---
title: "Why Are Two of the RV Industry's Most Powerful Executives Moving to Dealerships?"
url: "https://camperfaqs.com/why-are-two-of-the-rv-industrys-most-powerful-executives-moving-to-dealerships"
author: "Tory Jon"
published: "2026-09-14T11:33:09-05:00"
modified: "2026-09-14T11:33:11-05:00"
---

# Why Are Two of the RV Industry's Most Powerful Executives Moving to Dealerships?

Two prominent RV industry executives who spent most of their careers on the manufacturing and supply side have moved into top jobs at dealership groups in 2026.

 

Jason Lippert, who led one of the RV industry's largest component suppliers for more than two decades, is now CEO of Fun Town RV. Leigh Tiffin, grandson of Tiffin Motorhomes founder Bob Tiffin and the company's former president, is now president of National Indoor RV Centers.

 

Two moves alone are not enough to establish an industry-wide trend. Still, the backgrounds of the people involved and the rapid growth of large RV dealership groups make the timing worth a closer look.

 

## Jason Lippert Goes From a Major Supplier to a 32-Store Dealer Group

 

Jason Lippert spent 32 years at LCI Industries and became CEO in 2003. According to [LCI Industries' June leadership announcement](https://investors.lci1.com/news/news-details/2026/LCI-Industries-Announces-Leadership-Transitions/default.aspx), the company grew from $125 million in annual revenue to more than $4 billion during his leadership.

 

LCI announced on June 4 that Lippert was retiring as president and CEO and stepping down from its board. He agreed to remain as an adviser for one year during the leadership transition.

 

Less than three months later, he had another job in the RV industry.

 

[Fun Town RV announced in late August](https://www.accessnewswire.com/newsroom/en/automotive/fun-town-rv-names-jason-lippert-chief-executive-officer-1214864) that Lippert would become its CEO. Founder Jarrod McGhee moved into the role of founder and chairman.

 

Fun Town has grown from one Texas dealership in 2010 to 32 locations across multiple states. The company said it brought in Lippert partly because of his experience running a much larger organization and managing growth.

 

Lippert also pointed directly to the customer side of the business when explaining the opportunity. He said his focus would include people, customers, and the infrastructure needed for continued growth. He also said he wanted to help Fun Town improve the "customer ownership experience."

 

After decades supplying the companies that build RVs, Lippert now leads a business that deals directly with people buying, servicing, and trading them.

 

## Leigh Tiffin Made a Similar Move Earlier This Year

 

Leigh Tiffin's move was different, but it took him in the same general direction.

 

Tiffin spent nearly a dozen years working in the family business, first with Vanleigh RV and later as president of Tiffin Motorhomes.

 

In February, he left the manufacturer to become president of National Indoor RV Centers, commonly known as NIRVC.

 

The move had been developing long before the public knew. In an [interview with RV News](https://www.rvnews.com/exclusive-leigh-tiffin-on-his-new-nirvc-future/), Tiffin approached NIRVC founder and CEO Brett Davis in the summer of 2024 after learning Davis was looking for a future successor.

 

NIRVC has larger ambitions behind the appointment. Davis has said the company has been planning toward a possible initial public offering in 2029 and wanted a younger executive who could eventually lead the business through that process.

 

Tiffin said his manufacturing background could also be applied to dealership operations, including employee training, purchasing, and managing large organizations.

 

Service appears to be a major part of that plan. Tiffin told RV News that NIRVC wants to differentiate itself on the service side and provide a more consistent experience across its locations. [NIRVC's own description of its business](https://www.nirvc.com/About) shows why that is significant. The company combines RV sales, consignment, service and repair, collision work, storage, washing and detailing rather than focusing primarily on selling motorhomes.

 

Tiffin has also pushed back on the idea that he left because something was wrong at Tiffin Motorhomes. In a separate [RV News interview](https://www.rvnews.com/exclusive-president-discusses-tiffin-farewell/), he said the decision was not related to Tiffin's business or THOR Industries' ownership. He described the move as pursuing a new opportunity rather than leaving because of problems at his former company.

 

## RV Dealership Groups Are Becoming Much Larger Companies

 

The larger story may be what has happened to the dealer side of the RV industry.

 

For years, many RV manufacturers dealt with a large network of independently owned dealerships. That structure has been changing as dealer groups acquire stores, expand into new states, and centralize functions that were once handled locally.

 

THOR Industries has explicitly identified this change.

 

When THOR announced a major restructuring of its North American RV operations in February, the company cited ["rapid dealer consolidation" and changing consumer expectations](https://ir.thorindustries.com/investor-resources/press-releases/press-release-details/2026/THOR-INDUSTRIES-ANNOUNCES-STRATEGIC-EVOLUTION-OF-NORTH-AMERICAN-OPERATING-MODEL-WITH-FORMATION-OF-TWO-RV-GROUPS/default.aspx) as two reasons the industry had changed enough to require a different operating model.

 

THOR returned to the subject in regulatory filings, saying that consolidation among independent RV dealers had forced the manufacturer to adapt the way it operates. [The company's fiscal third-quarter discussion](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/730263/000073026326000019/thoq3fy26-qa.htm) again described dealer consolidation as a significant change in the RV business.

 

The scale of today's largest dealerships shows what THOR is talking about.

 

[Blue Compass RV says it now operates more than 100 locations across 31 states](https://www.bluecompassrv.com/locations), with sales, financing, parts and service spread across the network.

 

Campers Inn RV has expanded rapidly as well. After acquiring much of Lazydays' dealership operation in late 2025, [RV News reported that Campers Inn was operating 51 storefronts in 22 states](https://www.rvnews.com/hirsch-family-discusses-lazydays-acquisition/). The company had just seven stores in 2013.

 

Fun Town's growth from one location to 32 adds another large regional and multistate dealer group to that list.

 

Running one of these companies is increasingly different from running a traditional local RV dealership.

 

## The Dealer Now Controls More of the Ownership Experience

 

Selling the RV is only one point in a relationship that can last for years.

 

Dealers may also handle financing, warranty work, repairs, maintenance, parts, accessories, trade-ins and the owner's eventual next purchase. Some companies are expanding even further into storage, collision repair, detailing and other services.

 

NIRVC was built around that idea. [The company says its first location opened in 2009 with storage and repair services](https://www.nirvc.com/About) before expanding to cover nearly every part of motorhome ownership.

 

That creates a different opportunity for someone coming from manufacturing.

 

A manufacturer can improve the RV before it leaves the factory. A large dealership group can influence what happens before the sale, during the purchase, and for years afterward.

 

Jason Lippert's comments when joining Fun Town suggest that he sees opportunity there. Leigh Tiffin has made similar comments about improving service and creating consistency across NIRVC locations.

 

Their experience also gives dealerships something useful in return. Both executives understand how manufacturers operate, how products are built, how suppliers work, and how decisions made upstream eventually affect dealers and RV owners.

 

## The Moves Come During a Difficult RV Market

 

There is another factor in the background: 2026 has been a difficult year for much of the North American RV industry.

 

In June, [THOR Industries said it expected a mid-teens decline in North American retail sales for its 2026 fiscal year](https://ir.thorindustries.com/investor-resources/press-releases/press-release-details/2026/THOR-INDUSTRIES-ANNOUNCES-FISCAL-2026-THIRD-QUARTER-RESULTS/default.aspx). The company cited weak consumer confidence, cautious dealer ordering, tariffs, inflation and other economic pressures.

 

THOR has responded by centralizing parts of a business that had historically allowed its RV companies to operate much more independently. Then, on September 10, the company [announced another round of restructuring](https://ir.thorindustries.com/investor-resources/press-releases/press-release-details/2026/THOR-INDUSTRIES-ANNOUNCES-ADDITIONAL-LEADERSHIP-CHANGES-PERTAINING-TO-THE-STRATEGIC-EVOLUTION-OF-ITS-NORTH-AMERICAN-RV-OPERATING-MODEL/default.aspx) that placed Ken Walters in charge of North American RV operations and created company-wide leadership positions covering finance and marketing.

 

The timing makes the moves by Lippert and Tiffin more interesting, but no evidence shows either man left manufacturing because of the current slowdown.

 

Tiffin has specifically rejected that explanation. Lippert announced his retirement from LCI in June and later described Fun Town as an opportunity to help a rapidly growing dealership company reach its next stage.

 

## Is This the Start of a Bigger Shift?

 

For now, there are only two major examples.

 

But they are unusual ones.

 

One executive spent decades running a company that supplies components to RV manufacturers. The other carried one of the best-known family names in RV manufacturing and served as president of the company his grandfather founded.

 

Both now work for dealerships.

 

At the same time, dealership groups are becoming larger, more consolidated, and more involved in the entire ownership process. Manufacturers themselves are reorganizing partly in response to the growing power and scale of those dealer networks.

 

That makes the dealer side of the business very different from what it was 10 or 15 years ago.

 

The next test will be what RV owners actually see from these changes. Both Fun Town and NIRVC are talking about growth, service, and the customer experience. If that leads to faster repairs, better communication and smoother warranty service, the effects of these executive moves could eventually reach well beyond the corporate offices where they were announced.