Class B Market Share, Sales and Shipments

[markopolo]

April 2013 Class B sales figures are posted on RV Business http://www.rvbusiness.com/2013/06/ssi-c ... for-april/

Year-over-year Class B motorhome sales rose 7.5% in April while gaining 13% for the first four months, according to the latest report from Statistical Surveys Inc.

Through April, Roadtrek Motorhomes Inc. was No. 1 in Class B sales, owning a 34.6% market share, followed by Thor Industries Inc. with a 22.7% share. Pleasure-Way Industries Ltd. (19.6%) ranked third, and Winnebago Industries Inc. was No. 4 (19%).

March 2013 breakdown:
Roadtrek Motorhomes Inc. 35.4% market share.
Thor Industries Inc. 21.9% market share.
Winnebago Industries Inc. 19.7% market share.
Pleasure-Way Industries Ltd. 16.7% market share.

April 2013 breakdown:
Roadtrek Motorhomes Inc. 34.6% market share.
Thor Industries Inc. 22.7% market share.
Pleasure-Way Industries Ltd. 19.6% market share.
Winnebago Industries Inc. 19% market share.

Pretty much unchanged from last month. Pleasure-Way has reclaimed the number 3 spot. Class B sales are up and that is good news

[markopolo]

May 2013 Class B shipments have been published on RVIA's site. 7 more vans shipped than May 2012. 20 more shipped compared to April 2013.



The positive stats are good news but it is not turning out to be the comeback year I'm waiting to see. Only 31 more Class B's shipped year-to-date compared to the same period last year. The Class C market is still booming. The number of Class C's shipped in the month of May alone will just about equal the annual total for Class B's!

Are the high prices of Class B's limiting the growth of this Class of motorhome? It must be the root cause - what else could it be?

This comment by Jeff Hanemaayer in an RV Business interview about him leaving Roadtrek after 31 years echos what a few of us have been thinking:

One area, however, could change the landscape in the Class B market, according to Hanemaayer, as a number of new commercial van platforms have threatened to cut into the domination enjoyed by the Sprinter chassis produced by Mercedes-Benz.

“I think the new number of platforms will influence volume,” he said. “It looks like there will be some direct competition to Sprinter, which should create a lower price point.”

[mlts22]

I think you hit the nail on the head. A class B priced similar to what a HYMER CAR runs for (~$55,000) might sell like hotcakes in the US, because it isn't too expensive, and can be used as a daily driver. I like using the Globecar Globescout as an example of this. This vehicle can seat four with belts, but still be able to sling in some freight if needed. Plus, a fully loaded Globescout Style runs for about $60,000 MSRP, while on this side of the pond, to buy a new class "B", it really takes $90,000 if not six digits at the bare minimum.

[markopolo]

Similar comments re: price points were made during Winnebago's Earnings Call today: Link: http://seekingalpha.com/article/1524612

Motor home shipments for the quarter were the highest we've experienced in 5 years

Our motorized sales order backlog has grown in each of the last 6 consecutive quarters

Selling prices decreased:

The primary growth in revenue was a result of a 54% increase in motor home deliveries, offset by a 3.7% decrease in selling price.

They saw the trend toward lower prices coming:

the increase in value-priced product volume appears to be a trend. We anticipated this shift and fully intend to capitalize on this dynamic going forward

we introduced a value-priced Class A gas product that retailed for $69,900. This was well received at the retail and wholesale level and has been a large component of our financial performance over the last 12 months

Their Class B average selling prices actually increased:

From a Class B perspective, our average was $77,900 versus $76,204, so that was up over 2%

That must be the price to dealers and I expect that ASP to decrease when dealers start ordering the new Winnebago Travato.

And we also showed a new Class B product, which production starts late enough where that really can impact our Q4 deliveries

[Mike]

Makes you wonder what the "high end, high priced" class B builders must be thinking.
Sounds like Winnebago has determined volume sales of a "value-priced product" is going to be their focus.
I might even be able to afford one again someday, if they can create a basic inexpensive camper, that's fully functional, without granite counter tops and recessed or indirect lighting (although I like the latter) and some of the other costly fits and finishes that look nice, but don't add much to the touring and camping capabilities or experience.
If those price points they mentioned were retail (I think they might have been MSRP?) you can almost buy 2 Winnebagos for the price of one Roadtrek E-Trek.

[markopolo]

May 2013 Class B sales figures are posted on RV Business http://www.rvbusiness.com/2013/07/ssi-c ... ay-16-ytd/

Year-over-year Class B motorhome sales rose 19.6% in May while gaining 15.8% for the first five months, according to the latest report from Statistical Surveys Inc.

Through May, Roadtrek Motorhomes Inc. was No. 1 in Class B sales, owning a 35.7% market share, followed by Thor Industries Inc. with a 22.2% share. Pleasure-Way Industries Ltd. (20.7%) ranked third, and Winnebago Industries Inc. was No. 4 (17.9%).

April 2013 breakdown:
Roadtrek Motorhomes Inc. 34.6% market share.
Thor Industries Inc. 22.7% market share.
Pleasure-Way Industries Ltd. 19.6% market share.
Winnebago Industries Inc. 19% market share.

May 2013 breakdown:
Roadtrek Motorhomes Inc. 35.7% market share.
Thor Industries Inc. 22.2% market share.
Pleasure-Way Industries Ltd. 20.7% market share.
Winnebago Industries Inc. 17.9% market share.

Looks like Pleasure-Way and Roadtrek each took approx. 1% from Winnebago and Thor. Roadtrek has to be pleased with the increase. They are solidly in front.

Class B sales are up almost 16% year-to-date!

[markopolo]

June 2013 Class B shipments have been published on RVIA's site. 16.8% drop compared to last June. Edit: RVIA later revised the numbers for June - now 5.8% increase, not 16.8% decrease in shipments.



Class A's are up 32% year to date.
Class C's are up an incredible 40.1% year to date.



Sales, as you can see in the post above this one, are up. High sales, low shipments must equal few units on dealer lots right now. It seems as though either Class B manufacturers or the dealers underestimated demand. I'd expect July shipments to increase as they catch up. I'm not sure how this will affect June sales.

If this topic interests you then you might like to also read: Trouble finding a used Class B? It might get worse.

[Davydd]

I wonder about all the figures. I have a hard time understanding how Thor Industries has such a high percentage of Bs. What do they count? Because Airstream, in my observations, can't be 22% of the market. No way.

[markopolo]

If you use the shipment numbers and sale percentages then Airstream would have had to sell about 200 vans in the first 6 months of this year. On the one hand that is not many given the population of North America but on the other hand I rarely, if ever, see one on the road. I sure see lots of Roadtreks and Pleasure-Way units though. Lots of them aren't new of course. I've wondered the same thing as you but think that if there is an error then the other Class B manufacturers would have complained and had it corrected by now.

[mlts22]

I rarely see "B"s. If I do, they are usually Chevy van Roadtreks, or perhaps an occassional 4x4 from Sportsmobile (one SMB factory is about four miles from where I live.) Other than the dealer showroom, I've yet to recall seeing an Airstream Interstate "in the wild".

I'm hoping this changes where we see more on the roads in the future. Nothing beats the CPM and MPG of a "B".

[Mike]

Maybe they've cut back production because the demand has (apparently) shifted towards slightly larger class Cs ? Perhaps the escalating prices are beginning to slow growth in the class B market?
The other issue may be the production facilities for class B vans are usually smaller. It probably takes longer to convert an existing van body into a motorhome, than to add a fibreglass hull to a truck or van chassis, so there's more "hand made" work involved?

[mlts22]

Hopefully that will change soon. When I was at the RV show last February, at the Airstream "B" booth, there was an "oooh... ugh!" moment with virtually all passers by. The "oooh" moment where people found how useful and compact a "B" was, then the "ugh!" moment with the 130k MSRP.

If there are more "B"s for sale at a lower price point, there likely would be a lot more sales.

[Mike]

That's where Winnebago must see some room to maneuver. In the brand new, fairly well equipped for camping, good off grid capability, no frills, and perhaps most important, under $100,000 price niche. If the quality is even close to acceptable, they could probably expand their current market share, and put the smaller shops under some pressure.

[bobojay]

I wonder too about the Thor numbers. I don't believe the Interstate is doing that much. I honestly think they are including what they call their B+ units in the numbers.
All the B socials and other rallies we've been to in the last 7 years having owned a B or C during that time, and on the road time, we've only seen one Interstate on the road. Seen several on dealers lots though....

[Mike]

Unless one was parked beside us in a campground, I'm not sure I'd necessarily recognize one passing by on the freeway, or parked in a business setting like a shopping mall. They aren't heavily badged on the exterior that I can see from their website. I could probably see one and think it's a commercial vehicle, like an airport limo or similar. It is a big continent, and shipping 200 per year isn't that far fetched, imo.
Now, if you told me Roadtrek had shipped 200 E-Treks in a year.....

[markopolo]

I've wonder about the Thor numbers also. It is possible but I'd like to know for sure that only Type B or Class B units are included in the stats. I sent an email to SSI and will post what I find out.

I'm also curious to know if Roadtrek's N6-Active / NAV-6 is included in the stats as it lacks a toilet from what I've read. Most definitions of a Class B van state that Class B's have a bathroom.

[markopolo]

According to this site: http://www.rv.org/class_B.htm

Class B motorhome production was 23,000 units in 1972. It was around 2,100 units last year

Production of Class B motor homes doubled from 9,000 in 1971 to 23,000 by 1972. The fuel shortage of the early 1970s may have contributed to this increase because by 1977, over 40,000 had been built. Over the years, more choices of other RV types and a manufacturing trend toward bigger RVs brought a drastic decline in the production of the Class Bs. As of 1996, 16 manufacturers built as few as 4,100 Class B motor homes, and their numbers have continued to dwindle along with the number of manufacturers building them.

[markopolo]

Originally Posted by markopolo

I've wonder about the Thor numbers also. It is possible but I'd like to know for sure that only Type B or Class B units are included in the stats. I sent an email to SSI and will post what I find out.

I'm also curious to know if Roadtrek's N6-Active / NAV-6 is included in the stats as it lacks a toilet from what I've read. Most definitions of a Class B van state that Class B's have a bathroom.

Statistical Survey's have confirmed to me that they only include the Airstream Class B units in Thor's totals for the Class B monthly sales report.

So there you have it. I've seen this discussion come up on other groups so feel free to share it. I did not ask about NAV-6 / N6-Active vehicles.

[Mike]

The B is arguably the best sized unit for touring type travel, where money is an issue, but perhaps there are some obvious shortcomings that can't be overcome in the market place, when there are other types of motorhomes with more full sized amenities. A matter of the perception of the consumer?

[mlts22]

I think I posted this before, but three things killed the "B" market. Before 2008, gas was relatively cheap. So people went with larger Cs, As, and trailers that could be towed with a Suburban. Bs just didn't seem big enough. Then 2008 hit and almost destroyed the entire RV landscape. Now, people are buying rigs, but inexpensive ones. For the price of a Sprinter based "B", one can get a pretty good sized "C". The third killer is the fact that there is only one Euro-van line, and the Sprinter did set expectations in both the usable space and MPG departments. It also comes with a high price tag, which has made the models too expensive for most of the market.

Once lower priced "B"s hit the market with high MPG numbers, I think things will change for the better in a big way, especially if the "B" is laid out that it can double as a utility vehicle. Some European designs have the beds completely fold out of the way, essentially allowing for 1/2 a van of space, so one could haul a motorcycle if they wanted. Done right, the "B" would end up a family car or a secondary vehicle for long trips.