Group scores in RV service market

DENVER — Larry Ulmer uses a Web site to keep in touch with RVing friends, and he used it to discuss plans for the Great North American RV Rally this summer.

The 55-year-old Texan also belongs to Coast to Coast and the Good Sam Club, which together offer discounts, publications and roadside assistance to RVers.

The clubs, the Web site and the RV rally are owned or run by Affinity Group Inc., a private conglomerate of all things service-wise for RV owners.

"To do what you want in this business, you have to go through Affinity Group one way or another," said Dan Holt, publisher of the trade magazine RV News.

The company, based in Ventura, Calif., built its empire by buying stalwarts well-known to RV-ers: the Camping World retail chain of about 30 stores and a catalog business; four clubs, including Coast to Coast and Golf Card, that offer services and discounts on golf courses and campgrounds to about 2 million members; and more than 30 magazines with 5 million readers.

Affinity also has a show on the cable television Outdoor Life Network and an annual rally that this year drew 5,500 RVs.

"All our products revolve around fun for our customers," chief operating officer Mike Schneider said. "It makes it doubly fun to be in the business. We're making people happy. We're providing the mechanism, the means for people to enjoy family vacations and to see North America."

Affinity reported first-quarter revenue of $92.5 million, down by about $4 million from the year before. Net income improved to $3.1 million for the quarter, up from $2.8 million a year ago, ($1.1 million in 2002 after an accounting change), chief financial officer Mark Boggess said.

Boggess attributed the sales decline in part to more conservative marketing efforts, such as narrowing the distribution of Camping World catalogs and fewer discounts.

It was the company's strongest year ever in 2002 despite a lull after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and rising gasoline prices. Affinity reported $431.1 million in sales last year and net income of $12 million. Net income was $600,000 on revenue of $405.4 million in 2001, according to Hoover's Online.

Almost 7 million U.S. households own an RV, a 7.8 percent increase over the past four years, according to the Recreation Vehicle Industry Association, an industry trade group.