While many locally-owned businesses have struggled during the COVID-19 pandemic, one industry doing surprisingly well in Yuma is sales of recreational vehicles - up over 35 percent from last year, according to some analysts.
We visited a local RV dealer to find out more about RV life and what people are buying. Meanwhile, local tourism officials see an opportunity in new domestic travelers.
RV World is one of Yuma’s largest locally-owned businesses for sales of campers, travel trailers and other recreational vehicles. While some retailers have had to reduce hours and staff during the pandemic, or even close for good, RV World owner Mike Green says sales have been surprisingly steady all year.
"We’re fortunate the RV business for us has been brisk," Green told KAWC. "The RV lifestyle is good for families because there are not a lot of options for people to get out of their house."
Green says summer sales were higher than expected. He says business is still brisk now and many customers are new.
"There are more first time buyers than I’ve ever seen and I’ve been in the business for about 30 years," Green said. "Families want to travel together. With an RV, you don’t have to go to a hotel or stop at a public restroom at a gas station.”
So what are first time RV shoppers buying? Green shows me one of his hottest sellers – a 24 foot toy hauler that sleeps six and sells for about $49,000 new.
The 2021 Iconic trailer has a queen bed and plenty of storage all around.
"That gives a little more residential feel than camping," Green said.
It also has leather seating, a dinette, a refrigerator/freezer and a residential microwave/stove oven combination.
"The more residential you get, the more it feels like home than when you’re out camping," he said.
Green says new models like this one are selling but he can’t keep used models on the lot.
The sales are good news to Linda Morgan, executive director of Visit Yuma. Winter visitors are a $450 million boon to the local economy but, like the rest of the state, fewer snowbirds are expected this year due to the covid-19 pandemic.
A big loss is the 35 percent of visitors from Canada, who cannot travel because the border between the U.S. and Canada is closed.
"Some of our Canadian visitors won’t be coming back," Morgan told KAWC. "Our RV parks are seeing them make cancellations to their reservations, some of them that they’ve held for years."
Morgan says new American RVers could help.
"So we’re going to see some of the Canadian visits be backfilled with domestic travel," she said. "It might look a little different than the winter visitors, it’s probably more families."
Families that Morgan says may choose Yuma as a destination because of its climate and abundance of campsites and RV parks.
Back at RV World, owner Mike Green says he’s just happy business is good and that more people are trying RV travel.
