Tiffin Acquired by Thor for 300mil.

[jorbill2or]

Wow so they all fall to the big boy fall out. Kinda sad to see all the owner brands fall to the big corporate groups. I see they got Van Leigh also.
Guess Bob and family can finally retire.

[Wikel]

When looking to move into a Class A, I looked at Tiffin and others. Every Tiffin I saw on the lot had glaring paint and interior defects which should have NEVER left the factory. I had heard good things about Tiffin but what I saw was pathetic at best. IMO the "quality" of Tiffin was gone long before the Thor purchase.

[dougrainer]

MrWizard wrote:
I realize that as boomers we are addicted to TV
Maybe Bob Tiffin doesn't share that addiction
And has an affinity for travel and outdoors and considers the TV less important

Merry Christmas

Bob Tiffin has NO COMPUTER. His Admin prints out and gives him the email and PC related communications. Doug

[MrWizard]

I realize that as boomers we are addicted to TV
Maybe Bob Tiffin doesn't share that addiction
And has an affinity for travel and outdoors and considers the TV less important

Merry Christmas

[ncrowley]

steelhunter wrote:
Maybe the Thor designers will show Tiffin how to configure a floorplan that allows for TV viewing without neck twisting like an owl.

Wow - do I agree with that one! There are very few Tiffin floor plans I would even consider given the horrible TV placement.

[dodge_guy]

steelhunter wrote:
Maybe the Thor designers will show Tiffin how to configure a floorplan that allows for TV viewing without neck twisting like an owl.

As long as it's not over the dinette so I can't watch or hear the TV if someone is sitting there!

[azdryheat]

Sad part, and I work in the industry, is Thor's reputation for building cheap junk is now associated with Tiffin.

[Bruce_Brown]

dougrainer wrote:
Thor, like Berkshire/Hathaway, does NOT buy companies that are distressed or need help. They buy companies they feel are already run by good management. They do NOT replace senior people. Per the deal, Bob Tiffin and existing management will continue operating the company. Tiffin quality has gone down as Bob Tiffin, did not want to expand his work Force after the 2008 melt down. They are pushing out units as fast as they can with their existing work force and will pay the Dealers to fix problems they miss in Red Bay. Bob Tiffin regretted the amount of people he had to lay off from the 2008 melt down. When Thor purchase Jayco, NOTHING was done to change their people or management. Doug

6-7 years ago Berkshire/Hathaway bought a bunch of local family owned car dealerships. The original family had a 5 year deal where their name still was on the building and they still ran most of the day-to-day operations.

The deal has now expired and Berkshire/Hathaway recently sold the dealerships to a Megadealer - the big are getting bigger, competition is shrinking, the consumer is losing.

Many of the long term employees are also moving on.

I suspect the same will happen here.

[GDS-3950BH]

dougrainer wrote:

gemsworld wrote:

dougrainer wrote:
When Thor purchase Jayco, NOTHING was done to change their people or management. Doug

And your point is? You don't think Thor is going to tell management of acquired companies what to do and how to run the business? I've seen RVs made prior to Thor acquiring a company and the same RVs made after Thor's acquisition. The drop in quality was glaring.

1. I work for a Dealer that sells Airstream/Jayco and Tiffin. ALL have been purchased by Thor
2. I DEAL with all 3 companies almost daily and the Employees tell me not one thing was changed after Thor purchased them
3. I have known Bob Tiffin for 41 years. We have been a Tiffin dealer for 45 years. Doug

So what, all of that means nothing regarding what Thor will do in the future. Thor bought out Dutchmen, rolled the support over to the Keystone division, which effectively amounted to no support at all. The guys who were instrumental in starting Keystone sold out to Thor, then left and started Grand Design. Then they sold that out to Winnebago and Grand Design then became garbage, at least a bigger pile of it than was at the beginning. Fleetwood bought out Coleman, then they drove the quality down and went belly up, were bought out by FCTA, and only lasted 2 years after that. History repeats itself no matter how long you've been an RV tech or who you know.

I drank at a bar one night with Bob Seger, and stayed at a Holiday Inn Express.

[obgraham]

I await someone telling me of any RV manufacturer whose product quality improved by selling out to a bigger outfit.

[Lwiddis]

Quality will remain the same as long the checks keep arriving at Thor monthly and in full.

[Community Alumni]

dougrainer wrote:

gemsworld wrote:

dougrainer wrote:
When Thor purchase Jayco, NOTHING was done to change their people or management. Doug

And your point is? You don't think Thor is going to tell management of acquired companies what to do and how to run the business? I've seen RVs made prior to Thor acquiring a company and the same RVs made after Thor's acquisition. The drop in quality was glaring.

1. I work for a Dealer that sells Airstream/Jayco and Tiffin. ALL have been purchased by Thor
2. I DEAL with all 3 companies almost daily and the Employees tell me not one thing was changed after Thor purchased them
3. I have known Bob Tiffin for 41 years. We have been a Tiffin dealer for 45 years. Doug

No one has ever accused Thor of upping the quality in the RV brands they acquire, just the opposite. I have a good friend who's been a master RV tech for decades and gets to the see the good, the bad and the ugly that most of us will never see, and he keeps me informed of what's happening in the industry. As a seasoned RV owner having purchased several new RVs throughout the years I know quality when I see it or when it's missing. As an RV enthusiast, I go to RV shows regularly and take a look at almost every single RV in display, from tiny teardrop trailers to million dollar plus diesel pushers. I have yet to be impressed with anything made by Thor.

[fx2tom]

I'd bet you'll see more and more independent manufacturers cashing on soon. If 2008 is any indication the smaller guys take the hardest hits during downturns and even those bought or backed by private equity groups take some hard hits. Alfa Leisure is a great example. Very strong heritage with the Crean family, sold to a private equity group and ultimately bit the dust in 2008. Tiffin was smart.

[BurbMan]

Option B is to squeeze the lemon harder on your own until there's nothing left, like Elvie Frey did with Sunnybrook. After building a great reputation for aluminum-framed and filon-sided RVs that were top quality, he brought out the Sunset Creek stick-and-tin brand to drive volume, and the quality sacrifices killed the whole company.

Lantley is right, either way it's no bueno for the consumer.

[Lantley]

dougrainer wrote:

gemsworld wrote:

dougrainer wrote:
When Thor purchase Jayco, NOTHING was done to change their people or management. Doug

And your point is? You don't think Thor is going to tell management of acquired companies what to do and how to run the business? I've seen RVs made prior to Thor acquiring a company and the same RVs made after Thor's acquisition. The drop in quality was glaring.

1. I work for a Dealer that sells Airstream/Jayco and Tiffin. ALL have been purchased by Thor
2. I DEAL with all 3 companies almost daily and the Employees tell me not one thing was changed after Thor purchased them
3. I have known Bob Tiffin for 41 years. We have been a Tiffin dealer for 45 years. Doug

I'll give you my history. Jayco purchased Open Range. Thor purchased Jayco. When my 2012 Open Range unit had a major frame issue. Jayco, Thor, Jayco and Highland all denied responsibility.
Randy Graber the founder of Open Range lacked the authority to stand behind his product.
Had the buyouts never happened I am confident OR would have repaired my frame however under the Thor umbrella I was told the Open Range company doesn't exist anymore.
Tiffin owners beware the buyout allows Thor to assume the brand and all the goodwill that comes with it. However the are absolved of any liabilities and responsibility of the old (original) company.
In the end the consumer loses. Especially, if you purchased from the original company before the buyout!
At some point the new Thor Tiffin's begin to roll out and everyone pretends the original Tiffin company never existed. New Thor favorable policies will be put into place and the original Tiffin company fades away. Despite all the marketing jargon and claims that Tiffin will remain the same. There will be a new management hierarchy and Tiffin never be the same.
Unfortunately I've seen this show before, the re-runs don't get any better for the consumer.