Is Parkliner Out of Business?

[Bob Miller]

Originally Posted by P. Raz

While in N.C. in May we sent them an email. We intended to stop by to see their trailer. We've yet to receive a reply. That's out of business as far as I'm concerned.

The good news is that these folks put a queen bed, a dinette, and a bath in a 15 foot trailer that was competitively priced. It would appear they were overwhelmed by the demand. I suspect someone else will notice and we will see a similar trailer in the not too distant future. Raz

Italics added.

[Raz]

Good. It took two tries but you got it. There was so much interest that they couldn't keep up with it. That is overwhelmed by demand.

[frank_a]

And don't look for any changes soon to either their web site or Facebook page. After Cameron left, they might as well have just shut the Facebook page down. And you can count the changes to their web page on the fingers of one hand, if you've had 3 amputated. Amazing in this age of social media. Any failings of the company are directly on the owner's back. He may be a wizard, but he's a doofus as far as I'm concerned.

Nice trailer though...

Frank

[Glenn Baglo]

Originally Posted by P. Raz

Good. It took two tries but you got it. There was so much interest that they couldn't keep up with it. That is overwhelmed by demand.

Following that theory, there would only be crumby trailers, tow vehicles, crab traps, televisions, hamburgers ... on the market.

[charlsara]

We visited the Parkliner factory back in 2013. I was impressed by the trailer and appalled by the "factory". Fiberglass was being sprayed in the same room where assembly was being done. If OSHA had come in they would have been shut down. Nice trailer but I am glad we went with LiL Snoozy.

[Carol H]

Originally Posted by frank_a

And don't look for any changes soon to either their web site or Facebook page. After Cameron left, they might as well have just shut the Facebook page down.

Frank

Yup last post to their company Facebook page was April 2014! That says a lot about the company and its inability to communicate effectively. There are posts by others though asking if they are still in business or if an appointment to see a trailer can be made going unanswered.

It would as you say be better to have just removed the Facebook page completely so perspective customers are not left wondering about their operating status.

Their website at least has a 2015 copyright logo on it which indicates they have done something on it this year - or maybe that was an automated change

[rbryan]

Originally Posted by P. Raz

You missed my point. I never said demand put them out of business but simply that they were overwhelmed. i.e. had lots of interest. If these folks can come up with a queen bed, dinette" and bath in 15 feet then someone with better business skills might do it and succeed. We can only hope. Raz

No, I think I got your point just fine. You said "overwhelmed by demand". I simply added I didn't think they had too much demand, but a management dust up.

Whatever caused the problem, here's hoping they survive.

I mean this kindly, but if you don't want your point "missed" perhaps you should make it more clearly. Demand is not the same as interest or inquiry. Demand deals with production - or supply. Words have meaning.


Sent from my iPhone using Fiberglass RV

[accrete]

I pondered before posting...

I'm a happy PL owner. Any who followed our PL thread knows we had our ups/downs with PL#35 wheel well clearance issues. But after the rig's wheel wells were brought up to mold-version-two specs all is well. I guess we now have two classics? Chevy discontinued making the All-Wheel-Drive full size van we have, and _maybe_ a Parkliner is as rare as seeing the Sun in December on the Oregon Coast ; )

I'll add that my chats with Chandler were some of the most enjoyable I've ever had with anyone involved in the RV industry. I would sit around a camp fire with him any time if possible. . . and wish him all the best.

Thom

[rbryan]

Originally Posted by accrete

I pondered before posting...

Always a good idea. I need to do that more often.


Sent from my iPhone using Fiberglass RV

[Donna D.]

I work for a Fortune 500 company. Facebook owns the content displayed... it's almost impossible to get a page taken down Same with Google analytics. The best thing Parkliner can do is make sure their WEBSITE is accurate and hope folks that are visiting once AGAIN have cleared their cache. What you SEE may not be the most CURRENT!

[Brian M. in NY]

Oh well,
We gave up on Chandler over a year ago. This development was as unfortunate as it was predictable. We love our PL, having had the wheel wells modified locally, (and for which we were reimbursed by PL). I guess there is a certain cachet to owning a "limited edition." We hope to get many more miles and memories out of #34. For the price, layout and east coast accessibility we chose a FG camper which suited our needs and budget and has, and is, serving us well. We hope this remains true for the foreseeable future. Time will tell.

[Raz]

Originally Posted by rbryan

No, I think I got your point just fine. You said "overwhelmed by demand". I simply added I didn't think they had too much demand, but a management dust up.

Whatever caused the problem, here's hoping they survive.

I mean this kindly, but if you don't want your point "missed" perhaps you should make it more clearly. Demand is not the same as interest or inquiry. Demand deals with production - or supply. Words have meaning.

I agree, words have meaning. If you have read the long threads on this company you will know about the problems both in initial quality and communication. Overwhelmed by the demands of running the business was what I should have said. Sorry i wasn't clear. But the point of my post was to say something positive, acknowledge the unique design of the trailer and express hope the trend continues. That seems to have been missed. Raz

[Huck]

I hate to see a thread called Parkliner is out of Business when we don't know that to be true. We don't want people to think they are out of business if they are still in business.

[floyd]

HEY Chandler!!
Please come on here and tell your story.

[Bob Miller]

About Parkliners current status, lets examine what's apparently known for sure:


Empty building/new tenants.
No forwarding Address.
No updates on internet posts.
Does not answer phone and no forwarding phone number.


Without any of the mentioned "clues", a reasonable person would have to think that they have either:
a) Moved into a witness protection program
b) Were abducted by aliens who thought that they were building secret escape pods for earthlings.
c) Prefer to work in a secret location so as to not be interrupted by customers
d) Are hiding from creditors
or
e) They are out of business


To give Chandler the benefit of the doubt I will go with B until more information is available.

[Carol H]

Originally Posted by Huck

I hate to see a thread called Parkliner is out of Business when we don't know that to be true. We don't want people to think they are out of business if they are still in business.

Best way to stop it is to put forward some solid evidence that suggest they are not out of business - thats a sure fire way to stop a thread in its tracks or a rumour from going viral.

[Huck]

Originally Posted by Carol H

Best way to stop it is to put forward some solid evidence that suggest they are not out of business - thats a sure fire way to stop a thread in its tracks or a rumour from going viral.

I believe 2 people in this thread said Chandler told them he was moving the business to his home shop. That would explain why parkliner is no longer at their former location.

At this time, whether Parkliner is still in business is a question, not a fact. I'm just saying a post that states Parkliner is Out of Business as a fact is premature at best. It is not fair to Parkliner and not fair to Parkliner owners or to the RV community in general.

[steve dunham]

Someone needs to drive to Chandler's home / shop and verify whether
he and Parkliner are truely alive. Until then I am going with Bob , -B. Space
aliens.

[Cathy P.]

Originally Posted by Bob Miller

About Parkliners current status, lets examine what's apparently known for sure:


Empty building/new tenants.
No forwarding Address.
No updates on internet posts.
Does not answer phone and no forwarding phone number.


Without any of the mentioned "clues", a reasonable person would have to think that they have either:
a) Moved into a witness protection program
b) Were abducted by aliens who thought that they were building secret escape pods for earthlings.
c) Prefer to work in a secret location so as to not be interrupted by customers
d) Are hiding from creditors
or
e) They are out of business


To give Chandler the benefit of the doubt I will go with B until more information is available.

Now, that brightened my morning! How creative!

Drawing from my obsession with everything RV for probably 25 years and seeing things similar, there were a variety of issues. It is a great looking trailer and I was considering it myself for awhile. The issues I saw were intertwined.

First, most start-up businesses try to keep the prices as low as possible in order to get their foot in the market. That leaves very little spare cash. They were not able to get back to people making inquiries because they probably didn't have the personnel to do it and couldn't afford to pay someone. Generally in a start-up, everyone there is working their tails off. Had they gotten back to the potential buyers trying to inquire, they would not have had the manpower, time and space to produce the trailers anyway.

Second, they had the issues where they were paying for repairs which was an unexpected expense and with finances tight, I am sure that was uncomfortable for them and probably caused a lot of stress on the relationship of those involved. I saw this with Nu-Wa, a higher end 5th wheel that went out of business but after a couple of years, they are now producing units again.

From everything, it looks like they didn't take anyone's deposit and run with it and they deserve high praise for integrity in that area.

Producing one a month? Surprisingly, a lot of businesses started out that way. I took a course in cost accounting when I was in junior college in the last century and it was fascinating and very complicated. I worked for New Horizons, factory-direct 5th wheels, when they had just been in business a couple of years. They were only producing 2 units a month. They would be ordering parts only as they needed them and unlike Fleetwood, they ordered 1 or 2 items instead of a 1,000 which costs more since higher quantities get higher price breaks. Prices would go up overnight and since units were pre-ordered with a set price, the cost had to be absorbed from the profits or the pockets of the owners.

So, I think one a month would be a good idea to really get an idea of time required and the cost of producing a unit.

I could be totally wrong but this is just my thoughts on how it might have unfolded.

I hope we see them resurface and thrive.

[Roadie1]

I've just sent chandler a text with a link to his thread inviting him to tell the story. So I guess we'll see.....