Marcus wrote: “The model of best practice, better known as “plagarism” is the best busines model. Fault them for that?? I think not.”

Our trusted dictionaries will tell us that plagiarism is something that most business people do not partake in; the meaning of which is: “the unauthorized use or close imitation of the language and thoughts of another author and the representation of them as one’s own original work.”

Best practice is just that - the best business practices that are proven, time-tested, and ethical for all parties including customers, suppliers, dealers, and manufacturers.

The Winnebago and Thor examples are excellent, but I don’t think Bruce Hertzke, Wade Thompson and Peter Orthwein would want their business success tied to Marcus’s interpretation of how we do business in this country, and in this industry.

Fleetwood would do well to emulate Winnebago and Thor during this rebuilding initiative, but I don’t think Mr. Eskritt has any intention of stooping to plagiarism to achieve his goals!

Plagiarism is not “the best business model” at Winnebago and Thor, and I don’t think it will be at Fleetwood.

As for Freedom Roads and Camping World ….. we’ll just leave that one alone for now!

Kudos, and good luck. Our 1.6 billion of sales and 36,000 units sold a year will continue to support you.

At the end of the day, whether we like it or not; whether we agree with it or not, you must congratulate Paul Eskritt for having the guts to address the issue head-on and explain Fleetwood’s decision, including the bad timing associated with it.

I agreee with Greg with respect to the signficant turnaround at Fleetwood. This was not an easy task as anyone that follows the company can attest. They are still in the process of regaining customer confidence in their products and restoring damaged relationships with many of their dealers, but they are doing it. You just can’t turn an ocean liner in the same amount of space as a speedboat, no matter how hard you try.

Time will tell if they can comde all the way back to their former stature, but at least they are going in the right direction. The new management team should be given more than a few months to work miracles with the damaged goods they inherited from those who preceeded them.

We can at least take comfort in the fact that they are technology proficient and well aware of the role that the Internet will play in their company’s future. They read and respond when others run and hide under their desks!

Thank you for your candid thoughts on the recent changes in our travel trailer division. I would like to take this opportunity to respond to a few of the points you brought up.

First, let me start by saying that the decision to wind down operations at our three U.S. travel trailer plants was very difficult, especially when considering the length of service of our dedicated associates and how long we’ve operated in each of the communities. Although this was a painful course of action, it was a necessary step to become profitable in a very competitive market. One piece of good news is that our motor home plant in Riverside, Ca. has significant hiring needs and it is our hope to place many of our Rialto associates at this location.

As for our new facility in Mexicali, which will start production on our Pioneer and Mallard products in May, I will admit that the timing of our announcement was unfortunate. Regardless, its opening is not related to the U.S. plant closures. In fact, none of our U.S. plants recently affected by the decrease in operations produced Pioneer and Mallard.

Our plans to open a manufacturing center in Mexicali began over two years ago, during which time we were extremely impressed with the diversity of companies that have facilities in the region (General Dynamics, Kenworth, Black & Decker and Sony, to name a few), as well as the quality of the people.

Mexicali is also home to several accredited universities. In fact, our new facility’s entire management and supervisory teams are made up of degreed graduates from Mexicali’s university system, who have also participated in seven weeks of intensive training held at our manufacturing facilities in the Pacific Northwest.

In response to your comments about bribes, kickbacks, and corrupt government officials… this is simply not true. Fleetwood and the hundreds of other U.S. companies operating in the maquiladora areas of Mexico and elsewhere in the world must and will comply with the stringent requirements of the Foreign Corrupt Policies Act (FCPA). As a result of FCPA and NAFTA, the Mexican officials whom we deal with do not participate in any corrupt activities. Although there may be previous history of such activities in some areas of Mexico, we have not experienced any situation that would compromise our business values or otherwise force us to reconsider our decision to expand our operations into Mexicali.

As always, we are 100% committed to providing products of high quality and superior value; and we appreciate your support and encourage your feedback.

Sincerely,
Paul Eskritt
Executive Vice President – RV Group
Fleetwood Enterprises, Inc.

When I entered the RV industry in 2000, one of the first shows I went to was the Fleetwood dealer days event. At that show, I remember sitting at a table when a corporate suit stood up and announced the firm would be opening corporate dealerships around the country. Three dealers at my table tossed down their pens and announced they would rather liquidate their Fleetwood inventory than compete against the company.

From 2000 to 2003, the company struggled with product quality and direction. But I truly think that has changed. Fleetwood’s product managers are brilliant men with tremendous long-term vision. They are true innovators in bringing product to market. This company listens to consumers. They offer dealers a first class marketing program. Their team focus approach to production ensures that communication flows quickly up and down the chain.

These are positive fundamentals that can’t easily be dismissed. Why do they continue to lose money? I honestly don’t know. To me, the products appear to be excellent. Dealers tell me they back their products well and treat their dealers right. Anytime in the past two years, when I’ve talked to consumers about their RVs, I don’t think I have ever heard someone make a negative comment about a Fleetwood product.

The only beef I have with Fleetwood — and I mean ONLY — is their decision to close American plants to move production to Mexico. If you read my original post, I even mentioned several scenarios in which I could agree with the firm’s decision to launch production in Mexico.

Back in 2000 or 2001, Winnebago stock traded as low as $11 a share. That didn’t make sense to me because that firm also demonstrated solid fundamentals. Within two years, Winnebago stock was trading at $70 a share before splitting.

I see the same thing happening to Fleetwood, just not in Mexico.

Ted Williams is my hero, and the only guy who could have done a movie on his life would have been John Wayne! Ted wouldn’t stand for this stuff either, and wouldn’t be quiet about it.

We, as a country, and not free of blame though. Our corporate structure and welfare mentality have contributed to the sitautations that cause companies to close plants rather than work out issues between management and workers. The most important people in our companies are the worker bees that make the products, not the executives that watch from above. We must start treating these people with respect and they must start earning it. It should be a two way street, but it isn’t. Right now it’s only going one way, and that’s out of the country. If we dont find and solve the root of the problem, these stories will be the norm and not the exception.