Millennials are changing the RV’ing world as we have known it. This growing group – late teens to mid 30’s have been brought up in a very different world. They are complete “digital natives”, says Karen Redfern – senior director of marketing communications for the national Go RVing campaign.
Their views of our culture, products and society are different from the previous generations. This group, which accounts for 44% of the 1.2 million households in North America that started camping last year, are expected to influence the growth of public and private parks for years to come. The Millennials are demanding excellence and quality.
Dealers are reporting that they are seeing much more of this age group at RV shows. Millennials are looking for something compact and with an eco-friendly small footprint. Price is not always the game changer. And as we have learned at RoamingTimes, there is a significant increase in interest of vintage and retro units. The challenge for RV manufacturers is to ensure that they produce appropriate products for these consumers’ specific needs. Along these lines, they are not much into tent camping, they like to go “car camping”, and sleep in their SUV’s as their camping experience.
It seems logical that a product that can be easily towed will be in great demand. They see camping as a social opportunity to meet up with their friends. The opportunity here is for campground owners to have situations where five or six friends could set up campsites together. In other words they are looking for gathering places. They are not looking for bigger amenities – but they do want the technology to be “up to speed” and what they currently use in their daily lives. Sounds reasonable, and time for the industry to stay focused on increasing tech advances up to speed on all models they send out. This is the wave and way of the future.
