SNOWBIRD, Utah — Airstream has been through many ups and downs in its 95 years, so dealer partners should rest assured the Jackson Center, Ohio-based subsidiary of THOR Industries can handle the current “squishy market.”
Those were the words of Airstream President Bob Wheeler during his presentation to open the 2026 Airstream Dealer Meeting, which concludes today at the Snowbird Resort located just outside Salt Lake City, Utah.
“Look, we’ve been doing this for 95 years; this is not our first cycle,” Wheeler said. “Even in my tenure at Airstream, this is the third time we’ve been through a downturn. We know we can weather any economic storm. And these latest things are just little ripples in the pond and nothing we can’t overcome. It’s not our first cycle and it won’t be our last; we’re in great shape.
“So what do we do? What’s our most sacred responsibility as a manufacturer? It’s to protect the brand value,” he continued. “Why do you think customers are willing to pay what they pay for an Airstream? The only reason they’re willing to pay what they pay is it represents something more than its function. You can buy an RV for a lot less money. But that extra value is all tied up in the power of the brand.”
The power of the brand is secured in several ways, Wheeler explained, including the OEM’s continued use of the “scarcity model” in which Airstream produces fewer units than the combined dealer orders in order to keep the brand’s appeal at a premium.
Other factors, he mentioned, include company-wide innovation in processes and products, continuously attracting people to the Airstream brand, a firm commitment to quality that includes the supply chain, and supporting dealers in their pursuit of success.
In addition to Wheeler and presentations from several other Airstream executives as well as THOR Industries President & CEO Bob Martin, the Dealer Meeting also featured a handful of breakout sessions to provide more detailed information, a trade exhibit that included several dozen of the company’s component suppliers and financial service partners and, serving as a fitting conclusion to the event, was the annual dealer awards ceremony (see: “Blue Compass Receives Top Honors at Airstream Dealer Meeting” for related coverage).
Airstream Presentations
Among the other presenters was Chief Operating Officer Bryan Melton, who touched on a number of Airstream’s internal accomplishments that included establishing a Five Rivet program to recognize supplier excellence, mirroring the Five Rivet status bestowed to top dealers.
Melton also highlighted the company’s “culture of innovation,” a speed-to-market approach that now incorporates dealer support materials and training, and new and ongoing task forces, AI adoption and data analytics that support its continuous improvement processes.
“So, from the operations side,” he said, “supply chain has been restructured. Upstream quality is embedded. Production discipline is tightened. Our factory is running leaner, engineering is moving faster, and every unit leaving Jackson Center is held to a higher standard than the one before it. It’s not a plan; progress is already going on today.”
Vice President of Sales Josh Fonner also touched on a number of key areas, including Airstream’s astonishingly high Net Promoter Scores, the fact that the 40 Airstream Exclusive stores now represent 50% of the manufacturer’s dealer base and almost 70% of its overall sales, and highlights of the 2027 model year lineup.
In fact, for 2027 Airstream is introducing the Trade Wind 27, World Traveler 17, new Willow Green and Canvas Cream décor for the Flying Cloud, Rangeland PL (Premier Loft), Atlas RT Tommy Bahama Edition, and a new Stonehaven décor for the Atlas and Interstate. Two concept vehicles were also on display, and Fonner added that Airstream has standardized many options to make it easier for the customer.
While mentioning that last month was the best retail month for Airstream motorized in the last two years, Fonner concluded by asking dealers to focus on a few upcoming milestones.
“You have the opportunity to capitalize on something bigger than any of us, the Airstream brand. The brand is 95 years old this year, and this coming Saturday is not only the 250th anniversary of the birthday of the United States, it’s also the 130th anniversary of the birthday of the man that founded this American icon, Wally Byam,” he said. “You have a tremendous opportunity and responsibility to build and create what this company is going to be for the next 95 years.”
For her part, Airstream Chief Marketing Officer Mollie Hansen shared a video that recapped the many achievements by Airstream this past year including media coverage, digital impressions, a new website, the collaboration with Stetson 6666, the growing popularity of the Airstream Heritage Center at the “Mothership” in Ohio, and the successful ongoing launch of Camp Airstream owner rallies, which Airstream will look to involve dealers in 2027.
Dealer Feedback
At least one dealer in attendance was pleased with what he saw and heard during the Dealer Meeting. JT Wamsley, general manager of Airstream Ventura, one of the afore mentioned 40 Airstream exclusive stores, said he “loved it.”
“It was awesome. It’s a beautiful location. Always great seeing the same people, but getting back with them and seeing how everything’s going throughout the year with all the people that I met last year,” Wamsley told RVBusiness in between breakout sessions. “I’m fairly new. It’s my second year here with Airstream and we’ve got two stores. One’s in Chandler, that’s our sister store. It’s called We Are Airstream Chandler. But yeah, the dealer meeting was beautiful here. It’s a beautiful setting.”
He added that, despite the downturn, his store has been doing just fine selling and servicing Airstreams.
“Yeah, we’re doing really well. There’s months that I could feel the pressure, but last month was awesome. We had a great month,” Wamsley said. “I’ve been in the business for 30-some years and you can definitely feel the squishiness as Bob would put it, but I think we can work through it. No problems. It’s all going to work out.
“I mean, I’ve been through way worse than this,” he continued. “This is a little blip on the radar right now. I think it’s going to clean out a lot of (manufacturers) that don’t have the fortitude that Airstream does by any means. And it needs to be cleaned out a little bit, I think. It’s gotten to be too many builders and they’re not doing what they’re supposed to do. They’re building bad product. Airstream doesn’t do that. We’ll see that in the end.”
