Lichtsinn RV, located a mile from the Winnebago plant in Forest City, Iowa, will undergo a major expansion.
Owner Ron Lichtsinn II said the expansion will more than double the size of the 26,000-square-foot dealership facility to about 55,000 square feet. Among fixed operations improvements are increasing service bays by 50%. The parts retail store will double in size, Lichtsinn said, and parts storage capacity will increase “exponentially.”
The dealership also will expand camping facilities it owns east of the lot.
“As the RV lifestyle continues to grow in popularity, our team remains dedicated to making the necessary infrastructure investments needed to serve our guests,” Lichtsinn RV General Manager Heidi Thompson said. “Our focus on guest experience and our dedication to providing strong support to owners through their purchase, delivery and ownership experiences directly influenced the decisions being made for this facilities expansion.”
Winnebago has named Lichtsinn RV a North American Top Dealer six consecutive years. The dealership said it is the largest Winnebago parts dealer in the U.S.
Ron Lichtsinn Sr. founded the dealership in 1976. Lichtsinn Motors sold a broad line of GM vehicles before selling Winnebago conversion vans in 1979 after a handshake deal with Winnebago founder John K. Hanson. Lichtsinn’s son, Ron Lichtsinn II, and his wife, Hope, bought the dealership in 2001.
The couple built the current 26,000-square-foot facility in 2015.
“The doubling of our footprint here in Forest City, both in terms of real estate surface and facilities build, provide the capacity needed for current and long-term growth for our guest base,” Ron Lichtsinn said, “which is the sole reason why we exist.”
Kingland Construction Services of Forest City, which built the current dealership facility, is the expansion project’s general contractor.
