Caravan sales and prices continue to rise
Have we reached 'peak RV' yet or is the pandemic-driven caravan boom just getting started?COMMENT
It's the question on everyone's lips: are we at 'peak RV' yet, or is the pandemic-driven caravan boom set to continue?
With local RV sales soaring, order books bulging and no end-date in sight to overseas travel bans, the smart money is on demand for caravans and motorhomes continuing to rise.
Talk to many dealers, importers and manufacturers and they'll tell stories about how Aussie buyers have been investing their hard-earned 'travel' money on slide-outs and pop-tops instead of Caribbean cruises and family trips to Tokyo Disneyland.
It's backed up by the bumper crowds at recent caravan supershows, although many cashed-up consumers would have left frustrated after discovering most of the 'vans exhibited were 'display only'.
“What we have at the moment is a very early growth period but there is more to come," Caravan and Camping Association Industry of South Australia CEO Stuart Livingstone said recently.
“There are going to be so many more campers and trailers travelling to regional areas over the next two to three years – it’s going to be huge in the regions.”
The current RV boom is in stark contrast to a couple of years ago, when local RV production was in decline, or as recent as mid-2020 when dealers were struggling to offload existing stock.
While it seems many RV retailers are now enjoying a bigger slice of the pie, despite some new players joining the party, a few of the bigger manufacturers are taking the plunge and investing in bigger factories in anticipation of the good times rolling.
Crusader recently announced it will move to a new 15,000sqm production facility in Epping, Victoria in early-2022, as it expects its annual production to almost double to 2000 units for the 2021 calendar year. Helping drive demand for Crusader caravans is the latest lightweight CRV range, which has already attracted 150 orders since its was 'soft launch' in late-2020.
Melbourne's Network RV, which builds Elite, Nextgen and Roadhouse caravans, is also moving to a new, purpose-built 10,000sqm factory in the same suburb as Crusader's later this year, while top-selling Jayco can't keep up with demand despite boosting its workforce to more than 1200 at its Dandenong, Victoria mega-factory, and expecting to build 13,800 units in 2021 -- a 30 per cent, year-on-year annual production increase.
The Caravan Industry Association of Australia recently predicted a record 25,000 units will be built in during this 12-month period, as local production soars to a "30 year high".
This boost in local RV manufacturing is resulting in labour shortages, with Jayco founder Gerry Ryan recently citing one of his biggest issues at the moment is a lack of skilled production workers.
Crusader says it offers skills training as well as recruitment incentives to existing staff members as a way to try and boost its workforce.
Caravan deliveries to buyers are also being slowed by equipment shortages, as many of the hundreds of parts that make up an Australian-built caravan are sourced from overseas factories hit by pandemic shutdowns and other issues.
The increasing cost of importing caravan parts also means manufacturers and dealers are struggling to keep a lid on prices, with 10-20 per cent price rises on new models the norm across the industry.
One more obvious example is the latest Renault-based Windsor Daintree motorhome which is currently advertised at $126,990 driveaway, or $21,000 higher than the price it was launched at just over 12 months ago.
While there were a few RVs available for "immediate delivery' at the recent Queensland Supershow, most buyers that place an order today will have to wait well into 2022 before they can park their shiny new home-on-wheels in the driveway.
One of Australia's biggest RV dealers, the Sydney RV Group, currently only has a couple of RVs in stock available to 'drive-away today'. These include examples of the latest Coromal and Majestic caravan range, both of which are built in the same Campbellfield, Victoria factory.
If you ask a Sydney RV salesperson nicely, you might also be able to get your hands on a Winnebago Coogee motorhome similar to this; that's if some-one else has beaten you to the dotted line!
Another downside to the current RV boom is, of course, more RV travellers on the road and competing for a limited number of camping spots -- registered recreational vehicles in Australia has grown to over 750,000 at last count...
That's likely to further encourage the practice of 'surge' pricing at popular caravan parks during peak times, and a return to pre-COVID traffic jams at the most popular and accessible tourist spots.
Where it all ends up is anyone's guess. Let's just hope all the caravan 'newbies' are patient and courteous to fellow road users as they drag their shiny new 'vans around the country...
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