Heartland Recreational Vehicles, LLC

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Factory Tour We always enjoy touring factories and watching how things are made. Over the years we have toured a teddy bear factory, Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream factory, the Tabasco factory, a whiskey distillery, and a cheese factory, to name a few. Since Elkhart is the center of the RV industry, we decided to tour an RV factory. Heartland Recreational Vehicles is a new advertiser in the Gypsy Journal, and Scott Tuttle in their marketing department had invited us to stop by and take a look at their operation, so we called Scott and arranged a tour while we were in town. Heartland is a new company formed by some veterans of the RV industry who had a vision to do things differently, and Scott told me they were committed to building a quality fifth wheel that was built for the needs of fulltime RVers. During our telephone conversations, I had repeated to Scott the statement I have made in these pages and during my seminars at RV rallies across the country, that the biggest problem with the RV industry is the poor quality of most of the RVs on the road.

Prewire allows RV owners to custom pick the specific model of their choice achieving Heartland’s ‘No Compromise’ mission BURLINGTON, Iowa – (August 10, 2011) – Heartland RV, prides itself in designing and building some of the most innovative, luxurious, fifth-wheel recreational vehicles in the market to meet the “no compromise” type of customers that choose Heartland. This is no different with antennas. Today, Heartland RV announced its decision to partner with Winegard to prewire for TRAV’LER antennas on two of its 2012 models; the Bighorn and Landmark. “Heartland RV chose to prewire for TRAV’LER antennas because Winegard has earned a solid reputation in the RV industry for reliability and unmatched antenna performance,” said Kary Katzenberger, Heartland RV Bighorn/Landmark general manager. “Since the antennas are provider specific, we do not want to make that choice for our customers; so instead we decided to do the next best thing and prewire the RVs for units, making them easier to install at the dealership.

Thor Industries Inc. has bought a controlling interest in Elkhart, Ind.-based Heartland Recreational Vehicles LLC. The purchase price is $200 million.Heartland logo The acquisition, Thor’s first major purchase since 2005 and just two weeks after its 30th anniversary, has been rumored for several days. Catterton Partners, a leading consumer-focused private equity firm in North America, today (Sept. 17) announced that it sold its controlling stake in Heartland for cash and stock. Heartland recorded sales the last 12 months in excess of $400 million. Under Thor’s ownership, Heartland RV will continue to operate under the Heartland name and will maintain its current brand portfolio.

Heartland Recreational Vehicles LLC announced Monday I(March 29) that it will expand its operations in Elkhart, Ind., creating up to 265 new jobs by 2013, according to a state government news release. The company, which manufactures fifth-wheel, lightweight and extended stay RVs, will invest more than $2.6 million to purchase and equip a 125,000-square-foot manufacturing facility formerly used by Damon Corp. Heartland announced in February that it has purchased the remaining trademarks of the towable brands of Fleetwood Enterprises Inc., which filed for bankruptcy protection in 2009. “Elkhart’s recreational vehicle industry continues to show resilience in the face of a tough national economy,” said Mitch Roob, Indiana’s secretary of commerce and CEO of the Indiana Economic Development Corp. “Heartland’s investment further proves that Elkhart’s traditional industries will play an equal part with emerging sectors in bringing new opportunities to this region.” Heartland Recreational Vehicles, which employs more than 900 workers, plans to begin hiring additional manufacturing and supervisory associates immediately as the new product lines are phased in.

Battered by the recession, there’s more news that Elkhart, Ind., is on the mend, according to the South Bend Tribune. Heartland Recreational Vehicles LLC, a manufacturer of RVs and travel trailers, said late Monday (March 28) it will expand its operations in Elkhart, creating up to 265 new jobs by 2013. The announcement came in a press release from the Indiana Economic Development Corp. Heartland Recreational Vehicles, which manufactures fifth-wheel, lightweight and extended-stay RVs, will invest more than $2.6 million to purchase and equip a 125,000-square-foot manufacturing plant, according to the release. Heartland announced in February that it purchased the remaining trademarks of the towable brands of Fleetwood Enterprises, which filed for bankruptcy protection in 2009. Heartland Recreational Vehicles, which employs 1,050 people in Elkhart County, plans to begin hiring additional manufacturing and supervisory personnel immediately as the new product lines are phased in.

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