Tampa Show Reflecting Market Strength Despite Chilly Weather – RVBusiness – Breaking RV Industry News
TAMPA, Fla. – Upbeat would probably be the best way to describe the mood Thursday during the Florida RV SuperShow at the Florida State Fairgrounds east of Tampa – one of the nation’s most significant retail RV consumer venues.
While chilly temperatures in the 50s and 60s may have dulled the street-level enthusiasm to an extent among OEMs, suppliers, consumers and social media influencers, most everyone on hand at the show seemed eager to poke around the hundreds of new units on display and get a good look at some of the latest gadgets the industry has to offer.
“We haven’t counted exactly, but I think it’s our 14th Tampa Show,” said Mike Wendland, a co-creator with his wife Jennifer of the “RV Lifestyle” newsletter and YouTube channel. “The show seems a little slower, not quite as exciting as it usually is. But I think that’s just a reflection of the weather.”
In fact, the good news, according to Wendland, a respected voice within the industry’s consumer ranks, has to do with the general retail mood he sensed in Tampa.
“I think there’s a buying atmosphere here more than I’ve sensed before,” he continued. “I know that in one of the displays – I went in early yesterday (Wednesday), opening day — there were three or four people who were writing deals in the first 20 minutes. I think people do a lot more research than they’ve ever done before and know what they want. Everybody I’ve talked to who’s either a dealer or a manufacturer seems to be thinking this is looking better for 2025 than they thought it would be, frankly. I think they really are saying, ‘Well, maybe we’re going to turn around a little bit.’”
Kyle Kwasny, president of THOR Industries Inc. brands Heartland, Cruiser and DRV, confirmed Wendland’s assessment.
“The traffic’s been really good. I mean, I think that the response for Wednesday was really solid,” he said “We had a lot of activity yesterday afternoon on display. The weather’s a little tough, but I think for the most part, everyone’s pretty optimistic about the industry, about where we’re going. And I feel pretty good, honestly.”
He also believes consumer sentiment is pretty good “I think if you look at what this lifestyle provides, it’s still affordable, it’s still family-oriented,” said Quasny. “I think there’s a lot of interest among people that have done it and want to do it, and I think the industry’s really healthy.”
Curiously, he added, consumer interest in his product lineup is coming at both ends of the price spectrum.
“Our entry-level business has been really robust because of affordability,” Quasny added, “and then I think there’s been a lot of activity in the higher-end segments, probably more so than we’ve seen in the last couple years. I think it’s based on demographics, as people are simply retiring. And then I think there’s been a lot of those folks that have a lot of equity in their homes and are in a pretty good financial position to take advantage of buying a big fifth-wheel or big motorhome that they’ve dreamed about it for a long time.”
Spirits were high in the supplier building as well. For instance, Lippert Components Inc. Chief Marketing Officer Jarrod Lippert reported good traffic and eager consumers at his company’s booth in Supplier Building A.
“Inside our booth I can say there’s a lot of interest for some of the things we’re showing right now,” he said. “And people are definitely here to buy accessories and parts. I’m hearing a 50/50 both, ‘I’m shopping for a new RV and looking for stuff of yours that’s on it that’s cool and new and exciting.’ And then I hear a lot of, ‘I’m just looking to upgrade the one I have.’ So a little bit of both. So it’s a lot of interest in our Chill Cube air conditioner though, and a lot of interest in our suspension system that we’re showing.”
He also said his staff was driving consumers to OEMs who are using Lippert products. “We’re telling them, ‘Hey, if you like the suspension system, go see this guy or that guy, and they’ve got it on units out there.’”
And while traffic was decent, Lippert said that consumers were not averse to spending. “For example,” he continued, “we’re selling our ATK Chill Cube air conditioner right now. That’s the featured product here. And when I tell people the price ($925.00), they don’t even bat an eye. And they’re like, ‘Okay, we’re going to go buy it.’”
He added that Lippert was selling a significant amount of furniture as well. “People are here to spend money, for sure,” he said.
“It’s been such an incredible show, constant traffic,” said Lisa Schoder, Camco’s chief marketing officer. “We’re really excited about just engaging with consumers. Just having this opportunity for that face-to-face contact is so critically important for a marketer. … I’m getting information right from the people who are in the lifestyle and living it every day, because that’s the best source of information for consumer insights.”
Traffic was constant, moreover, despite cloudy skies.
“We’re giving away free product samples of our TST Pro, (toilet treatment), which has been an incredible engagement opportunity,” noted Schoder, “and people are excited to try a new product. So, we’ve been really pleased with how everything has been going.”
At the Dragonfly Energy booth, Wade Seaburg, chief revenue officer, also report good traffic and tons of interest in his company’s industry leading Battle Born lithium batteries.
“We’ve had really good traffic,” he said. “I just got in today, and it seems really good. I even went out and visited a few of our OEMs, and traffic seemed good out there and they seemed upbeat about the show. So, yeah, every one of our techs that’s in the booth has been occupied the entire time.”
And he believes an RV industry market upswing may be in the cards for 2025.
“I think I saw one headline that said ‘Cautiously Optimistic,’ said Seaburg. “I think that’s pretty accurate. Everybody’s figuring out what this new normal from the demand side is going to be within the RV industry. Units are changing, but the fact of the matter is, people still want to go and camp and enjoy nature and the outdoors. So, I think the health of the industry is very strong. It’s just how much volume is going to return, and is it going to be consistent?”
Sara Dover, brand manager for RV for supplier Dometic’s Land Vehicle American division, was overseeing a booth in the General RV parts area as well as an education display in Building A for Dometic, which is currently celebrating its 100th year in business.
“We’ve had a lot of traffic in both spaces,” she said. “I think the general space is up a lot from last year, so that’s great. We have our traditional RV stuff, obviously like toilets and AC’s, but then we have our Dometic GO furniture. We have our new soft-sided coolers here as well. We always have the Juggernaut CFXs, the power coolers. Those always do really well.
“And then we have our partners with Valtera, which is now getting ready to be called Dometic Sanitation. They’re here as well as our partners at Go Power or Mobile Power Solutions. We’re kind of in the middle of transitioning names for Valtera and Go Power.
At the other booth, new displays were built, “to really give more of an educational relevance to some of our products, and so that booth focuses a lot on stuff that’s coming. We’ve got new FreshJet VII AC. We’ve got a really cool sound dome over there so people can see how quiet the AC is. That’s the struggle with ACs. That one over there is super low profile. It’s only eight inches tall. It’s the most powerful. At only 48 decibels, it’s one of the quietest on the market.”
That booth also was showing Dometic’s water heater which offers “less weight and less wait,” she said.
A new, feature-rich roof fan’s scheduled to debut in the summer, offering a port feature which allows users to connect solar panels, Wi-Fi or other accessories on the roof. “It’s got dual arms,” added Dover, “so it’s going to be stronger in the wind. It’ll have a hood on so you can drive in the rain and you won’t get any water in. That fan is going to be a game changer for the market.”
