Has the bubble burst

[Tude]

Been talking to a few dealers and suppliers all have said never known so many Motorhome dealers going bust. With the new charges coming along for next year has the Motorhome bubble gone . Your thoughts

 

[Hollyberry]

Well I suppose lots of others have gone bust— Toys R Us, Maplins, HMV, Woolworths, BHS, Bathstore, Office outlet etc etc but we’re all still buying toys, clothes, music, staplers and bits of tat. Shopping is different to how it was years ago, though.
It’s possible that the next generation of retirees ( or the one after that) buying motor homes won’t have houses they own to downsize or remortgage.

 

[chaser]

Motorhome dealers and campsite owners are pricing themselves out of business, with all the cheap holidays abroad , younger people are not going to fork out 10s of thousands of pounds to sit in a rainy field at a greater cost than they can b&b in the sun.
Most older people have done it for years and it's a way of life, certainly not cheap holidays and this older generation have give up I think there will be a swift decline in motorhomes.
Only my take on it, others probably disagree.

 

[Viennese]

There are just too many of them.

 

[Silver-Fox]

Most older people have done it for years and it's a way of life, certainly not cheap holidays and this older generation have give up I think there will be a swift decline in motorhomes.
Only my take on it, others probably disagree.

Excellent, less hassle wilding it then ?

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[chaser]

Excellent, less hassle wilding it then ?

Have you noticed how many lay-bys have been closed?

 

[DuxDeluxe]

There are just too many of them.

.....and too many motorhome shows.....

NC500 pictures look like hell at the moment with vans rammed in everywhere. I know a picture doesn’t tell the whole story but it certainly shows a certain amount of overcrowding.

 

[Viennese]

And we are to blame! It will be interesting to see what happens when getting diesel becomes a problem.

 

[Silver-Fox]

Have you noticed how many lay-bys have been closed?

Yes but only with cones.
If I decided I need to stop I’d just push the cones out of the way.

I’m not a lay-by sleeper anyway ?

 

[The general]

.....and too many motorhome shows.....

NC500 pictures look like hell at the moment with vans rammed in everywhere. I know a picture doesn’t tell the whole story but it certainly shows a certain amount of overcrowding.

It truly is horrendous up there I go early in season and thinking of going up when I get back from Scandinavia

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[Shrimp]

Hubby thinks he read about 15 CL/CS closed in one month this year.
We know of one that’s closed and another that’s likely to close soon in a 40 mile area!

 

[Nirvanauk]

Well I suppose lots of others have gone bust— Toys R Us, Maplins, HMV, Woolworths, BHS, Bathstore, Office outlet etc etc but we’re all still buying toys, clothes, music, staplers and bits of tat. Shopping is different to how it was years ago, though.
It’s possible that the next generation of retirees ( or the one after that) buying motor homes won’t have houses they own to downsize or remortgage.

Woolworths closed? When did that happen, must have slept through that one....

 

[Cheshirecat57]

Woolworths closed? When did that happen, must have slept through that one....

I cant believe it was 10 years ago ?

 

[Diabalo]

The problem is Motorhomes and campsites were too cheap resulting in riff raff joining the community. Raise the prices and keep it for the elite I say.

 

[Jim]

Motorhomes are more popular than ever before and it's extremely rare for well-managed motorhome companies to go bust. Do we want the poorly managed ones to survive?

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[Spriddler]

Motorhome dealers and campsite owners are pricing themselves out of business, with all the cheap holidays abroad , younger people are not going to fork out 10s of thousands of pounds to sit in a rainy field at a greater cost than they can b&b in the sun.
Most older people have done it for years and it's a way of life, certainly not cheap holidays and this older generation have give up I think there will be a swift decline in motorhomes.
Only my take on it, others probably disagree.

I was having the same conversation with my son as we sat supping beers one evening on a site in the Cotswolds last weekend. We agreed, looking around at the posh/expensive m/homes, cars and caravans that it evidently wasn't the way to have cheap holidays or weekends.
I'm retired and cost doesn't appear on my list of reasons for having a m/h. I move on every couple of days throughout the summer. My DIL has a spinal problem so needs a bed tailored to her needs. They both work and tend to remain static for their 3 weeks annual holiday abroad and they have a dog so they chose a caravan. But not because it's cheap.

 

[gus-lopez]

And we are to blame! It will be interesting to see what happens when getting diesel becomes a problem.

like the east EU truckers bigger tanks so we don't have to buy in UK or France.

Yes but only with cones.
If I decided I need to stop I’d just push the cones out of the way.

I’m not a lay-by sleeper anyway ?

All I do if needed.

 

[SpeedyDux]

The margins make it appear like a licence to print money. I got the impression that in 2017 dealers could sell overpriced used anything that had 4 wheels and a bed and manufacturers' order books were full. This year, some may be still trying to shift 2018 models despite discounting heavily.

Looking further back, Discover Leisure which was a big business called in the Administrators right in the middle of the 2011 NEC show. One day it was all bright lights and special show offers, next day their stand was closed. I was there and remember it well.

Our nearest Adria dealer, the Family Travel Centre, opened in 2011 but closed its doors in January 2018. Nice people but for some reason we don't know they went bust.

 

[Cheshirecat57]

In a way, I hope it does get a bit tougher
To survive, and the good ones will, the “offer” ( not necessarily the price) will have to get better as the fish in the pond become fewer

 

[Spriddler]

Do we want the poorly managed ones to survive?

No, but from posts on Fun over the years many seem to be surviving nevertheless.

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[Jim]

No, but from posts on Fun over the years many seem to be surviving nevertheless.

Maybe but. People are quick to complain, especially on the internet. We encourage open and honest reviews here, good and bad But our review section seems to have at least four positive dealer reviews to every bad one

 

[DuxDeluxe]

It truly is horrendous up there I go early in season and thinking of going up when I get back from Scandinavia

It has put me off going until the season has well and truly finished

 

[Spriddler]

Maybe but. People are quick to complain, especially on the internet. We encourage open and honest reviews here, good and bad But our review section seems to have at least four positive dealer reviews to every bad one

I've only posted one review (positive) but then I've only used one dealer and until I joined Fun I had no idea that there were any seriously bad dealers - especially suppliers of new m/h's. It was quite an eye-opener for me.

 

[Bognor Saint]

Have you noticed how many lay-bys have been closed?

On the way to Devon a few weeks back we planned in stopping in one of the many laybys passing through the New Forest for lunch. All west bound laybys closed!

 

[Camdoon]

Woolworths closed? When did that happen, must have slept through that one....

Folk tend to pick and mix what they remember as they grow older.

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[Blue Knight]

Bubble burst eh?

Shall we look at the bigger picture for a second:

There are huge ongoing geo-political and financial tensions in the world today which will most likely deteriorate further. The UK pension bubble has dried up; Europe is financially knackered and a brake pedal has been temporarily applied to the UK's ecomony resulting in a slightly pessimistic outlook for high ticket item sales.

The white elephant in the motorhome room is that the converters have greedily continued to maintain high volumes of unit production which followed on from their record sales years of 2016 and 17 and, subsequently, the dealers have been forced, some happily though, to buy huge volumes of stock (with its associated debt liability attached), at a time when everything is going South.

..........you then add the challenge of the 6D VED tax and the growing problem of poor quality manufacturing by some converters and the future soon becomes quite grave for the MoHo industry in the UK.

Some dealers have had a good recent run of things and profits have been very healthy but I would not like to be a motorhome dealer right now.

Time for the reset button to be pressed.

 

[Spriddler]

Quite so. I heard yesterday that investment by the auto industry has dropped from £2.4 billion in the 12 months 2016/17 to £80 million this past 12 months - most of it apparently spent on precautionary actions in the event of that of which name we cannot speak.

..........you then add the challenge of the 6D VED tax and the growing problem of poor quality manufacturing by some converters and the future soon becomes quite grave for the MoHo industry in the UK.

What's the justification for such a substantial hike in VED for the latest low pollution engine/vehicle?

 

[GWAYGWAY]

Expensive new ones means the secondhand market will be more buoyant especially for good models that are well cared for. I hope so for when my executor need to sell it. I intend to get my use out of it though first.

 

[GAVLAD]

Do you think dealers do enough?
You part with £40k plus and I know that the dealer doesn’t get all of that but it’s still a fair amount of cash if you compare it with a car garage sale, and what do they offer the client?
Fair enough, there’ll be some dealers that will do everything for their clients but most seem to not give a toss after the sale.
Spare parts? - take bloody ages to arrive from Europe.
How come my eBay parcel from China arrives within a week but a part from Germany takes 5 weeks through a dealer?
Why can’t a manufacturer appointed dealer accept warranty work on a van they’ve not sold even though they’re an appointed dealer for that manufacturer?
It’s a quick buck industry in my view and it needs a bloody great rocket up its arse to realise it needs to drastically change. If that means more going bust for some thicko dealer principal to take a look at themselves then good in my view.
We pay a lot of money for our purchase and should expect better in service and after sales in my personal view.

 

[pelican]

The problem is Motorhomes and campsites were too cheap resulting in riff raff joining the community. Raise the prices and keep it for the elite I say.

That's already been done by the Motorhome and Caravan Club

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