People with the itch to travel found ways to vacation during the pandemic year. While travel restrictions made flying difficult, many hit the open road.
Now northern Michigan RV dealerships face another busy summer with industry data showing sales and rentals in Michigan expected to experience the largest demands for campers in history. A report from the RV Industry Association predicts 2021 RV shipments will peak at 575-thousand units - breaking previous records set in 2020.
“We have been getting requests daily, and sometimes multiple requests in one day, of people wanting to basically go camping and be outdoors,” Northern Michigan Camper Rentals Owner Bryan Fisher said. “People are super anxious to get out - in Northern Michigan especially.”
Fisher and his family got into the RV rental business last summer, just in time to see booming success. At the time, Northern Michigan Camper Rentals had four in their fleet, now Fisher is looking to increase to six or more.
“[Last year] we just decided to do a few of them and see how this goes. It absolutely exploded,” Fisher said.
Some clients, Fisher said, have already requested to reserve units for upcoming summers. Being a “turn-key” operation, however, Fisher has had to turn many away or help refer them to other businesses as far as Houghton Lake and Cheboygan.
“I think there’s great opportunity for growth for our business if it’s done both correctly and organized,” Fisher said.
A similar trend showed up in RV and camper sales. In 2020, the Michigan Association of RV and Campgrounds says towable camper sales in Michigan increased nearly 50 percent.
Derek Watson, owner of Nature and Me RV in Traverse City said the high demand has created a “perfect storm.”
“The manufactures are building the units and getting them delivered as fast as they can but there’s been such a restriction on inventory getting delivered,” Watson said. “We’re selling them as fast as we’re getting them in the door.”
Despite this, Watson said he and his staff have been fortunate to keep the lot reasonably stocked so far. Even with the tight labor market, he was able to bring in more employees to help with the new business.
Watson predicts as more restrictions lift, RV and camper manufacturers will be able to pick up their pace and level out the market. He expects to remain busy for the foreseeable future.
“I think the sales rate will stay fairly high and fairly brisk,” Watson said. “It’s going to take a while for these manufacturers to get caught up in production.”
