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RE-ENERGIZED FOCUS ON PLACEMENT, PRICE, AND PROMOTION
Product, while arguably the most important, is only one of the four traditional “Ps” of marketing. Our Company also places a heavy emphasis on the other three – placement, price, and promotion – and has made bold moves to improve its marketing over the past 18 months.
As far as placement, our products are available nationwide. Our network of 1200 independent dealers is outstanding, and our consistent training program ensures that sales representatives know those features that make each Fleetwood product a great value. We also encourage dealers to take advantage of additional training to become authorized service centers for Fleetwood.
Value is a watchword for our Company. It is our goal that customers feel that they get what they pay for – and more. Our goal is to consistently offer the highest-quality product at an attractive value that is not exclusively price-driven. From the chassis to the floorplans, from the appliances to the décor, Fleetwood works to put features where they count for the customer.
From creating a new logo and the “Driven to Explore” tagline, to product placement and website updates, Fleetwood RV is grabbing attention through promotion. Fleetwood’s RVs can be spotted on big and small screens as game show prizes or transportation for reality shows. Pace Arrow, for instance, has a featured role in the upcoming sequel to “Meet the Parents” and had an appearance on TV’s “The Bachelor.”
New promotional partnerships with complementary companies have created opportunities, too. As an example, through its GearBox product, Fleetwood has joined forces with dirt bike enthusiast media outlets and performance accessory manufacturers.
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Our growing relationship with NASCAR has resulted in introductions of Fleetwood products to a different type of RV user – one who might use the vehicles for events and entertainment more often than for travel and vacations. This new trend is one of the reasons that RVs are attracting younger buyers, and why dealers have said that the average Fleetwood buyer is younger than the average RV buyer. Fleetwood is pursuing other opportunities, such as joint events, with NASCAR, whose fan base is remarkably similar to the RV target market.
The RV Group’s website, www.fleetwoodrv.com, is being constantly updated and tested for customer friendliness and usability. One of the many new features allows a potential customer to compare and contrast the features of two different Fleetwood products.
Fleetwood is proud of the accomplishments of fiscal 2004. Progress in product, promotions, and profitability has put the Company in an enviable position to take full advantage of the coming growth in the RV market.
-- FOCUSING ON THE FUTURE
We at Fleetwood are optimistic about the future of the RV industry, and about the
positive role we’ll play in it for decades to come.
RVIA-commissioned studies on the changing demographics of RV buyers and potential customers suggest that the outlook is quite bright. Long-term signs point to substantial RV market growth, as the University of Michigan study estimates a gain of 15 percent between 2001–2010 to a total of nearly 8 million RV households by 2010, outpacing overall U.S. household growth of 10 percent.
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Two other important demographic factors are also of note. The age bracket of RV buyers is expanding, as people have begun buying recreational vehicles at a younger age and the increasing healthy lifespan keeps them active longer. Also, ownership rates in American households have grown, which has been attributable to worries about international tensions and discomfort with domestic air travel, as well as to increased emphasis on family. Consider that more people are now coming into the typical RV-buying years, the percentage of those people who are interested in RVs is increasing, trends show recent buyers are inclined to purchase more expensive vehicles, and the number of years that each customer will be in the market is stretching because of longer, healthier lifespans. We believe that the country is only at the beginning of a number of these cycles, in an industry that already hit a record $12 billion in retail value in calendar 2003.
Fleetwood intends to continue recovering market share through product innovation and attention to customer needs. We will also continue pushing for higher operating profit margins from each of our divisions. This all bodes well for the Company’s future, and provides optimism for stronger profitability.
People of all ages are discovering the benefits of RVing: freedom, flexibility, and fun. And, Fleetwood will continue to ensure that its products fit the needs of all RV users – from its folding trailers for camping enthusiasts to its high-end, luxury motor homes for people who want to travel with all the comforts of home. 
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