Detroit RV Show sets attendance records

The recent 46th Annual Detroit Camper & RV Show, sponsored by the Michigan Association of Recreation Vehicles & Campgrounds (MARVAC), experienced its best show in 11 years. The show, which ran from February 8-12 at the Suburban Collection Showplace in Novi, recorded nearly 19,000 attendees — a 2-percent increase over last year’s 18,400 attendees and a 14-percent increase over the 2010 show.

My co-worker, Carrie Kennedy, enjoyed her first visit to an RV show.

Over 290 new recreation vehicles were on display at the Detroit Camper & RV Show. Many RV dealers in the show reported customers looking for smaller, lightweight and more fuel-efficient RVs.

“We were excited by the higher-than-usual Sunday traffic that actually allowed us to set a new attendance high for a five-day Detroit Camper & RV Show,” MARVAC Director Bill Sheffer told RVBUSINESS.com. “We were up 2 percent over last year, ending up with just under 19,000 attendees. A straw poll of dealers following the show and during move-out showed all dealers reporting ‘very good’ to ‘great’ sales during the show. Overall, the show was a great success for MARVAC.”

According to the Recreation Vehicle Industry Association, the number of RV-owning households has grown to a record high at 8.9 million households, up from 7.9 million in 2005. A total of 21 percent of all U.S. households stated intentions to purchase an RV in a 2011 survey.

“We probably had the best show that we’ve had since the 1990s,” Jerry Bridges, owner of Lloyd Bridges Traveland, in Chelsea, Mich. told RVBUSINESS.com. “We had 20 units there, and we landed 30 solid deals and five or six possible sales, and we have a ton of residual business after the show. So, we did pretty good for the amount of units that we had there.”

MARVAC also sponsors the 35th Annual Flint Camper & RV Show in Flint and the 20th Annual Northwest Michigan Camper & RV Show in Traverse City. For information on these shows, visit www.marvac.org.

The Michigan Association of Recreation Vehicles and Campgrounds (MARVAC) is a statewide, non-profit organization dedicated to encouraging growth in the recreation vehicle and private campground industries while contributing to Michigan tourism. For more information, visit www.marvac.org. MARVAC, 2222 Association Drive, Okemos, Mich. 48864; 517-349-8881.