New Caravan / Motorhome Sales

JohnM20
JohnM20 Forum Participant Posts: 1,416
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edited August 2017 in Caravan & Motorhome Chat #1

In an item on Breakfast TV this morning about caravanning it was stated that, according to the NCC sales of caravans are up by 14% and Motorhomes by 11%. I wonder if the Club membership is up by 25% and if so, is it a similar split?

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  • redface
    redface Forum Participant Posts: 1,701
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    edited August 2017 #2

    If it is, we will hear shortly: if not then we won't hear at all.

  • Randomcamper
    Randomcamper Club Member Posts: 1,062 ✭✭
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    edited August 2017 #3

    caravans are up by 14% and Motorhomes by 11%. I wonder if the Club membership is up by 25%

    I dont think the maths is quite that simple so probably not.......wink

  • EasyT
    EasyT Forum Participant Posts: 16,194
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    edited August 2017 #4

    If there were a direct correlation and given the balance between caravans and MHs I think 10% would be the comparison. However it would be unrealistic to think that there were that many additional users or that they would all choose to join a club, let alone CC

  • Cornersteady
    Cornersteady Club Member Posts: 14,428 ✭✭✭
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    edited August 2017 #5

    as you say probably not. Working with percentages like this a minefield 

    say the club had 100 members, and last year now the manufactures made 100 caravans and 100 motorhomes. This year they have made (and sold) 114 caravans and the MHs 111.  If all those new caravans and motor homes were bought be people who then joined the club then the club would now have 125 members, an increase of 25%.

    But if the club had 1000 members then it would now have 1025, an increase of only 2.5%

    And I've only done the calculation on one new member per new unit sold. 

  • Cornersteady
    Cornersteady Club Member Posts: 14,428 ✭✭✭
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    edited August 2017 #6

    Did I read and remember correctly that the club said it's members had 100,000 motor homes and 300,000 caravans but new membership since the rebrand is evenly split between caravans and Motorhomes?

  • Unknown
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    edited August 2017 #7
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  • EasyT
    EasyT Forum Participant Posts: 16,194
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    edited August 2017 #8

    I personally do not think that the future is motorhomes. Why do families not buy mainly motorhomes now? I have my answers and I am sure that we all do.

    Why don't I buy a motorhome? Because one the size that I require I could not manoeuvre onto my land and do not wish to have it stored elsewhere. Also instead of a £22K caravan I would probably require a £60k motorhome. I agree that OH and I could probably compromise on cars and just have one. However if we were to tow behind a motorhome that one would probably be too large.

  • Unknown
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    edited August 2017 #9
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  • DavidKlyne
    DavidKlyne Club Member Posts: 13,864 ✭✭✭
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    edited August 2017 #10

    According to the NCC motorhome registrations are higher than quoted in the OP:-

     

    Motorhome registrations up 14% year-on-year

    as younger buyers head to the forecourts

     

    The UK motorhome market continues its upward rise. The total number of new registrations in the 12 months to the end of June 2017 was up by 14%, according to figures just released by the NCC (National Caravan Council).  In total, 13,162 motorhomes were registered between 1 July 2016 and 30 June 2017, against 11,559 in the same period across the previous years.   

    David

     

  • EasyT
    EasyT Forum Participant Posts: 16,194
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    edited August 2017 #11

    I don't see many families of 4 in a 3500kg motorhome though

  • Suppy
    Suppy Forum Participant Posts: 40
    edited August 2017 #12

    Wonder what the definition of younger is... maybe a case of I'm younger than my parents, but none of us are in our early 20's 😁

    and who is gathering this information anyway?  When we bought our new caravan I don't recall being asked our ages!  Maybe it's just a question motorhomers get asked 😀

     

     

  • Cornersteady
    Cornersteady Club Member Posts: 14,428 ✭✭✭
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    edited August 2017 #13

    apparently motor homes, being a motor vehicle, have to be registered to go on the road (Thanks to HugeR for telling me). I think the caravan figures come from the manufactures who count how many are produced.

  • DavidKlyne
    DavidKlyne Club Member Posts: 13,864 ✭✭✭
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    edited August 2017 #14

    My understanding is that theNCC use registered figures which tend to indicate fairly accurately motorhome sales. Unlike cars I am pretty sure pre registrations are not as widely used, I expect because most buying a motorhome would want the most recent registration plate?

    As far as age  is concerned I wonder if they are referring to people of working age as "young "? Quite a bit of evidence that non retired people are buying motorhome son some Facebook forums.

    David

  • peedee
    peedee Club Member Posts: 9,387 ✭✭✭
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    edited August 2017 #15

    Surely these figures are an under estimation of the market, they won't include second hand sales.

    peedee

     

  • young thomas
    young thomas Forum Participant Posts: 11,356
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    edited August 2017 #16

    Alan, very true, and certainly not in a well made German van as in this sorry tale....a tale relating to running a van at 3.5t.

    for anyone who is feeling seduced by the ease of use of a MH and is thinking of visiting any of the big shows (or dealers) then have a read of this and perhaps leave the wallet at home...

    New Hymer with no payload

    in fact, the tale is even sorrier as no children are involved, yet a 'relatively experienced' MHer (couple) was sold a Hymer with the specific desire to offset the '3.5t medical roundabout' as he reached 70 in two years time.

    he thought he was getting his ducks in a row, while the salesman was shooting them dead.....

    the issue is not yet resolved, but to anyone wanting to join the rush to jump in a MH and go, PLEASE, PLEASE get as much info on payloads as you can for the model youre interested in....and above all, if its a stock item WEIGH THE VAN in the condition you will be using it prior to signing anything.

    if its a factory order, add a condition of sale that the actual van (they can vary) weighs what it should, based on your calculations of required payload etc.....

    ill leave it there for now and let this thread return to sales figures etc, but if anyone needs a bit of help on understanding how this sort of (very, very expensive) situation could arise, please open a thread and ill be happy to help.

  • EasyT
    EasyT Forum Participant Posts: 16,194
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    edited August 2017 #17

    I hope that you don't mind BB. I have trouble picking out some links on here (no longer good with subtle colour variation). So for those like me:

    New Hymer with No Payload

  • young thomas
    young thomas Forum Participant Posts: 11,356
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    edited August 2017 #18

    no problem Alan, this lovely website, eh?wink

    incidently, the reason i know a little about this particular issue is that i have just been through (January) the same downsizing process, moving (successfullysmile) from a 4250kg Carthago (tonnes of payload...) to a 3500kg smaller version. Cant change the blooming avatar....undecided

  • DavidKlyne
    DavidKlyne Club Member Posts: 13,864 ✭✭✭
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    edited August 2017 #19

     Thank you Alan, and for setting it to open in a new window!!!

    David

     

  • Pippah45
    Pippah45 Forum Participant Posts: 2,452
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    edited August 2017 #20

    I used to think about swapping but that would mean two sets of insurance and tax in a single household not to mention a sacrifice of space as I wouldn't want to drive around in a bus.  Plus I have met quite a few people swapping back to caravanning once reduced mobility sets in.  If I won the lottery perhaps as the system in France etc beckons.  But all in all I think I will keep my hand in at towing.  Before I restarted caravanning about 10 years ago I had had quite a break from towing and it was a bit nerve racking taking the plunge again but oh so glad I did!  

  • young thomas
    young thomas Forum Participant Posts: 11,356
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    edited August 2017 #21

    david, just explain the new window thinking...3 exclamaition marks?

    ..i set my links to not do this as i want to return to the thread when i close the linked page.

    why would i want two windows open?

  • Rubytuesday
    Rubytuesday Forum Participant Posts: 952
    edited August 2017 #22

    We went to the western motorhome show at Malvern on the weekend , very very busy lots vewing , and the C&M club stand was busy too.  Of course this is no indication of sales or member enrolment but certainly gives the impression there are a lot out there interested  

  • EasyT
    EasyT Forum Participant Posts: 16,194
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    edited August 2017 #23

     Many view the link and close only to find that they have lost the forum BB

  • young thomas
    young thomas Forum Participant Posts: 11,356
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    edited August 2017 #24

    OK, understood......operator errorwink

  • DavidKlyne
    DavidKlyne Club Member Posts: 13,864 ✭✭✭
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    edited August 2017 #25

    As Alan has already said if you don't set it to open in a new window it just replaces the Club Together page you were originally on. I have lost count of how many times I have opened a link which I then instinctively close down and then have to log on again. If the link opens in a new window you tend not to have that problem. I would prefer that the forum automatically opened links in new windows but I won't chance my luck!

    David

  • Wex
    Wex Forum Participant Posts: 139
    edited August 2017 #26

    Your logic is correct to a certain extent except for the fact that the number of caravans/MHs have not increased by 25%. It is only that annual sales have increased by that number.

    So, if CMC gets its fair share of these new people, it should increase its annual new member numbers by 25%.

    Bet you're glad you stayed up to hear that! cool

    Anything above (or below) that is, perhaps, a measure of their sales performance.surprised

    Robert

  • Cornersteady
    Cornersteady Club Member Posts: 14,428 ✭✭✭
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    edited August 2017 #27

    not sure I follow your reasoning, I never said, in my rather set up example that number of van/Mh had increased by 25%, I said:

    last year the manufactures made 100 caravans and 100 motorhomes. This year they have made (and sold) 114 caravans and the MHs 111.

    That;s a 14% and 11% increase in units made, then if:

    If all those new caravans and motor homes were bought be people who then joined the club (which I said had 100 members) then the club would now have 125 members, an increase of 25%.

    I'm talking about membership increasing by 25% not numbers of units.

    anyway as I showed, unless you know the original numbers (current memberships and how many actual units are made) and work back from those comparing percentages just can't be done. 

     

     

     

  • Spriddler
    Spriddler Forum Participant Posts: 646
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    edited August 2017 #28

    One can't assume it's a nett increase since there will be some churn, i.e. folk giving up 'vans or m/homes and/or not renewing with CAMC or any of the other similar commercial organisations.

  • Unknown
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    edited August 2017 #29
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  • Spriddler
    Spriddler Forum Participant Posts: 646
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    edited August 2017 #30

    That reminded me of the dismissive retort of an American marketing ex-colleague AD, when he didn't like someone's contribution at a meeting, he'd say:

    "Don't confuse me with the facts".

    wink

    Off topic, but when our sales teams reported that the much higher price (versus 'ordinary' batteries) of our products (Duracell Batteries - late 70's) generated resistance from potential customers his retort in a broad Texan drawl was:

    "Sell 'em the sizzle, not the steak!".

    Happy days!

  • Unknown
    Unknown Forum Participant
    edited August 2017 #31
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