Jayco expanding while others retreat

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Gary RV_Wizard

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In the same week that Monaco laid off 600 workers, Jayco has introduced another high end Class C model, the 40 foot diesel, quad slide Embark with a base price of $215k. It is built on a 33,000 lb GVWR Freightliner M2 chassis with a massive 20,000 lb hitch for serious towing. Jayco has also bought the Travel Supreme factory& tooling  in Wakarusa, IN and will be retuning to the Class A market soon.

Maybe Jayco hasn't read there is a recession underway, fuel prices are skyrocketing  and gloomy times are here for RV makers?

Jayo has also launched a special website to celebrate its 40th anniversary - see Jayco40.com. Some interesting history there, if you are into Rvs.
 
Or they had so much invested in this thing they had no choice but to go forward; it looks like a direct competitor to the Gulfstream Diesel C. ::)
 
I agree Jeff; They were probably so far along and had production tooling committed, that it might make more sense to release the product and hope to gain some market share with it.

I'm also aware that, when business is down, some companies believe that the right thing to do is literally flood the market with new products.
 
The rich folks who can afford high end motor homes and full timers won't be that bothered too much by fuel costs. But the market will shrink so competition among the players will be stiff. I think what we'll see is a return to smaller light weight towables like popups, hybrids, and smaller trailers for many people in the low to middle income bracket so they can be towed by smaller fuel efficient vehicles. The middle market, medium to big 5th wheels and trailers, Bs and Cs, will shrink and production will stop for a while. Travel plans will probably change too. People will stick closer to home. For example, we were intending to visit the left coast this year but, after planning the trip and calculating the fuel cost, we're thinking about pulling the plug.



 
... rich folks who can afford high end motor homes ...

That's quite an assumption Bruce. Based on a combination of observation and discussions with others, I'd venture to say that a fair number of "high end" owners can't really afford them. I see a close parallel in the recreational boating industry; Folks get caught up in the frenzy of what we affectionately call 'fiberglass fever', and take out 20-30 year loans at teaser interest rates on an RV or boat that has a high depreciation rate. Sooner or later, economic reality sets in (or catches up with them), and the payments aren't so easy to make any more.

Sound familiar? Our mailbox and our TV screen contain long lists of properties in foreclosure because the owners were lured into payments they couldn't maintain or that increased far beyond what they imagined.
 
People may think that a lot of retention in travel is going on, but Moab is jammed. When we did the Fiery Furnace hike today in Arches National Park, parking spaces in the parking lot were hard to find. We crossed paths with a lot of hikers and observers. Nothing seems to be holding them back.
 
I noticed a change in the lot of a large RV dealer I drive by occasionally -- whereas they used to have the front of the lot lined with big Class A's, now they have it lined with 5ers.  I suspect they are trying to keep their inventory cost down...
 
Tom:

I agree, and a lot of those buyers assumed they could sell those boats-houses-RV's whenever they needed to; now they are going to find out what the real market is. I think its becoming a buyer's market, just haven't talked to any buyers lately (Except for a British couple we both know. ::) )
 
.... a lot of those buyers assumed they could sell those boats-houses-RV's whenever they needed to;

Very true Jeff. I also know some folks close to our age who say "the kids can pay off what's left of the loan after we're gone".
 
Just guessing, but I think that generally we will see a shrinking RV market for a while.  I suspect that the hardest hit area will be the "middle" price-wise.  I would expect that the very light and pop-up trailers will keep their heads up and the very high end coaches too. 

The middle price units 5ers and TT, lower end class A's and C's I would expect to see a shrinking market.

By the way - if you have been through Lancaster CA and seen Young's RV in the past, you won't see it the next time.  The closed the doors a couple of months ago and the lot is bare.  This was a pretty sizeable RV sales unit and had fairly extensive RV service / repair service.  :(
 
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