DLL Captures Global Market Opportunity

While ITR Economics is forecasting that 2021 will be the strongest year in the history of the North American RV business, record RV sales also are anticipated around the world.

DLL has been watching this market segment from a global perspective over the past three years now, which is precisely why we now offer commercial finance programs in North America, Europe and Australia.

Chicago-based Aritzon Advisors & Intelligence issued a 305-page market analysis last summer predicting that North American RV sales would continue to grow at a combined annual growth rate of 7% from $19.81 billion in 2019 to $29.72 billion in 2025.

Meanwhile, Arizton projects RV sales in Europe will grow at an annual rate of 6.23% during the same period, from $16.69 billion to $23.99 billion, while RV sales in the Asia Pacific region, which includes Australia and New Zealand, are expected to increase at an annual rate of 11.97% from $2.77 billion to $5.45 billion. 

But while the pandemic certainly fuels unprecedented interest in the RV lifestyle as consumers around the world search for the safest and most secure ways to travel, DLL made a strategic decision to provide financing for the RV industry in North America, Europe, Australia and New Zealand before the pandemic hit. 

Based in The Netherlands, DLL is a highly diversified global asset finance company with a managed portfolio of roughly $42 billion. The Rabobank owned company has been providing financing for RV dealers and manufacturers in Australia and New Zealand since December 2018, including Apollo, Australia’s largest fleet of campervans and motorhomes.  The DLL team decided soon after that to expand its provision of financial services for the RV industry to North America and Europe.  

DLL has already secured agreements with Forest City, Iowa-based Winnebago Industries to provide floorplan financing for dealers of Winnebago, Grand Design and Newmar RV-branded products anywhere in North America. DLL has also inked a similar agreement for Kelowna, British Columbia-based Northern Lite, which manufactures high-end fiberglass truck campers as well as Forest River, Inc. a Berkshire Hathaway Company. 

But while DLL is gradually making inroads into the North American RV finance market, we are cognizant of the fact that growing our business base in the RV industry will take time as our representatives meet with dealers and manufacturers and work to establish healthy business relationships.

Some lenders try to break into the recreational vehicle business with attractive financing terms. But the RV business is a well banked industry. Most dealers and manufacturers already have reasonable credit terms in place. That’s not to say that every existing floorplan finance relationship is perfect, however. 

We also know that savvy dealers and manufacturers reevaluate their finance relationships every three or four years to see if there are any finance providers who could service their needs with greater flexibility and higher levels of service. As those reassessments take place, we want dealers and manufacturers to know who we are and that we are fully committed to provide world class financial services to the RV industry long-term. 

Consumer demand for RVs is cyclical and can be sharply affected by a variety of economic factors that have nothing to do with merits of camping itself. Our team is mindful of the severe contraction in the RV industry that took place between 2007 and 2009, when North American RV shipments declined 53%, from 353,400 to 165,700, according to RVIA statistics. 

We know that roughly a third of North America’s RV manufacturers went out of business during the recession of 2007 to 2009, which also took a devastating toll on dealers, many of whom were caught with too much inventory when the economy tumbled. We are also well aware of the lenders who fled the RV business when conditions became more challenging, even prominent lenders with multinational name recognition.

DLL, however, has made a long-term commitment to provide financing for the RV industry not just during the good times, but during challenging times as well. We view our business relationships as partnerships. 

We have more than half a century of experience providing commercial financial services for manufacturers and dealers of equipment and technology critical to nearly a dozen other industries, including agriculture, food processing, construction, transportation, industrial manufacturing, as well software and technology. 

We have been able to provide funding for industries that are cyclical in nature, for example in the food and agriculture space which is seasonal and similar to the financing cycles in the RV space. 

We have intimate knowledge of the business fundamentals and market factors that shape multiple industries and we use that knowledge to help dealers and manufacturers to maximize their business potential through each market cycle. 

North American dealers and manufacturers will be hearing more about DLL in the coming months. You can expect to see our representatives at events listed on https://www.dllgroup.com/rv.

We look forward to using our expertise and providing our best insights to help dealers and manufacturers make their best business decisions during these unprecedented times.