Dealers and suppliers described the Keller Marine & RV team as amazing, supportive and a breath of fresh air when they met at the distributor’s accessory show in Hershey, Pennsylvania, this week.
Show attendees agreed that working with the distributor is a partnership rather than a traditional business arrangement. Independent dealers such as Gina Starett of Mountaineer RV in West Virginia said Keller’s values align with the values she and her husband, Joe, have instilled in their family-run operation.
“The support Keller provides to its dealers is just amazing,” Starett said. “They always put on a magnificent show, so we attend every year.”
Starett said the educational sessions that opened the show Monday morning were beneficial.
Keller Marine & RV President Mike Keller’s session introduced many dealers in the room to U.S. Bank’s Avvance program that provides up to $25,000 in accessory financing. Starett said she immediately passed the information on to her F&I team.
“Programs like that are huge for an independent dealer,” she said. “That is a perfect example of why we come to this show every year. We always learn something.”
Starett said she enjoyed the session Mike Keller led on driving profits.
“Some of the things he talked about, we are already doing, but he had some other insights that were valuable to us.”
The driving dealer profits session discussed new ways to increase traffic in a dealership’s parts store. Mike Keller said consumers can often find the same products online that dealers stock. The key to increasing in-store sales is to sell the consumer on the fun aspects of accessories when they buy an RV.
“We get the first shot at them when we sell them the RV,” Mike Keller said. “Why should we let them leave the dealership without everything they need?”
Keller endorsed the idea of guiding RV customers through the parts store and introducing them to accessories they might need or want, based on how they plan to use the RV.
Optimum RV Parts Manager Cindy Pettis said her dealership has successfully changed its customer process to fit the concept Keller presented.
“We changed the name of our walkthrough to orientation, because we want to show you how to use the RV,” Pettis said. “We walk them through the store, and I have asked our people to find three areas or three items that they can pitch to that customer as they walk through the store.”
Pettis said consumers trust the associates they walk through the store with and develop relationships.
“Hopefully, in the future, that will bring them back to the dealership,” Pettis said. “I learned a long time ago in this industry, you do not want to just see taillights. You want to see headlights, too.”
Starett said walking the show floor is often a highlight. Gina and Joe Starett bring a list of their top 100 parts to place orders. The couple also looks vigilantly for the next great product.
Vendors ranging from startups to RV industry newbies to behemoths said they appreciate the extra effort Mike Keller, Director of Marketing Lori Morrow and the Keller team put into introducing dealers to their products.
Cheltec Sales Manager Jason Marquez said he spent five years working to get the company’s Camp Champ products into the Keller program. He said the effort is already paying off.
“They really take the time to listen and learn about the products,” Marquez said. “They want to know about more than just the products. They want to know and understand your company culture. We work with some other distributors, but Keller has a special place in our heart because we have gotten to know them on a personal level.”
Marquez said when he got Camp Champ’s holding tank treatments and cleaning products into the Keller distribution chain, his Keller representative set up productive dealer meetings.
“He said, ‘I can’t go with you, but I will call ahead.’ I saw six dealers that day and they all ordered from me,” Marquez said. “I have never had an experience like that with another distributor. That is the Keller difference. They are actually selling the product at the dealer level.”
Keller dealers who did not attend the show can order online and access show pricing through Dec. 19.
“We know the deals are good, but we want the dealers to feel good about their decisions,” Mike Keller said. “Keeping the show open for a couple of weeks gives them some extra time to make those decisions. They know that if they buy something and do not like it, we will take it back. Our show is not a high-pressure situation.”
Mike Keller said he was happy to hear that show attendees have a different perception of his company than other distributors they might work with throughout the year.
“Our dealers are like family to us,” Keller said. “A big part of putting on this show every year is to bring our family together and having a party for that family.”
Mike Keller said the show facilitates business, but besides the orders, fostering relationships between dealers and vendors is just as important.
The Keller family plans to expand in 2026 by adding a new warehouse in Louisiana. The regional distributor is well known along the East Coast but will spend next year establishing relationships with dealers in Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas.
The warehouse will open early in the new year. Nikki House of County Line Campers in Gulfport, Mississippi, is Keller’s first client in the area. House was the lone dealer from the new territory to make the trip to the 2025 show at the Hershey Lodge.
House said she was impressed with the show’s selection.
“The product that they have on display, the specials that they have on display, are really geared toward inventory control and not inventory bulge,” House said. “Most distributors, it is just about getting the product in the door, as much and as heavy as they possibly can. That is not the way Keller operates.”
House said Keller does not penalize dealers for trying a new line by adding a restocking fee when the product does not sell.
“There are some things that I have never seen or never heard of before,” House said, “but I am definitely interested in trying them and seeing how it works. If it does not work for me in 90 days, I will not be penalized with a restocking fee.”
House said Keller has a well-rounded approach to doing business. She said the company’s small dealer support will enable the dealerships to grow.
“I work for a small dealership now. Give me five years, and I think we will be looking to expand, but we can only expand if we have friends in the business,” House said. “Friends help each other grow. We are going to cultivate this relationship because I think we can both grow and benefit from it.”
Next year’s show is scheduled for Nov. 2-3, 2026, at the Palmetto (Florida) Marriott Resort and Spa.
