The August issue of RV News magazine can be looked through online by clicking here and then choosing the August front cover in the upper left corner of the webpage.
RVIA’s annual Aftermarket Conference is in full swing in Atlanta right now. It ends tomorrow.
I’m told that actual attendance was slightly down this year. One attendee cited how the room the luncheon was held in yesterday was much smaller than the room used in previous years. They did however say that the smaller luncheon room was absolutely packed.
One factor contributing to lower attendance was a prohibition of Canadians entering the United States due to COVID. A number of Canadian suppliers and the two big Canadian distributors, Atlas and Robert T Thibert, were prevented from attending the conference due to travel restrictions. Concerns over COVID certainly also played a role in U.S.-based suppliers from attending.
That said, yesterday’s luncheon included the annual awards ceremony for the RV aftermarket. I played a small role in making the awards happen this year.
The big news is Jerry Edwards, the CEO of Roadmaster won the industry’s highest aftermarket award: The Jim Barker Award. The award is given to a single person each year who has made career contributions to the success of the RV Aftermarket. Winning that award is a really big deal. There is no one more deserving than Jerry in my opinion. He is someone who is at the top of my personal list of people who should be admired and emulated. Congrats Jerry!
NTP-Stag won the annual Distributor of the Year Award for its work in helping retailers and suppliers serve the RV consumer through getting parts through the channel as quickly and professionally as possible. Congrats NTP-Stag!
Stromberg Carlson won the association’s Supplier of the Year award for how it treats all its customers and how it serves the RV aftermarket in numerous ways. Stromberg Carlson is represented in the RV aftermarket by Tom Manning & Associates. Congrats Stromberg and ToM Manning & Associates!
The coveted Product of the Year Award was given to RV Safe who makes a universal CO2/Propane detector. The product is used by many RV manufacturers but is a new player in the RV aftermarket. RV Safe is represnted by RVLI. Congrats RV Safe and RVLI!
We are getting ready to start laying out and designing our annual Elkhart Open House Preview issue where we feature all the new RVs that will be produced for the next year. It is one of our most popular issues among readers for the year. There is still a couple days left where companies can advertise in the issue. Reach out to me if you are interested.
Warm Regard,
Dana Nelsen
Very Proud Owner of RV News magazine
