Family RV Center Putting Customers First
Texas Dealer Prides Itself As A Family Business First And Foremost That Always Looks For Ways To Get Better For Its Clients
The simple name comes from the simple idea: family first. Family RV Center in Sweetwater, Texas started as a family business and is still run that way to the core. “Number one,” says Gabe Cherry, one of the family owners, “Is I want you to come away with is the knowledge that you have the relationship with your RV dealer. That you have a guy you can call when you need help.” This model of business is the foundation of Family RV Center. They aim to make sure customers have the best experience possible and know everything they need to know to get on the road. “We have lost business due to how much we put into each customer,” explains Albert Noffsinger, Director of Marketing, who also acts as salesman when needed.
Sweetwater is a town of 10,000 people out in the middle of West Texas. There isn’t much else around. Family RV wants to make their dealership as the go-to dealer for people from all over. They do this by going out of their way to make sure customers are happy.
The demographic they deal with are all over and tend to change with the seasons. “During the summer, we get a lot of families coming in looking for bunkhouses,” Noffsinger says, “And now it is shifting to snowbirds.” Snowbirds typically look for big RVs to live in - fifth wheelers with large living areas. “The bumper pulls are actually starting to match the fifth wheels so more people are buying those,” Noffsinger says, “But we still lean towards fifth wheels.”
Another trend they see is millennials buying campers. “A lot of people bash millennials, but they are just traveling, working and living,” explains Noffsinger. In the West, there are a lot of jobs that require young people to move from place to place. “A good portion of business is customers chasing work in the oil industry, or wind power, or solar,” Noffsinger explains, “So a lot of them end up here. And when they walk in here we don’t judge them. We help them find an RV that fits their needs just like everyone else.”
An interesting aspect to the way Family RV does business is to provide a way to get repeat customers. A lot of the campers they sell lose significant value after about 4 years so Family RV offers the option to trade in the camper and upgrade to another one. “We always encourage our customers to pay more than the minimum on financing,” explains Noffsinger, “That way in a few years they will be able to trade it in for something better. They come in with their old camper and we trade them out and have them back on the road within 24 hours.”
Family RV’s long term goal is to expand, but first they want they want to continue working on their location now. Grant Cherry, the youngest brother and owner, says, “Everyday we want to get better for our customers.” They want to make their destination in Sweetwater a destination for customers. “There really isn’t nothing between here and El Paso, so we want people to come here for their RV,” explains Noffsinger.
The way they are accomplishing that is trying to stay ahead of the curve. Though they are a smaller dealership, they utilize technology in a variety of ways to make their web presence accessible to a variety of demographics. “The Cherry’s would say they are not very tech savvy,” chuckles Noffsinger, “But that is why I am here.” Noffsinger started a photography business in the military and when he got home he looked for opportunities to do photography. “I looked for a lot of different jobs and was hired as a contractor with Family RV,” Noffsinger says. He ended up getting hired full time and now makes commercials, documentaries, virtual tours, and updates social media for the dealership. “The virtual tours we do are more advanced than the manufacturers,” he says.
Family RV Center is continuing to grow and get a better online presence, however, RV selling is a memory making business so growing their family, which they extend from blood, to employees, to customers, is their primary goal. Gabe Cherry says, “It’s such a joy to meet that new person and to know that I can serve their RV needs better than anyone else.”
Andrew Malo
A graduate of Northeastern Illinois University in Education, Andrew has taught for the past decade in Chicago, New Mexico, and Japan. He enjoys tinkering with trucks and motorcycles, woodworking, reading and computer programming.
Make Sure To Stay At:
Campers Paradise RV Park, which features a sparkling swimming pool, a large clubhouse for activities, a covered observation deck near the pool, horse corrals for traveling equestrians and a large covered stage ideal for entertainment.