As always, when I prepare my outline for articles, I review RV industry trends, current events and I examine the month, year and season. One obvious fact that stands out for me is that the end of 2024 and the beginning of 2025 marked the quarter-point of the new century.
If you are a seasoned person, like me, you remember when many of us experienced angst at the thought of moving from 1999 to 2000. Remember that? Thankfully, the potential catastrophe was mostly averted, and the calendar marched forward without incident.
We can now look back and laugh or shake our heads at some of the “just-in-case” preparations we made back then. Either way, the fact we are 25 years (almost 26, now) into the new century is noteworthy and provides a great reason to complete a “state of the union” of sorts.
Surely, no one will argue with me when I state that the last 25 years have been consequential for the RV industry, for retail and for the planet. The continuing theme is “adapt, improvise and overcome.” We survived terrorist attacks, the Great Recession, several earthshattering natural disasters and a pandemic.
Simultaneously, we have experienced great advances that have transformed our lives. In October 2000, NASA’s STS-92 mission marked the 100th space shuttle mission. In 2001, Apple released the iPod, which revolutionized how we listen to music, and continued to innovate with the iPhone’s release in 2007. Although iPhones were not the first smartphones, their invention one-upped the Palm Pilot, Blackberry and other digital assistants that gained popularity in the 1990s.
Not coincidentally, eCommerce sales grew 4,544%, from $5.55 billion in Q1 2000 to $275.76 billion in Q1 2025. The eCommerce growth was fueled by the internet’s increasing popularity and the plethora of mobile devices and apps that have since taken over the world.
In 2007, Netflix began streaming movies; a move that drove slow-moving competitors out of business and revolutionized the entertainment industry.
Of course, the RV industry has advanced during the last 25 years. The industry has made gains in consistent OEM parts sourcing and improved dealer management system and point-of-sales system functionality. Enhanced aftermarket product packaging has integrated UPCs, barcodes and multilingual packaging. Additionally, our industry has worked to reduce repair event cycle times (RECT) by first acknowledging the issue and developing solutions to address the problem.
NTP-Stag’s MagniFinder software is one proven solution for locating the correct part on the first attempt.
Lastly, we are encouraged by the continued strong customer demand and loyalty from consumers through all the past two decades’ ups and downs. Industry vets Mike Lankford and Scott Degnan said it well in their January 2025 open letter to the industry titled “The RV Market Reset.”
“As we enter 2025,” the pair wrote, “the RV market stands on the cusp of an exciting new chapter.”
About Retail
Despite our current uncertain times, the National Retail Federation forecasted 2025 retail sales to grow between 2.7% and 3.7% year-over-year, reaching between $5.42 trillion and $5.48 trillion. The growth is significant because the 2025 forecast is consistent with the 10-year pre-pandemic average annual sales growth of 3.6%.
Not surprisingly, non-store and online sales, which are included in the total figure, are expected to grow between 7% and 9% over 2024 levels.
While the retail industry continues to push the envelope with new ways to drive sales and profitability, it is not without controversy. Retail self-checkout kiosks’ use has increased by 450% between 2019 and 2025. However, nine big-box retailers, including Walmart, Costco, Sam’s Club, Safeway and Five Below, are reducing or abandoning their use. Researchers at Retail Dive report that 73% of consumers want the option of self-checkout; however, some retail locations experienced a substantial amount of individual and organized theft, which was enabled by these devices.
In other retail news, New York state is being sued by the National Retail Federation over a recently passed law requiring retailers to tell customers when their data is used online to set prices. The practice is known as surveillance pricing.
The New York Algorithmic Pricing Disclosure Act requires any retailer that sets prices using information about its customers to place a disclosure next to each affected product, saying: “This price was set by an algorithm using your personal data.”
What is this all about? Companies gather information such as your physical location, income level, browsing history and behavioral patterns, then use the information to set customized pricing. According to Retail Touch Points magazine, “a travel website might charge higher prices to users browsing from affluent neighborhoods, assuming they are willing to pay more.…These tactics demonstrate how companies use personal circumstances to maximize profits, often at the expense of fairness.”
In this case, some might argue that all progress is not good.
Storefronts Up Front
While the retail marketplace is dynamic, certain retail aspects remain constant.
The brick-and-mortar store is still king. To maximize selling opportunities, we must maintain a customer-oriented selling environment. Among the most effective methods for assessing your retail space is to establish a routine of conducting daily store walks.
Daily store walks involve literally walking through all the store aisles to survey the conditions. Customer service initiatives are observed in the form of employees’ interactions with shoppers. In-store marketing materials and planograms are compared to the published sales plan to measure integrity. The goal of the process is to verify store readiness and assess retail conditions against your standard operating procedures (SOP).
The idea is to ensure that the organization’s expectations are implemented properly where it counts—at the shelf edge.
Whether your store is large or small, establishing and following an SOP is prudent. The SOP should detail how the retail environment will be maintained. The SOP should be a written document that is very specific and must be communicated to store personnel with a directive to comply.
The contents might include a description of how to maintain a clean receiving area by breaking down empty boxes immediately and taking them to an outside recycling bin. The guide can instruct employees that the cash wrap counter area should be maintained by emptying the wastebasket, restocking bags and packaging material and wiping down surfaces with antibacterial cleaner.
Other elements that must be included in the SOP are the maintenance of the customer waiting area, the coffee bar or refreshment area and the restrooms.
The SOP must also include a description for maintaining the merchandise on display. Few things can destroy a customer’s shopping experience faster than sparsely stocked shelves, with products displayed in an unorganized fashion. Stocking excess inventory is not necessary, but products should be displayed at the shelf’s front edge and pulled to the front of the display hooks, closest to the shopper.
Pulling products forward gives the store the appearance of being full and creates uniformity when someone looks down the aisle.
The subtext for the customer here is complete, robust and ready. Product selection, store fixtures and signage are other elements the SOP must address.
In addition to daily conditioning, NRF recommends that retail stores be reset or remodeled every five to seven years. A reset is a major project, but you do not have to “go it alone.”
RVDA offers substantial store planning resources through the RV Learning Center, and distributors such as NTP-Stag offer store set assistance through their merchandising programs.
By all indications, the RV aftermarket is poised for growth, and your attention to this aspect of your business will be rewarded with incremental sales and profitability.
Val Byrd is NTP-Stag’s customer merchandising manager. She has worked in the RV aftermarket for over 20 years and is a leading RV retail expert on store layout/design and aftermarket product display.
