by Alice Scarsi
Good news coming from the leisure vehicle market, which shows a double-digit increase in sales
Figures released today by the National Caravan Council (NCC) reveal a double-digit increase in the sales of new touring caravan and in motorhome registrations in 2014 and illustrate that more young buyers are entering the market.
The findings are extremely encouraging, with new motorhome registrations increasing by 18 per cent year-on-year while sales of new touring caravans almost reached double-digits, with an increase of 9.2 per cent year-on-year.
For both type of leisure vehicles, October 2014 proved to be the busiest month, with sales of touring caravans raising by 22 per cent whilst registrations of new motorhomes shot up by 18 per cent compared with October 2013. NCC data indicates that during 2014 a total of 21,379 new touring caravans and 8,733 motorhomes were sold and registered with the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA).
In an interesting twist, the number of young families and groups of young friends buying new caravans and motorhomes is also on the increase. The findings follow the NCC’s recent collaboration with The Caravan Club and The Camping and Caravanning Club to launch a new promotional campaign called Freedom to go, more information of which can be found here.
Confirming the trend in younger people stepping into the outdoor leisure market, Mark Bebb, managing director of award winning Shrewsbury based dealer Salop Leisure, said: “We’ve noticed that the average caravan user is younger than they were just a few years ago. There is a rising group of young consumers in their twenties and thirties – we’ve seen a 30 per cent increase from this group over the last three years – who’ve realised that the industry has moved forward and they’re embracing the reality provided by this leisure option, which is all about fun, freedom and adventure.”
Jenny Summers, NCC group marketing director, added: “It is incredibly positive to see that sales of touring caravans and motorhome registrations increased so much in 2014 as it demonstrates that more people are discovering the benefits that touring in a caravan or motorhome brings. It also shows that consumer confidence is returning to the market, many exhibitors at our Motorhome & Caravan Show 2014 reported record sales, and we hope for this trend to continue at our Caravan, Camping & Motorhome Show in February this year.”
Caravanning continues to remain a British success story, with more than 95 per cent of touring caravans and 60 per cent of motorhomes manufactured within the UK. Tourists spent over £2.4 billion on caravan holidays across Great Britain in 2013 and, according to Visit England, more than 51 million nights are being spent in caravans each year. The industry as a whole contributes more than £6 billion a year to the UK economy.
