NEC Motorhome Show let down

I enjoyed the Show on Tuesday wasnt too busy and got myself a few accessories, my only criticism is the Parking wasnt good for Blue Badge holders compared with last year when the parking was close to the Entrance whereas this year it was a considerable foot slog away.
I guess coz im new too Motorhoming i thought the show was good when I compare it to the Motorcycle show which appears stale to me like the MoHome show is to a lot of people on here, and its a cheap day out again compared with the Motorcycle show where you have to pay £10 for parking a car and well over £20 to get in. I agree the show later in the year appears to be the better show.
 
WE went Tuesday

Bought just two things some Sausages and some stretchy lids

Noticed one thing on some of the stalls selling just one thing - PUSHY Bolshy salesmen who brazenly made really over the top claims of effectiveness of what they were selling

One really made me smirk - selling a puncture repair liquid that THEY come to your house wherever to install it - I told him my tyre fitter refuses to touch a tyre with it in - he said that they guy doesn't know how to use it - - - I Told him thanks but NO thanks - and tried to walk off he wouldn't take no for an answer daft idiot
 
Yeah that was the general feeling at the SECC Glasgow show aswell. The new VED is gonna put people off buying new but even the accessories display was poor.
 
The February show isn't exclusively caravan and motorhomes, but also caters for those who like canvas. But to be honest when I wanted a tent a few years ago, there was a much better, more versatile range at a local dealer's monthly show display. If I'd been looking today for the tent size and type I wanted back then, I'd have been very dissapointed in the show.

But as the show tries to do a bit of everything, it does nothing well. For both MH and tuggers it's not as good as October. But it does also mean that, if you can avoid all of the side show demos of cooking equipment, some of the accessories supply ranges are a bit better by being aimed at a wider market than just those with wheels. Even so I had little sense that there were many good deals to be had

I was there today, more because I had a specific desire to check out a couple of items. I think I only bothered to even stick my head in a couple of MHs. I'd seen those in October. And the one salesman I asked a slightly awkward question of whether the leisure battery charger would suit Gel or Lithium just clammed up.

I doubt I'm going to even have a purpose to go next time round. If I consider it's 2 hours there and back, with cost of fuel, its a good job the ticket is less than a tenner (but only just even if you buy early with discount and yet get charged more than the discount on an dmin fee) and includes parking, or there would be no way I'd go.
 
Went, squeezed the MoHo into two bays south 7 and walked for bloody ages. Some nice MoHo at the show but no real deals to be had.

One dealer offered me £14k part ex for mine against 55k MoHo but took that with a pinch of salt and another dealer gave us 8k part ex against a 25k caravan.

Anyway, came away with a air fryer at £200 cos the misses liked it and I purchased the 4x TyrePal monitor at £75.00.

Food expensive, to many people looking at the same things and no deals about.

Went last year and this year but not again.

Regards.

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VED, looming depression/recession and Covid-19 plus a very windy and flood prone Feb. would have put a lot of people off.
I also can't understand why they'd organise a camping show without any chance of being able to camp there. So I could travel two days through the A14 and M6 roadworks and stay in huge queues instead? Some travel even further. Last year I went there looking and so took the hit, but this year without camping? Not a chance.

Then there's 'show inflation' - the cost of the stand rental etc. keeps going up so there's less point in dealers taking the huge extra time and money hit to drag all their stuff up there - imagine how many they have to sell just to break even, and only then does it start to pay.
 
DuxDeluxe said:
Same here. The only good thing about last time I went was meeting with @GJH and @Debs
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That (October 2016) was the last show (indoor or outdoor) that we went to. The standard had been dropping for some time so it wasn't because we met DuxDeluxe :LOL:
 
Went yesterday, was ok to be fair and had an enjoyable few hours pottering about . Had a v serious look at a WildAx Elara but decided that downsizing wasn’t really for us at the mo . Was v impressed with the new Bailey with the rear bathroom and French bed , v much food for thought !
 
Just got back today was ok, same stuff as last year, bought a tyrepal system, water filtration cleaner and filter and some crocs.
Oh and I’ve seen my lottery van, a layout i said I’d never have, a Frankia I 740 plus (rear lounge) WOW!! Till then my Sonic will do for me?? now I’ve got to save up for a B2B charger from you know where???

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Popped in on Friday as we were passing on route to Milton Keynes from the North. Met a couple of sales people I knew. Big problem for a lot of the dealers is that they do not buy stock in new for the Spring to sit on their forecourts. So when looking at a couple of vans just to see changes I asked the sales team , do you have one in stock, answer no, then asked when can I expect delivery. Carthago - July probably August. Thats the problem with the February show, the dealers cannot get the stock until the end of the Summer. They do not want to tie up their money on stock they may struggle to sell.
 
I know the VED rise is not good for anyone other than the government and I appreciate it will slow sales down but not bring them to a halt but if people are going to spend 40k to 50k or more on a New Motorhome I dont think it will stop them buying, it hasnt stopped me and no im not loaded just in case lol :giggler: when I placed my order Swift covered the 1st year £2135 so my costs have risen by approx £1000 over 5 years thats like the price rise on a new each year, Im sure the industry will find inventive ways around it to tempt more people into buying or the roads will be quieter :giggle:
 
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Had the show figures in today and there were about 87000 visitors, about 2000 down on 2019

A combination of the flu virus and really bad weather probably, but not a significant decrease in visitor numbers

The show was busy for us, we only exhibit at the February & October NEC shows and don't actually sell anything at the show, so we can only look at visitor numbers to judge if a show was good or bad.
 
Not so good if you are a motorhome dealer.

87000 visitors.
Let's say
45 % are Caravanners
5% Tenters
5% mobile homers

Say 40,000 are motorhomers. They are couples
So a max of 20,000 potential buyers
97% of those are just going to have a look

That is just 600 buyers to share around. 100 buyers a day!

Those dealers would be much better off just buying an advert in our magazine :D
 
Jim said:
Not so good if you are a motorhome dealer.

87000 visitors.
Let's say
45 % are Caravanners
5% Tenters
5% mobile homers

Say 40,000 are motorhomers. They are couples
So a max of 20,000 potential buyers
97% of those are just going to have a look

That is just 600 buyers to share around. 100 buyers a day!

Those dealers would be much better off just buying an advert in our magazine :D
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Add to that, prospective buyers should buy local to them for ease of aftersales. So individual dealers would need to hope that the buyers are from their respective areas.
 
eddievanbitz said:
Had the show figures in today and there were about 87000 visitors, about 2000 down on 2019

A combination of the flu virus and really bad weather probably, but not a significant decrease in visitor numbers

The show was busy for us, we only exhibit at the February & October NEC shows and don't actually sell anything at the show, so we can only look at visitor numbers to judge if a show was good or bad.
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Snow , Rain Earth quake down is down, retail always looks for the why nots basically the trend is down no matter how you look at it .
 
C33JAY said:
I know the VED rise is not good for anyone other than the government and I appreciate it will slow sales down but not bring them to a halt but if people are going to spend 40k to 50k or more on a New Motorhome I dont think it will stop them buying, it hasnt stopped me and no im not loaded just in case lol :giggler: when I placed my order Swift covered the 1st year £2135 so my costs have risen by approx £1000 over 5 years thats like the price rise on a new each year, Im sure the industry will find inventive ways around it to tempt more people into buying or the roads will be quieter :giggle:
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Our mh is 2 years old and we like to change and swap lol.
The VED can be negotiated within the deal.
The extra road tax up from 245 to 465 for the first 5 yrs is there for the buyer to suck up.
We wanted to change and order at the show but couldn't stomach the extra road tax. So decided to keep the mh we have as its virtually brand new.
The salesman at the bailey stand said we arent the only ones not to renew due to the extra road tax. Yes we can afford it but dont like the feeling of the tax man having my pants down.
 
Paul & Kate I guess I accept that the Tax man will have his way so too speak and plus I dont like to be stopped buying what I want even if it does cost me :( although I must confess I was tempted to by a used van (cheaper VED) but No Full Automatic available but now Fiat have a 9 speed Auto for the New Euro 6 engines and thats what I have ordered so because the full auto is important to me I had to stomach the increased VED or drive a Manual or comformatic which for me was a No :giggle:

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sally47 said:
For what my two penniworh is worth we go to a couple of the warners shows to meet funster friends stock up with essentials but mostly the entertainment we think it's excellent value
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The nec is a different type of show tbh.
 
Ditcha said:
Snow , Rain Earth quake down is down, retail always looks for the why nots basically the trend is down no matter how you look at it .
Click to expand...
I don’t think that 2000 up or down could be considered a trend to be honest

Despite what people think, the market seems to be buoyant, we are busy, and the couple of local dealers that use our campsite for their customers seem to have van on most nights, and it is of course only February.

At the show Mototrek sold seven vans one morning, according to the fag outside the door trade gossip apparently!
 
The day of the big shows in my view is definitely in decline especially in the UK not just motorhome shows but bike shows, manufacturing shows all getting smaller and smaller, wether our not that equates to lower or higher sales time will tell.

It's the same with the Warner shows people go for the meet rather than the shop where as this used to be the opposite way round.
 
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The NEC types of shows no-longer attract many of the smaller and medium sized businesses for a few reasons.
The cost of standing and staying over is now too high for many.
The venue has so many silly rules and changes them at will without warning.
Having staff there for a week is a big commitment as its expensive and pulls staff away from their normal job.
The shows are early and late season so weather can be bad and you can lose money quite easily even if the forecast is for bad weather and the weather isn't bad.
So many people are happy to to take your time up demonstrating a product at the show and then buy online from a company that is slightly cheaper but only sells online. Then the same penny pinchers complain when they have no support or the shows have fewer traders.

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One of my Sons was three days old at the first Peterborough Show, so as you can imagine we have done a few!

I used to go to the Shepton Mallet show before we started Van Bitz in 1990, and loved it, a real carnival atmosphere, BBQ's fireworks, bands, displays and most importantly the chance to see new stuff, toys and gadgets that you simply didn't see anywhere else or more importantly buy anwhere else

Lyn and I stayed in our camper at the excellent Hollyfast Campsite a few miles away, and with 16amp electric, city water connection and grey and black water on pitch disposal, really enjoyed finishing work and "being away in the van" rather than finishing work and sitting in the NEC carpark, but, it got me thinking that the grey water disposal on a fully serviced pitch we have booked for a trip to Spain, only has a 1" (25mm) connection and American campers have 3" pipes for grey and black disposal

A quick browse around Amazon.com (not the default .co.uk) and the solution of a cap that reduces 3" down to 1" is sourced for about $5 and $4 carriage delivered to the UK

Email this morning telling me it will be delivered to my office today!

Shows are now different, and like the High Street will need to adapt to survive. One thing is sure, Warners et al cannot make money just for charging the camping, so the trade has to be an integral part of any show, it is just working out how?
 
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If Jim's analysis of 100 MH buyers a day is realistic, I'd be fairly confident that many dealers would be quite happy to take that opportunity of potential access to those buyers. Realistically, on their own premises who many genuine buyers would they hope to see in a week or even month?

Even so it must be very difficult to gauge how much a trader'a appearance at a show translates to sales, not just to the MH dealers, but also all of the accessories vendors. If the exhibitors don't see it beneficial they will vote with their feet and not be there. So it's really about what the punters are expecting to see. Yes we are probably going to be a pain and clamber over vans, pick up all sorts of weird gadgets and perhaps ask all sorts of time wasting questions. There will be many who came for a look, take inspiration, and then go on the interweb for the cheapest bargain imitation. Others will go away dwell on it, and may well buy later in the year, either from the trader's own website, or a rival, or even at another show.

I suspect some traders will have considered the NEC Feb a success, others find it a waste of time. Certainly some stands were buzzing. One new to the NEC vendor of very costly collapsible chairs said on Saturday, he didn't know what to expect, had restocked 3 times, and now had an empty warehouse. Having said that, it seemed that one moment for punters you almost couldn't move in the halls, and then suddenly the place emptied out, quite a few hours before closure.

I would suggest therefore the issue is less whether there are exhibitors, but how to create something that punters will continue to be attracted to come and see. A show that tries to do lots of things covering too many facets of outdoors, may be an issue. But, if they can make it attractive and get enough people to attend, there will be enough tempted to part with money.
 
Kannon Fodda said:
If Jim's analysis of 100 MH buyers a day is realistic,
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Hey I've no idea about the actual breakdown, I was just making stuff up to make an advert in our mag sound attractive. :D Yes about half will be caravanners, but most dealers sell caravans too. And it's about flag-waving and brand awareness, lots of the benefits to the trade of attending the show will manifest itself long after the show :D
 
I wonder how many members are like me and never thought of attending a MH show of any sort.

Now if there were a show dedicated to used MHs, instead of just a few dealers having a small number on show sites, then I might be interested, although no doubt they would build the show costs into the price, but that might be cheaper than many of us having to drive 100s of kms to see a few MHs.

I am more likely to attend factory visits, not to buy new but to observe manufacturing techniqies, quality control etc. Although I could probably get most of the info from 'funflair' and others who have done several. I have the advantage of being only about 340km from the German border.

Geoff

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