Justin Leighty

With the heart of the RV industry concentrated in Indiana’s Elkhart County, it’s no surprise that the sector is heavily intertwined with the area’s largest event, the nine-day Elkhart County 4-H Fair that opened July 21 in Goshen, Ind. “We think it’s a good community event for us to sponsor and create some affinity for our employees,” […]

Wade Elliott, chairman of nonprofit KOA Care Camps Inc., recently presented the charity’s donation to Camp Goodtimes, a camp for children with cancer on Vashton Island, Wash., just north of Tacoma. The camp serves 225 children each year from Alaska and western Washington. It is one of 129 children’s oncology camps to receive funding from the […]

During a conference call today (July 19) to discuss Equity LifeStyles Properties (ELS) second-quarter results, Marguerite Nader, president and CEO of ELS, delved into some detail about the RV side of operations for the Chicago-based real-estate investment trust, which owns a combination of manufactured housing communities and RV parks, including the Encore and Thousand Trails brands. […]

Peter Orthwein, chairman of Thor Industries Inc., and Pete Liegl, CEO of Forest River Inc., sat down for a unique fireside chat to close out today’s (May 12) RV Industry Power Breakfast. The duo infused their talk with humor as they talked about their view of this year’s RV industry outlook, the manufacturing business climate, how to […]

During a conference call Monday (May 10) to discuss Drew Industries Inc.’s first-quarter earnings, CEO Jason Lippert discussed some of the high-level trends driving the company’s sales and earnings growth. “It’s an exciting time in the business and in the industries we serve,” Lippert said in his initial remarks. “This coming May marks the 60th anniversary of […]

Patrick Industries Inc. saw major growth in the first quarter of 2016, and that’s good news for investors, the company’s leaders said. “The first quarter of 2016 marked the continuation of improved overall performance for the company, with increased revenues, improved profitability and cash flows,” said Todd Cleveland, CEO of the Elkhart, Ind.-based company, in […]

One of the interesting tidbits to come out of the Equity Lifestyle Properties Inc. (ELS) conference call today (April 19) on its first-quarter financial results was the revelation by CEO Marguerite Nader that the Chicago-based real-estate investment trust made a bid for Carefree Communities Inc. “We reviewed the due-diligence material and we expressed an interest […]

When Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker signed dozens of bills into law March 30 in Madison, one of them capped off a decade of effort by the Wisconsin Association of Campground Owners (WACO) by granting private campground owners immunity from civil liability in cases of camper property damage, injury or death in many cases. In effect, […]

The 2016 Northeast Conference on Camping by the Northeast Campground Association (NCA) is in full swing at the Radisson Hotel Nashua in Nashua, N.H. The conference opened Thursday morning (March 17) and continues today before wrapping up Saturday evening. At the opening Thursday, leaders of the nine state associations that are part of NCA reported […]

As RV park and campground operators expand their facilities and lodging options, the potential market for guests continues to grow as well, and an increasingly diverse slate of rental-lodging options can help provide a “wow” factor to draw new guests. As reported by Woodall’s Campground Management, an increasing number of RV parks and campgrounds are […]