REDEX Ready to Unveil New Retail Initiative

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The Recreation Dealers Cooperative Association (REDEX) will unveil a
 private-label retail initiative during its annual meeting April 28-29 at the Hyatt
 Hill Country Resort in San Antonio, Texas.


”We didn’t have any retail exposure at all,” said John Mancinelli, who in
 March was named  executive director of REDEX with offices in Bowling Green,
 Ky.


REDEX was formed in 1996 as a dealer cooperative and currently has 51
members with combined revenue of about $2 billion who accounted for the sale of
 50,000 new and used RVs in 2008.


”We took on a new name — Priority RV Network (www.priorityrvnetwork.com)
– and in San Antonio we will be introducing new products and programs and
talking about how we will move forward,” Mancinelli continued.
 The organization will retain its REDEX nomenclature for its
business-to-business operation, Mancinelli said.


Retail programs will include customer service,  extended care, roadside
 assistance, certified RVs and a camping club along with other services,
 Mancinelli said.


About 45 dealers representing more than 90 locations are expected to attend
 the San Antonio meeting as well as 18 vendors including Bank of the West,
US Bank, Reed Brothers Insurance, P&H Group, Coach-Net and distributors NTP
 Distribution and Stag-Parkway Inc.


Mancinelli said REDEX will continue to provide business-to-business 
opportunities for its dealership members apart from its retail outreach program.


”We think we have a really good idea how to make this work,” he said.


”The whole idea is that REDEX will have two functions. One is to have the b2b
vendor program that give us an advantage in the marketplace. But there also
 will be an external side where we want to be visible in the RV consumer
 marketplace so that consumers can have the same advantage.


”We want consumers to recognize the fact that there is advantage of doing
 business with a Priority RV dealer.”