GREENVILLE, N.C. – In his latest interview, the CEO of Camping World is reiterating his stance that he will not take down the huge flag at his location at the corner of Evans Street and Red Banks Road while acknowledging the controversy has had an impact on his business in Greenville, according to a report by WITN, citing an interview by WTIB in which Marcus Lemonis announced he has closed one of the company’s two Greenville locations. (See video above; the interview starts at the 1:07:00 mark.)
The city says the American flag and flagpole it is flying on, violate city code due to their size.
Marcus Lemonis was on Inner Banks Media radio station WTIB Tuesday morning where he told Henry Hinton on Talk of the Town that he closed one of his two Greenville locations on Friday. He said that employees at the Forest River RV location on Greenville Boulevard were told they were closing due to the controversy created by the council.
“We think the ordinance is wrong,” said Lemonis. “I think it’s also wrong council members have been working very actively to disparage my business and on Friday I had to consolidate modification of 2 dealerships in town. The main one that you’re referring to and another one of Greenville – and we had to close that – our business which has been unfortunately impacted uniquely in Greenville, N.C.”
LAS VEGAS – Noovo recently opened its doors to local and national media, supplier partners, and customers at its facility in Las Vegas, Nevada. Noovo’s open house event detailed the company’s origins, evolution, and its vision heading into the next few years as it promotes its approach to “van life”.
Noovo’s open house was held April 5-6 at its relatively new 20,000 square-foot facility near Nellis Air Force Base, where screaming jets performing acrobatics punctuated the event. In 2024, Noovo moved from a much smaller facility in Las Vegas as the company honed its focus to producing “livable” vans.
“Our vans are like an extension of your home where you can live on the road rather than off-grid adventure vans,” says Benoit Lafond, who founded Noovo with Paul Aubert and Antoine Alberteau in 2020.
Despite the current uncertainty in the market, Schmidt is fairly bullish on 2025 for Sunshine State RVs. “We’ve seen a boost from people who want to go ahead and lock in their price for an RV. We’re up 20 percent from 2024 so far,” says Schmidt, who also attributes year-over-year growth to other dealers holding less Class B inventory, the momentum of the Class B market, and adding units like Noovo’s Plus series.
“After eight months on the road in the converted school bus we found there was a spot that was missing in the market. We had so much fun living on the road and we saw the possibilities for creating the same type of experience for others,” says Lafond.
Noovo customers Calvin and Patti Yarbrough, aka, Tripper and Slipper, respectively, are big proponents of life on the road and building a relationship with their RV builder.
“We’re realtors and understand the customer relationship; it’s really a service rather than sales business. Noovo was great about showing us how everything is built and their processes. They kept us up to date on every detail,” says Patti.
Calvin adds, “We’ve always heard about ABC when it comes to sales – always be closing – and I can’t embrace that. I think it’s the opposite: CBA – consistently be authentic. Sales should come from the passion that built the business.”
Before living full time in their Noovo van, the couple lived in an Airstream trailer on top of a mountain near Jasper, Georgia, having sold their house and acquired the land on which to park the trailer.
“Our experience with Airstream was phenomenal. We met the people who were actually building our trailer and loved the people we worked with there,” Patti says.
After hiking the Appalachian Trail in 2016 they started looking for a minimalist approach that would allow them to get back to the “intimacy we had on the trail and still build our careers,” Calvin explains.
“We’re looking forward to continuing this tradition and offering even more opportunities for adventure seekers to connect, explore, and discover what Noovo has to offer,” says Maggie Shaffer, Noovo’s marketing director.
The school bus that ultimately launched Noovo into the “van life” market. Noovo founders converted a school bus into a bus “hotel” they named Natasha. Natasha was their home for nine months and 29,000 miles in Central and South America.Noovo’s open house showed their vans at various stages in the build process.Slipper and Tripper.Noovo’s open house culminated in a campout at Lake Mead.
ELKHART, Ind. – Dometic today (April 23) announced two personnel appointments to its Sub-Segment Land Vehicles Amercas.
Tim Hall
Tim Hall has been appointed Regional President – Sub-Segment Land Vehicles Americas. He joined Dometic March 31 and is based in Elkhart. He was previously General Manager BMT Aerospace and before that spent six years with Dometic.
Hall rejoined Dometic to advance and strengthen the company’s position in the RV industry in North America. During his previous six years at Dometic he served as VP CPV & RVOE for Americas. He is an experienced leader with deep knowledge of the RV business.
“Tim’s leadership, proven track record in driving business and his ability to build high performing teams are important assets needed to accelerate our transformation journey in the segment and take the business to higher level of performance. We are excited to be welcoming Tim back to Dometic and the team,” said Juan Vargues, President & CEO Dometic Group.
“Reconnecting with the industry will be both key and exciting for me. I look forward to the different opportunities to meet up with familiar faces and meet new players in the market. Dometic plays such an integral role in this industry and I want to play my part in bringing it all the way to the leadership position,” Hall said.
Eric Brown
Also, Eric Brown has been appointed Director of Sales, RVOE –Sub-Segment Land Vehicles Americas. He joined Dometic April 7 and is based in Elkhart. He joins Dometic with a substantial amount of RV knowledge, having spent the 12+ years in the industry, most recently as the Product Manager for XLR Toy Haulers for Forest River.
Brown is joining the Dometic team at a critical time within the business’s transformation. Dometic has increased focus on the RV OE business and bringing industry leadership to the team will accelerate the changes. As a change agent, Eric’s role will drive the team supporting our OE customers, building the trusted relationships throughout all aspects of selling, engineering, manufacturing and marketing RVs.
“Eric’s leadership and approach to the industry will improve our position within the RV market and enhance our sales team. The company has made many changes in the past year and bringing in industry knowledge was important to me”, said Hall.
EDITOR’S NOTE: The news report below follows a March 21 announcement of a strategic organizational restructuring in which Heartland Recreational Vehicles would now be integrated under Jayco, Inc. RVBusiness contacted THOR officials who declined public comment.
Workers at Cruiser RV and Heartland RV were notified of mass layoffs Monday, according to copies of letters obtained by The Elkhart Truth. DRV RV employees are also reportedly affected.
The layoffs will take effect by June 20, the letters state. Heartland facilities in Elkhart, Ind., Middlebury, Ind., and Sturgis, Mich., are affected, as well as Cruiser facilities in Howe, Ind.
DRV is located next to the Cruiser plant in Howe.
Employees expressed alarm at the potential of more than 500 workers being forced to seek new jobs in the region.
EDITOR’S NOTE: The news report below follows a March 21 announcement of a strategic organizational restructuring in which Heartland Recreational Vehicles would now be integrated under Jayco, Inc. RVBusiness contacted THOR officials who declined public comment.
Workers at Cruiser RV and Heartland RV were notified of mass layoffs Monday, according to copies of letters obtained by The Elkhart Truth. DRV RV employees are also reportedly affected.
The layoffs will take effect by June 20, the letters state. Heartland facilities in Elkhart, Ind., Middlebury, Ind., and Sturgis, Mich., are affected, as well as Cruiser facilities in Howe, Ind.
DRV is located next to the Cruiser plant in Howe.
Employees expressed alarm at the potential of more than 500 workers being forced to seek new jobs in the region.
SAN ANTONIO, Texas – Ethan Emahiser has joined TST as sales representative, according to a release. In his new role, Emahiser will report to Brian Linn, director of sales & OEM operations for TST. He will operate from the newly established Elkhart, Ind., facility increasing TST’s point of contact with RV market participants.
Emahiser gained valuable experience in the RV industry during his time in the fast-paced environment of Regency RV where he balanced responsibilities in sales, marketing and product development. He also has experience in the automotive world working for BZ Auto Group contributing to a team that earned the prestigious President’s Award for Ford dealers in 2024 recognizing their outstanding customer supp
“Ethan’s experience and the drive and commitment he brings to TST positions him well to help TST build on their growing RV industry customer base with increased customer support.” Commented Kellie Taube, Global VP of TST and PSI Sales.
In 2024 TST established a facility Elkhart IN to further enhance support of their customer base and affirm their commitment to the RV industry. All OEM shipments will be made from the Elkhart facility with production of new products being established here as well.
TST holds the #1 position in the TPMS RV market, through product leadership and unmatched customer service. It is also the industry first TPMS supplied as OEM standard equipment on several major RV model lines and is part of the global leader in tire management systems, Pressure Systems International.
TST offers Tire Pressure Monitoring Systems (TPMS) for the recreational vehicle market, transmitting wireless, real-time tire temperature and pressure readings directly to wide-screen color displays.
From Campers Inn RV: Come along with Hunter Leininger, a professional ultrarunner and Campers Inn RV influencer, as he picks out some parts and accessories for his new Regency Class B. In an earlier video (below), Leininger takes delivery of his new motorhome.
ELKHART, Ind. – LCI Industries (NYSE: LCII), a leading supplier of engineered components to the recreation and transportation markets, will release its first quarter 2025 financial results before the market opens on May 6.
LCI Industries will also host a conference call to discuss its first quarter 2025 results at 8:30 a.m. ET on May 6. The call will conclude with a question-and-answer session with questions from institutional investors and analysts.
The conference call can be accessed by dialing (833) 470-1428 for participants in the U.S. and (929) 526-1599 for participants outside the U.S. using the required access code 255011. Due to the high volume of companies reporting earnings at this time, please be prepared for hold times of up to 15 minutes when dialing in to the call. In addition, an online, real-time webcast, as well as a supplemental earnings presentation, will be available on the Company’s website, www.investors.lci1.com.
A replay of the conference call will be available for two weeks by dialing (866) 813-9403 for participants in the U.S. and (44) 204-525-0658 for those outside the U.S. and referencing access code 323974. A replay of the webcast will be available on the Company’s website immediately following the conclusion of the call.
“Find a national park and come visit!” the annual event’s webpage encourages, pointing to the 433 “parks” across the National Park System, including national battlefields, monuments and seashores – not just places with National Park in their name like Great Smoky Mountains or Yosemite.
April 19 is one of five remaining free-entry dates this year. However, cost isn’t the only factor travelers are considering for their upcoming national park trips.
Prospective visitors, along with park proponents, are concerned about what the parks and experiences may look like after the sweeping layoffs across the National Park Service and the larger federal government in February.
This class, in partnership with Fleming College of Peterborough, Ontario, has been in the works for over a year with help from Stacey and Al Robinson of Great Canadian RV.
The RV Women’s Alliance Charitable Foundation is so proud of its success for the fifteen women who completed the course and is eager to possibly provide more classes in the future to enrich its Canadian membership base.
“Through this newly revised course, we are educating women on the basics of RV systems so they may deepen their knowledge and provide additional value to their companies,” says Jessica Rider, RV Technical Institute Master Certified Technician, owner of Pull Through Sites Mobile RV Repair, and instructor of the RV Women’s Alliance Charitable Foundation RV Systems Courses.
“We have taken the gold standard curriculum that the RV Technical Institute offers and combined it with deeper knowledge of how each piece of the curriculum applies to the daily functions of each participant who takes the class.”
The RV Women’s Alliance is already planning to expand its RV Systems program to accommodate even more students in the coming months, with OEM training later this month, an evening class this June, and dealership expansion across the United States.
