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KATIE
ARCIERI Staff Writer
Published
March 27, 2008
If she wanted to travel, Linda Woodall
typically turned to nice hotels and cabins as places to stay - not RVs.
But after the Eastern Shore resident and
her husband rented a 31-foot luxury Winnebago motor home and drove it to the
Florida Keys this month, Ms. Woodall said she can't wait to do it again.
"I loved it. I even drove the thing," she said.
"I'm not afraid to drive a bigger one."
Happy Travelers RV Rentals, off Route 50 before the
"A lot of folks are choosing to rent instead of
purchase," said Owner Skip Tate Jr., who has seen an increased interest in
rental RVs over the past two-and-a-half years.
As the economy slows, RV sales typically follow suit.
According to the Recreation Vehicle Industry Association in
"When shipments go down, it usually precedes a
recession," he said.
Meanwhile the RV rental industry is growing, he said.
"We might see increased rentals until consumer
confidence improves," he said.
Happy Travelers is marketing its fleet of luxury Winnebago
RVs at its new facility on Busch's Frontage Road, giving the business a
prominent and visible spot off Route 50.
It is targeting everyone from baby boomers and campers to
TV studios, NASCAR fans and tailgaters.
Katharine Tate, Mr. Tate's wife and the company's sales
and marketing director, said she expects rental sales to reach $600,000 this
year, a roughly 18 percent increase over 2007. She said the company has already
exceeded its first quarter revenue goals.
Mr. Tate and his father Rod started Recreation World RV
Center, which sells RVs, and Happy Travelers, on
Last year, Mr. Tate bought his father's share of the
rental business for $1 million. His father retired after shutting down the less
profitable sales company and selling the building and land.
To market Happy Travelers, the company launched a new logo
and Web site in January and invested in search engine optimization so the
company shows up first on Web page hits. The company also is promoting its
delivery program that transports RVs within a 60-mile radius. Additionally,
Happy Travelers can make drivers available for one-way or round trips.
The Tates, who enjoyed a recent
RV trip to Disney World, said their rental prices provide customers a chance to
test out RV life without the hassles of ownership: Customers can rent the
smallest 24-foot Winnebago model for $189 a day. A 32-foot model with slide-out
rooms costs $370 a day during the peak season in July and August, Mrs. Tate
said.
To keep its model units current, the company sells motor
homes that have been driven approximately 25,000 miles or been used for up to a
year, whichever comes first, she said. Happy Travelers then uses money from
those sales to purchase new rental units that retail between
$80,000 to $110,000, she said.
"By doing that, it still offers value for a pre-owned
unit for a client that wants to purchase," she said.
The company continues to promote its celebrity customers.
Last October, Happy Travelers donated motor homes to the designers of
"Extreme Makeover Home Edition" who were building a home in Port
Deposit in
"Ty (Pennington) always asks for units in our
area," Mr. Tate said, referring to the show's star.
Mrs. Tate also said Happy Travelers transported Mr. Sajak from
"It's very rewarding to know that we are able to
provide these quality motor homes with such pride to such a phenomenal
clientele," Mrs. Tate said. "It's such an American tradition and they
trust in us and our product."
The owner of Family RV has been in the RV business since
1985 and has served at of today over 26,000 customers. Having a fleet of almost new motor homes and
trailers and with one location gives Family RV control the quality of service
and products customers deserve. You can
see why customers return because years after years and our customers refer us
to their friends. So far this year we
are up 42 % in rental bookings.