Trailmanor update - Page 9

aslag54 · 04-08-2016, 08:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bowfreak

Surely your dealer or TM has called you at this point?

I hadn't heard anything from Trailmanor so I called my dealer around noon Thursday. He said he hadn't had any contact with them either, he said he called the factory earlier that morning and left a message but as of noon (Pacific time) Thursday neither of us have heard a peep. I'm disappointed that Trailmanor made no effort to reach out to me or their long time dealer and try to resolve this situation. That's when I decided to cancel my order. What a waste of nearly 5 months, during which I seen several used units come and go I would have been interested in, one for not much more than my deposit. Bob and Cleo are very nice people, I wish them well. I hope they can turn things around because you can't make money without customers.

mecicon · 04-09-2016, 05:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by aslag54

I hadn't heard anything from Trailmanor so I called my dealer around noon Thursday. He said he hadn't had any contact with them either, he said he called the factory earlier that morning and left a message but as of noon (Pacific time) Thursday neither of us have heard a peep. I'm disappointed that Trailmanor made no effort to reach out to me or their long time dealer and try to resolve this situation. That's when I decided to cancel my order. What a waste of nearly 5 months, during which I seen several used units come and go I would have been interested in, one for not much more than my deposit. Bob and Cleo are very nice people, I wish them well. I hope they can turn things around because you can't make money without customers.

Best regards to you and I hope you find an acceptable used/new to you TM.

Bowfreak · 04-09-2016, 09:19 AM

I think you are being too nice to them. Nice owners with any customer service skills would have been on the phone immediately with you and your dealer to make things right with you. This is not a good sign for their ability to run a successful company when they are hiding and avoiding an issue.

If this is acceptable customer service for them, I am worried about their future to stay in business. That in turns worries me as a Trailmanor owner to be able to get services and or parts in the future.

Quote:

Originally Posted by aslag54

I hadn't heard anything from Trailmanor so I called my dealer around noon Thursday. He said he hadn't had any contact with them either, he said he called the factory earlier that morning and left a message but as of noon (Pacific time) Thursday neither of us have heard a peep. I'm disappointed that Trailmanor made no effort to reach out to me or their long time dealer and try to resolve this situation. That's when I decided to cancel my order. What a waste of nearly 5 months, during which I seen several used units come and go I would have been interested in, one for not much more than my deposit. Bob and Cleo are very nice people, I wish them well. I hope they can turn things around because you can't make money without customers.

Redtail Cruiser · 04-09-2016, 09:22 AM

The fact that TM hasn't reached out to you or their dealership, speaks volumes on where they are right now as a company. You made the right decision to cancel your order. It will be interesting to see, going forward, if TM will ever be able to deliver a quality product again. It's sure looking doubtful right now.

BradS7535 · 04-09-2016, 01:37 PM

Sorry to hear that TM hasn't been communicating with you or their dealership. I am going to start seriously looking for a used TM, but keep my order for the new one. Luckily my deposit was only $500 so isn't THAT much cash being tied up. If I don't find a used by the time my new one is delivered I can always walk away from the new if my dealer or myself don't think the quality is up to par. I will keep you all updated.

Brittany Dogs · 04-09-2016, 01:54 PM

I realize it's easy to be a Monday morning quarterback or if one has not owned a company, it's easy to criticize. However, a long and delayed lead time to make a TrailManor unit would suggest several possibilities:
*Their backlog is huge with lots and lots of orders. Unlikely.
*They can't hire enough skilled people. From a previous photo of their employees they can build units with about a dozen people, plus a few here and there.
*The move to a distant new location was more disruptive than predicted. Good management prevents this.
*Cash flow. If you can't buy materials and pay people, it just slows every damn aspect of your operation. Worse yet, you can't hire Quality Control personal and bad things happen when the workers are stressed and wear a half dozen hats.

I wish the company well, I really do. But it seems for as long as I known them (5 years) the business had had a real hard time getting traction.

Padgett · 04-09-2016, 07:17 PM

Having retired last year am looking for something to do. Maybe a Florida R&D center. Large camper population both permanent and transient. Home of Fiamma Awnings. Lots of credentials on request.

HIKERZ · 04-09-2016, 08:32 PM

Living in FL that would be good for me

Padgett · 04-10-2016, 08:04 AM

After a while you discover that certain parts of the country have "centers of excellence" for industry that have a large pool of talented people. Silicon Valley and the Silicon Prairie for electronics. The Midwest for talent and supplies for automotive and the RV industry. Leave those areas and costs go up and quality goes down. Just is.

Spent 45 years in automotive and aerospace, the last thirty with the largest DOD contractor. Others here have similar backgrounds. Have offered help but at this point would need to be asked.

Wonder what the move cost ? Would be similar to move back into the world.

aslag54 · 04-10-2016, 01:08 PM

I'm pretty sure Bob owns the building and I do recall reading he received some grant money from the local government for relocating in Hartington. One of the excuses Bob used for the delay on my unit was they had no white exterior paint in stock, how can you make trailers without exterior paint. I opted for the silver gray, I thought that odd because the silver grey paint had a de-lamination problem which he assured was fixed. Another excuse was the aluminum he had wasn't primer coated or something like that and the structural panels they made were de-laminating. Another was they were waiting for one part, really? Having worked for a failing company all these sound like they are having money problems. Add to that Prosser RV, who I heard from my dealer, invested in Trailmanor has one of the only 2 Rise prototypes on sale for $30K with a retail of $44K. Why would a company sell off a prototype? Certainly they spent a lot more money in R&D. Kind of sounds to me like a loan payment. These are only my opinions, thinking out loud so to speak.