JUNE 2008: AROUND THE STATE
Monaco hits the brakes and fires 600
COBURG Rising gas
prices and the slowing economy hit Oregon’s largest RV
manufacturer hard in late April, but other companies in
Oregon’s luxury motor home cluster say they’re
doing just fine.
Coburg’s Monaco Coach reported its first- quarter
revenue had plummeted 22% from the year before, $252.4 million
compared to $322.2 million. In response, its stock dropped to a
10-year-low. The company cut 600 jobs, or about 12% of its
workforce, in Oregon and Indiana.
According to Craig Wanichek, director of investor relations,
Monaco doesn’t anticipate more cuts and is developing
lighter, smaller RVs to meet consumer demand for fuel
efficiency.
The economy also is hurting the nation’s non-luxury RV
makers. But at Country Coach in Junction City,
spokeswoman Sherry Fanning says fuel prices are not
affecting the company’s business or marketing plans. Like
Monaco, Country Coach makes RVs that cost more than $1 million,
and get less than 10 mpg on average.
Steve Schoellhorn, president and COO of Marathon Coach in
Coburg, says that because his company focuses on high-end
conversions — which he describes as a low-volume,
high-price business model — there has only been a slight
slowdown in production. The company’s upgraded coaches
run from $600,000 to more than $2 million.
“The people who enjoy RVing,” he says, referring
to Marathon’s customers, “aren’t going to
stop. But when we hear about oil hitting $200 [a barrel], well,
we’re hoping prices stay right where they
are.”
ABRAHAM HYATT
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