AIRSTREAMS "Yes, we're still making them."

[Travisma 1,317]

Interesting article in a local Tampa newspaper today.

 

I was wondering myself if they were still in business.

 

Airstream turns its iconic silver bullets into RV sales gold

By Charles Fleming

Los Angeles Times (TNS)

 

 Kate Pierson of the B-52s fell so hard for her first Airstream that she ended up owning enough of the travel trailers to open an all-Airstream hotel in the desert near Joshua Tree National Park in California.

 

 Fans of the retro-chic silver bullets spend up to $200 a night to sleep in vintage trailers. With names such as 'Lava,' 'Tiki' and 'Planet Air,' each is decorated with posters and memorabilia of the famed Love Shack rock group.

 

 'It's a magical place,' Pierson said recently. 'Six Airstreams on a sand dune!' But 100 miles west, at Los Angeles' largest Airstream dealer, a sign on the door says, 'Yes, we're still making them.' Now owned by recreational vehicle giant Thor Industries, Airstream has been building its signature riveted aluminum travel trailers since 1931. The company says that 65 percent of all Airstreams ever built are still on the road. So fans are surprised to learn the Airstreams on the road aren't all vintage units.

 

 'We get asked that question more than I would like,' sighed Bob Wheeler, Airstream president and chief executive. 'A lot of people don't even know we're still in business.' Apparently, people are finding out. Last year was the best in Airstream's history. Sales for 2014 were up 26 percent over 2013, while sales for the RV industry as a whole rose only 11 per cent, according to the Recreational Vehicle Industry Association.

 

 Thor Industries stock is trading around $63, more than double its value five years ago.

 

 The product is pricey. An entrylevel, 16-foot Sport trailer starts at $42,000. A top of the line, 28-foot Land Yacht starts at $146,000. In between are Flying Clouds, Classics and Internationals. There's also a line of 24-foot Touring Coaches - built on Mercedes-Benz Sprinter platforms - that cost $134,000 to $151,000.

 

 At the company's Ohio factory, which has a 13-week backlog of orders, Airstreams are being built at the rate of 50 a week.

 

 That's an encouraging trend for a company that has died, or nearly died, many times since entrepreneur Wally Byam opened his first factory in Culver City, Calif., and began producing the teardrop-shaped Torpedo Car Cruiser.

 

 Airstream was more or less moribund when it was purchased by Thor Industries in 1980, which put a shine back on the aluminum trailers and returned the company to profitability. By the mid-1990s, though, sales had flattened again. Consumers who had grown up admiring the gleaming tubes were getting old. The average buyer was a retiree over 70.

 

 The company got new life from an unlikely source. San Francisco architect Christopher C. Deam designed a 26- by 26-foot interior for a friend's home. The design won an award, and Sunset magazine dubbed it 'The Airstream Cottage.' 'A light bulb went off,' said Deam, who immediately contacted the company to sell them his idea of a new, modern Airstream interior design.

 

 Airstream executives were unresponsive. So Deam built an Airstream interior on spec. When that won an award, Airstream agreed to test the trailer at an upcoming rally.

 

 The elderly Airstream aficionados didn't like it, but they all made the same observation: 'They all said, 'It's not for me, but my kids would love it,'' Deam remembered. 'That convinced Airstream to do a prototype.' Deam's reimagined trailer replaced the traditional homespun wood-paneled interiors with sleek laminate or aluminum panels - light, bright and easy to clean.

 

 Still, the company was unsure. Would the design turn off Airstream's loyal but diminishing audience?

 

 'It took off like a rocket, and drew a whole new demographic,' Wheeler said. 'It changed our understanding of what the Airstream could be.' Within three years, sales doubled. The line of trailers inspired by Deam's designs now accounts for more than 50 percent of all Airstream business. Deam said he was paid a fee and now receives royalties based on unit sales.

 

 Thor, which would eventually own eleven RV companies, has continued to broaden its Airstream inventory and strengthen its market share. Wheeler estimated that the company employs 480 full-time workers, up from only 150 in 2008.

 

 The combination of high price tag and timeless Americana has attracted a more chic clientele than Byam probably imagined. NASA and the U.S. Air Force use them. Tom Hanks has owned several. Other fans have included Sean Penn, Johnny Depp and filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola.

 

 Matthew McConaughey owns two. He keeps one in Austin, Texas, except when it's with him on a movie location, and another parked at his home in Malibu.

 

 Patrick Dempsey also owns two. One is a vintage 1950s classic that he uses as a guest house. The other is a modern version that functions as his home when he's on location shooting Grey's Anatomy .

 

 'It's a beautifully made camper with a great legacy to it,' the actor said. 'It's a great space to spend time between shots.' Justin Humphreys, Airstream's vice president of sales, said consumers are attracted by the old-fashioned design and durability.

 

 'People are tired of buying stuff that breaks,' Humphreys said. 'They want something that's going to stick around and keep working.' But as baby boomers age into Airstream territory, Humphreys sees that as a positive.

 

 'The No. 1 age for RV buyers is 65, and 10,000 people will turn that age every day for the next 19 years,' he said. 'So, we're expanding.'

 

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

How could you wonder if Airstream is still in business?

 

Don't you drive past Bates RV on I-4 when you head to Disney World?

 

You know, the place with the Airstream Ranch?

 

 

They've got 100's of Airstreams sitting on their lot.

 

http://www.batesrv.com/

 

TCD

[Travisma 1,317]

I thought those were knock-offs.

 

I've only glanced over to look at pop ups, and not for long since I'm always doing the driving.

[keith_h 420]

We looked at Airstreams when we bought our trailer. In the 16 ft model some of the major items weren't any better than what we have in our trailer and ran it 30K more than what we paid. To me the new ones just aren't up to the older models I remember from years ago but then again a lot of things aren't.

[WannaBeImagineer 98]

To me the cost of an airstream is too high and you get less space than a traditional TT.  Like the article points out they are very trendy and attract a crowd with more disposable income.

 

That being said I guess I still see them in campgrounds so I somebody thinks they are worth the markup.

 

I've always wanted to buy a short old one and refurb it myself but when I did an estimate of the cost I decided to go with some other hobbies, lol.

 

WBI

[CCIntrigue...aka Gwen 547]

We had an Airstream trailer and loved it.  My parents had an even older Airstream and eventually sold it for just as much as they paid for it ten years earlier.

 

If you've had an older Airstream, you will be an Airstream fan forever.  The quality is outstanding in the older units.

[FW Rendezvous 5]

Okay, first post for THIS guy.

We were really interested in the smaller Airstream trailers, but they seem to be a little cost prohibitive.

The features are great, the decor is awesome, but you can get so much more for your $$ elsewhere.

(I STILL want one though)   

[twiceblessed....nacole 433]

I LOVE Airstreams.... someday, when the kids are grown and we are not too super old (haha) Tom and I will either travel with an Airstream or a small Class A.