going to reap benefits from that To do that we need the support from everybody I think thats where this Alliance can start building that network and creating that platform where again as I mentioned earlier you have women who were always willing to step aside and let you go first Were saying Hey theres the opportunity for both of us So as we feel more confident in what we have to offer by having these different events Habitat for Humanity and so forth we are going to contribute more because we have more to contribute but we tend to tell ourselves no theres somebody better and for me thats a lot of what this is RVB RVWA from page 48 Mary Pouliot L vice president of sales and marketing at Thetford Corp speaks with Tracy Anglemeyer director of aftermarket at Furrion