Story and photos by Howard J Elmer

The National RV Show in Louisville, Kentucky has been showcasing new RVs annually for over 50 years now. Each year I look for the “what’s new” at the show and describe the emerging trends in the manufacture of those RVs. That has been the best way to track the industry; however, my approach highlighted only the design and construction of those units and then drew conclusions from that.

This year I’ve turned that approach on its head. I’ve dug deeper to find the relevant social currents that RV manufacturers are cluing in to. Frankly, I couldn’t have picked a better year as there is a major cultural shift occurring in the RV lifestyle right now – one I first noted about three years ago, but which has now fully blossomed. Adventure RVing.

This label – Adventure RVing – is self-explanatory, but the cause for it goes much deeper than just kids looking for a trailer to use when they go bungee-jumping.  And, yes, much of what I am about to explore has to do with the Millennial generation – but a lot of what I saw in Louisville resonates strongly with me as well (and I’m sixty this year which makes me part of the Boomer generation).

First, here are all the things you wouldn’t think have anything to do with the design of the newest RVs.

• The rise of the Internet.
• People who work remotely.
• More people who are working in retirement.
• The growth of autonomous vehicles.
• New, all-encompassing sales experiences.
• The decline of “personal” ownership.
• Finally, the new search for unique experiences.

These observations aren’t just my opinions. Phil Hague, a renowned industrial designer, did a future-look presentation covering these trends at the show and backed it up with some interesting stats.

• 24% of all workers today work remotely – never going into an office or factory. Technology has moved out of the office, letting these people work wherever they have an Internet connection.
• 79% of these same workers plan to work during their retirement – primarily because they will be able to do it from anywhere.
• 43% of Milennials feel that owning “stuff” is a burden.
• 80% of possessions are used less than once a month. This survey result backs up the feeling Millennials have (and should wake some of us up to ask the question “why do we keep so much stuff around”.)
• 65% of under-40’s would rather pay for an “experience” then own it.

These last three points explain another indicator that comes from a relatively new company called “Outdoorsy.” Think of it as the Airbnb of RVs. A representative of the website stated that this service, that rents private RVs for short terms, had accounted for over 3 million kilometres travelled just in the last year.

So while all this seems so very new, if you look closer you’ll see another trend weaved into all of it. In fact, it’s one that many people my age complain has died. Customer service. Yes, the personal service that one human gives another. This is what the Millennials crave and are looking for above all else, it seems. When this was pointed out to me, it brought to mind a common cliché – “What was old is new again.”

So, despite the fact that the Millennials think they’ve invented some new RVing trend that prizes service and adventure, it really is just the wheel turning full circle. Before electronics put so much distance between us, we all dealt face-to-face and our expectations included a full-service world. Remember when someone pumped your gas? It seems this is what the smart phone generation feels is missing from their lives now.

Frankly, if you are old enough, you’ve lived through a cycle or two like this, and what they think is all new, is really just past experience in a new wrapper.

Example: Instant coffee. Huh? Think back – coffee brewed by a server, at a shop, or at home was the standard forever. It took time and you paid for the service. But then, during the 1960s through the 1980s, freeze-dried instant coffee broke into the market. The why was obvious – the producers had made a cumbersome process easy. A spoon of coffee crystals added to hot water – and you were done. The simplicity and low cost of this convenience made this innovation so popular that traditional at-home coffee makers virtually disappeared. It’s what we as consumers wanted. Then, the backlash came. From the ’90s on, younger coffee drinkers started demanding fresh-brewed, complicated, flavoured coffees prepared by a behind-the-counter barista – or by an expensive home coffee brewing system.

Hello Starbucks, Tim Hortons, Espresso & Keurig machines; even McDonald’s jumped into the designer coffee trend. This begs the question – if our modern life is always about speed and convenience, why did a new generation of coffee drinkers want to go backwards to a much more expensive and time-consuming model?

The answer is that these customers wanted the experience as much as they wanted the product – and they were willing to pay more for it. As I said, what’s old is new again.

The RVIA, which puts on the National RV Show, hosted a series of presentations this year which included a very interesting talk entitled “Things 40-year-olds (and under) want from an RV.” The following Top Ten list was compiled by a group of younger RVers, most with children, some of whom had full-timed, worked on the road and/or were avid weekend campers. In no particular order, their wish list to manufacturers reads as follows:

1. Always put the dinette across from the couch. We have lots of friends (and kids) and we want to visit and face each other.
2. Put tank meters in the wet bay right by the dump valves and save us from having to run inside to see if the tanks are empty. Or, let me see the meters on my phone.
3. Make RVs more adventure gear-friendly. Provide spots to store and secure gear. Offer more rooftop options for equipment transport.
4. Let us control more of the entertainment system functions right from our smart phones. We are OK with running the slides and awnings from our phones, too.
5. Solar panels, the wiring and inverters should be standard equipment on every unit built – not optional.
6. Offer more contemporary interior design choices. A recent study says that half of under-40s remodelled their units within two years of purchase. We like different.
7. Every unit built should be four-season capable. We don’t run from snow – we run to it.
8. Install WiFi – good WiFi – in every RV, standard.
9. Think about our kids. For instance, motor homes need anchor points on the couch/dinette for car seats, and designed spots for baby gates to keep kids out of sensitive areas.
10. Pet Friendly. A secure spot for water and food bowls. Tie-downs for crates, a spot to latch a leash outside, etc.

After this presentation, I found myself thinking, sure, I’d agree with most of this stuff. Certainly, the addition of standard WiFi and solar panels. I also like decor choices. The phone thing – not so much. but then that’s just me.

In the meantime, walking the show floor, I saw that the RV industry has already picked up on a few of the points asked for by these futurists, and they are quickly building for, and selling to, this growing market segment. In fact, it’s estimated that 30 million Millennials (North American number) will/do RV.

What else? In general, the trend to smaller, lighter trailers continues, thanks to the extensive use of aluminum. This has been a direction that we’ve tracked for years now, but what’s changed is the off-road capability of these trailers. The other factor that I need to slip in here is that this generation is much more likely to want to tow with smaller SUVs and cars/wagons; so weight matters.

Another advance comes from Mercedes, that introduced a factory 4WD system as an option in its Sprinter (for commercial use) three years ago. Now we are seeing this platform being used by the Class B builders.

Truck Campers, in general, have spent the last decade getting larger and adding content. However, the resulting weight gain started to restrict their use. Last year I saw the first of a new generation of lightweights aimed at the newest midsize trucks from Toyota and GM. Now there are several models available.

A couple of years ago, we first saw several vintage or nostalgic trailer designs being offered. That trend has grown and now there are several manufacturers offering multiple models. So, I think, much like the show “Happy Days” appealed to kids in the 1970s who had never lived through the ‘50s, these trailers attract folks too young to have had any experience with the original trailers. What they like is the uniqueness of them – but with all the modern conveniences.

In summary, the RV industry is thriving. The market continues to grow, and with the rise of the next generation – and their unique wants – it follows that we will be offered more design variations of trailers, motor homes and fifth-wheels. Choice is good.