Fellow Members,
Here in northern California, LaVerne and I are enjoying a few months at home after what’s already been a great Airstream travel season. Since all of you are travelers as well, I thought I’d highlight the nationwide opportunities you can expect as part of the largest, oldest (and best!) RV Club worldwide.
During the last nine months …
- We traveled more than 12,500 miles with ACI.
- We spent 125 nights in our Kawika (Hawaiian for “David”) 30’ Classic Airstream. For the data folks (!) that’s about 44% of year so far.
- We visited ACI friends, attended Local Club events, Region Rallies, a National Event Rally, and of course, the International Rally in Rock Springs, Wyoming.
And after all that, Kawika is now getting a service touch-up with MatthewB, at our local Airstream dealer, Bay Area Airstream Adventures. We think of it like a spa for our Airstream, getting ready for our next trips. Which is the topic of this President’s Corner: Airstream service.
The Airstream Customer Experience and our Airstream Club Experience
I get asked a lot: “…Great news that our Club is partnering more with Airstream, Inc., but what’s the reason why…?”
It’s pretty straightforward: Airstream, Inc. puts an extremely high value on what they call the “Airstream Customer Experience” – essentially marketing, sales, through delivery and post-sales. Our Club has the same view: we provide an essential part of that post-sales experience, and we call it the “Airstream Club Experience”; when the two work together, owners of their Airstreams remain in love not just with their Airstreams, but also with the experience of enjoying them over time as members of our Airstream Club community.
An Inside Perspective of an Airstream Dealer
If you attended our International Rally in Rock Springs, you heard from two Airstream dealers during our opening ceremony: Dennis Decker, CEO of Airstream of Wyoming and Ted Davis, Platform General Manager, Airstream Adventures. Recently Ted sat down with Florence Tramoni, our Region 10 President, to talk about his perspective as 1. a dealer, 2. a member of Airstream Club International and 3. the importance of our Club.
[Click image below to watch video]
Airstream of Minneapolis Open House
Another great example of the partnerships our Regions, Local Clubs and some of the Airstream-centric parks: In early September, Airstream Minneapolis partnered with Region 7, the Minnesota Airstream Club and the Minnesota Airstream Park for an Open House to celebrate the opening of their new facility.
Q&A session with senior executives from Lazydays RV (Airstream of Minneapolis) and Airstream, Inc.
“Airstream, Inc. and Airstream of Minneapolis support Region 7, the Minnesota Airstream Club and the Minnesota Airstream Park by hosting an evening of food, games, and live band entertainment at the MN Airstream Club Fall/Installation Rally on Sept. 9-10. I look forward to continue to work with Airstream of Minneapolis management with their pledge to continue to support the park and club” – Chris Olsson, Region 7 First Vice President, BRN #7827
“What do you get when you have a group of people representing Airstream, Inc., Lazydays RV, Airstream of Minneapolis, Minnesota Airstream Club and Minnesota Airstream Park planning for months to create a multi-location celebratory weekend? An epic weekend of events and a Grand Opening of a newly-rebranded Airstream exclusive dealership that seemed to come together seamlessly. The Airstream Park is just 20 minutes from the new dealership and we all know how important the Airstream Club is to the future of the brand. It was a perfect time and location for a celebration involving all parties.” – Pam Rawn, BRN #9757
Assorted Bits
- Signups are going strong for our Rally2024 in Sedalia, Missouri. After two months of being open for reservations, we have just under 800 Airstreams registered!
- Interested in learning more about travel insurance? Join a Q&A webinar with Joe Lesher CEO of TME Travel Insurance on Wednesday, Oct. 18.
Top Priorities and Initiatives for 2023/2026
Our Club adopted the following five strategic priorities last year during our three-day strategic planning meeting. As the years roll forward, you’ll continue to see the focus of our International Board of Trustees, our Headquarters office and our investments aligned with these priorities. I’ll keep sharing these and we hope these will trickle down beyond the Regions and into our Local Clubs.
- Internal Communications
- External Communications
- Welcome and Retain Members
- Infrastructure
- Training at all Levels
Upcoming International Rallies
- 67th Annual Airstream Club Rally in Sedalia, Missouri (October 2024)
- Press Release: Rally2025 in York, Pennsylvania (August 2025)
That’s it for now!
Looking forward to seeing you all down the road, and let me know if you have ideas for our Club.
Eric McHenry
International President / BRN 153 // Amateur Radio callsign AA6EM
