EDITOR’S NOTE: Twice a month RVBusiness will post an “RVWA Spotlight,” which will highlight a member of the RV Women’s Alliance in each instance. Provided by RVWA, the member spotlight series interviews many of the women who make up the RV industry, highlighting how they got into the industry, what they currently do, and advice for other women. The series also dives deeper to better understand these women and what drives them both in and outside the industry.
Nicole Armstrong – Changing The Way Buyers Finance RV’s
Nicole Armstrong began her career with Priority One Financial Services (owned by Forest River) and has advanced over the past 14 years to the role of VP of Corporate Initiatives as well as VP of the Sales & Marketing Department. Under her leadership, the Priority One team partners with RV dealers to connect customers with the financing they need. Always with an eye towards innovation, she is working on new initiatives including financing kiosks in dealer showrooms. The kiosks make it easier than ever for customers to fill out a credit application, while enhancing security, convenience, and communication. Kiosks are just one part of a full suite of digital innovations for Priority One – making financing easy from the moment a customer steps foot into the dealership through the time they hit the road with their new RV.
A native Floridian, Nicole actually left Indiana to head back to Florida to start her career with Priority One. It was the family atmosphere of the industry that drew her to the RV industry, and she loves how generations of families are still running dealerships.
Cultivating the next generation of the industry is also important to Nicole, and her best advice for anyone looking to advance in the industry is to “do what you do and do it well! And make friends!” As for those looking to get into this industry, her advice is “to be committed for the long haul. Turnover just doesn’t work. You have to be able to say this is an industry that you will be in for a long time.”
Being committed for the long haul will pay off, especially in an industry that is innovating, while also still keeping some of the same wholesome aspects that make each dealership unique and the industry overall a great place to work.
For more on Nicole’s thoughts on the future of the industry, her favorite movie, and what she always has in her refrigerator click the audio player below to listen to the full interview.
