The stars came out to see Jayco dealers at the first in-person, off-site dealer event since 2019. Thor Industries President and CEO Bob Martin and North American RV Group Manager Matt Zimmerman and Jayco CEO Derald Bontrager were on hand, along with dealer principals including RV Retailer President and CEO Jon Ferrando, Campers Inn CEO Jeff Hirsch, current RVDA Chairman Mike Pearo and past RVDA Chairman Ron Shepherd.
Martin, who returned from a European trip days ago, said he knew the meeting attracted a record attendee group and he wanted to be involved. More than 550 attendees representing more than 300 dealers were on hand.
“I knew I wanted to come down and be a part of it and just see the dealers,” he said. “There are a lot of guys that I have not seen since (2019). For me, it has been great just talking to everybody who are excited to be back.”
Pearo was recognized as the Jayco Founders Award winner in 2021. Because Jayco did not host a dealer meeting last year, Pearo was recognized at this year’s meeting. Jayco showed pictures from the award presentation at Hilltop Camper and RV last year.
This year’s Founders Award went to Scott Lougheed and the team at Crestview RV in Texas. Lougheed first partnered with Jayco in 1987 and said receiving the award Tuesday night was emotional.
“I always believed Crestview RV’s philosophy, value and ethics aligned with Jayco,” Lougheed said. “(Receiving the award) was much better than I could imagine. Being a partner with Jayco has been a pleasure.”
Jayco honored long-serving dealers that marked milestone anniversaries since the last in-person show in 2019. Included on the list were four dealers celebrating 40 or more years and two more celebrating 50 or more.
The manufacturer presented awards to top-selling dealers in towable and motorized divisions. Richardson’s RV Center in California was the top-selling towable dealer and Tampa RV in Florida, owned by RV Retailer, was the top-selling motorized.
Tampa RV took home the award for top-selling overall dealership.
CSI awards were given to dealers who scored the highest on customer service rankings as tabulated by Qualtrics. Kuhl’s Trailer Sales in Illinois was the top towable dealership by customer service rankings. Rhone’s Travel Trailer in Pennsylvania was the top motorized dealership.
A list of Jayco’s dealer awards follows:
VOLUME AWARDS
Towable
- Richardson’s RV Center, Menifee, California
- Pete’s RV Center, South Windsor, Connecticut
- Bish’s RV, Meridian, Idaho
- Tampa RV, Dover, Florida
- Sicard RV, Smithville, Ontario, Canada
- Crestview RV, Buda, Texas
- Lone Star RV, Houston, Texas
- Valley RV Supercenter, Kent, Washington
- Burton Campers, Birmingham, Alabama
- Apache Village RV Center, St. Louis, Missouri
Motorized
- Tampa RV
- Bish’s RV
- Richardson’s RV Center
- La Mesa RV, Port St. Lucie, Florida
- Pete’s RV Center
- Great American RV Superstores, Hammond, Louisiana
- Orlando RV, Casselberry, Florida
- Valley RV Supercenter
- Sicard RV
- Manteca Trailer and Motorhomes, Manteca, California
ANNIVERSARIES
50-Plus Years
- Terrell Camping Center, Terrell, North Carolina, 52
- Masters RV Center, Greenwood, South Carolina, 51
40-Plus Years
- Cenla RV Center, Alexandria, Louisiana, 42
- Ingleside Trailer Sales, Ingleside, Ontario, Canada, 42
- Marden Trailer Sales, Havre, Montana, 41
- Town and Country RV, Clyde, Ohio, 40
