Caravanning In The Uk: A True Brexit-Era Success Story?

1. Caravanning In The Uk: A True Brexit-Era Success Story? Caravanning may seem at times to be one of those things Britons have always been obsessed with, but that’s not quite the case. After all, in the aftermath of the financial crash in 2008, it’s well- documented that the caravanning industry here in the UK did suffer. But what about now? Amid the country’s impending departure from the European Union, how have our caravan manufacturers and parks recovered, and are more of us actually clambering into our caravans again? The answers to those questions would seem to be “very well” and “yes” respectively, at least according to a recent article in The Economist. In it, the story is told of the Dacre Lakeside Park – 15 miles north of Hull – that the owner, Mark Mewburn, says is nearly full right through the year. Indeed, according to the article, he even has plans to expand. The great British caravan is in finer fettle than ever Several interesting points are made in the Economist article about the state of British caravanning today. They include the fact that most of Britain’s caravan parks – numbering more than 2,000 – are in profit, as well as that British companies dominate the industry, described by the article as “rare in manufacturing”. The article also observes that Britain is now the biggest market in Europe for touring caravans. However, any attempt to sum up the state of the British caravanning industry right now – as well as its future prospects – surely also has to take Brexit into account. As for its effect, well, it doesn’t seem to have hurt the industry much, given that in the year to June, there was actually a 7% rise in the sales of touring caravans, to 22,185. Stationary caravans also sold more – 8% more – while a

2. 14% rise was recorded for motorhomes. One factor that might be contributing to these figures is the increasing tendency towards ‘staycations’, which in turn has been suggested to be a consequence of the falling value of the pound making foreign breaks more expensive. In short, it seems that Brexit might be helping many of us to refocus on some of the best things about our own shores, of which caravanning is just one! Could now be the time to invest in a caravan… and a 12 volt TV? There could barely be a better set of conditions in which to purchase a caravan, make greater use of any caravan you have already, and consider investing in a 12 volt TV from the Ferguson TV range. With highly sophisticated and multi-functional battery-powered TVs having also just been added to our extensive caravan and motorhome TV selection, we really do think you’re spoilt for choice for ways to derive even greater enjoyment from your caravan in 2017!