Lil Snoozy shuts down - Page 2 - Escape Trailer Owners Community
Journey with Confidence RV GPS App RV Trip Planner RV LIFE Campground Reviews RV Maintenance Take a Speed Test Free 7 Day Trial ×

Go Back   Escape Trailer Owners Community > Escape Me | General Topics > General Escape
Click Here to Login
Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
 
Old 03-05-2019, 05:41 PM   #21
Site Team
 
Donna D.'s Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Portland, Oregon
Trailer: 2014 Escape 5.0 TA
Posts: 11,023
Quote:
Originally Posted by Brian B-P View Post
The Sidekick was the final version of Tom Young's Trillium RV efforts. There were 1300 (13') and 4500 (4.5 m or 15') models; I never heard of a 5500 (5.5m) model from anyone some the original Trillium company of decades ago.
Yeah, just found out Happier Camper has the molds for the 4500, not the 5500. Too bad, it's a nice size trailer. I know we have a 21' Escape member that owned one and I have a friend that currently owns one.
__________________
Donna D.
Ten Forward
2014 Escape 5.0TA
Donna D. is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-05-2019, 05:42 PM   #22
Senior Member
 
Iowa Dave's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2015
Location: Benton County, Iowa
Trailer: 2013 Escape 21 Classic Number 6, pulled by 2018 Toyota Highlander
Posts: 8,235
Molds

I talked to the son of the man who produced the Love Bug trailer after the Trifab/boler clone factory burned down in Tripoli Iowa. He said someone bought the old boler/ love bug molds at his dad’s auction. He said they put down the name of a nearby town as an address on their auction registration with no actual number address and paid cash at the end of the day. Molds were loaded up and hauled away, never to be heard about again and never to compete with any other clones. Not all business is as fair, above board and nice as some would like to think.
Iowa Dave
__________________
Ain’t no trouble jacking a double Burma Shave
Dave
Iowa Dave is online now   Reply With Quote
Old 03-05-2019, 06:10 PM   #23
Senior Member
 
gbaglo's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: North Vancouver, British Columbia
Trailer: 2009 Escape 17B 2020 Toyota Highlander XLE
Posts: 17,136
https://rv-pro.com/news/great-west-v...get-back-track


There were stories about the time of this one that said that Great West didn't get along with the locals when they moved to Alabama. Anyway, found this story. Link at top of this post.


Jesse Sidlauskas

The president of Great West Van Conversions isn’t sure if the company will return to business following an ongoing legal battle that he said led to the company’s closure in June last year.
Great West, also known as Sterling RV, moved from Winnipeg, Canada, to Winfield, Ala., in 2013, where the company briefly manufactured its luxury Class B motorhomes – the Classic and Legend models *– as well as a fiberglass trailer called the Sidekick.
“Lawsuits can take a long time,” said Dave DeBraga, who led the company’s move to Alabama. “The whole thing started in June last year, so its going on a year now of not being operating, so as the time goes on its going to get harder and harder to try to start it back up.”
__________________
What happens to the hole when the cheese is gone?
- Bertolt Brecht
gbaglo is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-05-2019, 07:24 PM   #24
Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2018
Location: Santa Fe, New Mexico
Trailer: 2019 Escape 19
Posts: 92
This thread makes me think that bringing in a strong financial partner last year was a very prudent move for Escape Trailer Industries. If the industry is facing a slackening of demand, early victims are going to include underfunded small competitors relying on customer deposits for working capital, like Little Snoozy. And it stands to reason that there might be a slackening of demand--the current economic expansion is real long in the tooth, and RVs are exactly the kind of big ticket consumer discretionary items that people get cautious about buying if their confidence is beginning to waver.

An outfit with a four or five month backlog like Escape is obviously in okay shape when it comes to consumer demand for its products, but that backlog isn't the year or so wait of a couple of years ago. The backlog today is about what it was last fall, and, personally, I would have expected it to have gotten a bit longer just on the basis of seasonal demand. But maybe seasonal demand doesn't kick in until later in the spring. I don't know, I'm just a guy buying a trailer, I don't have to forecast and manage production schedules, keep an eye on working capital needs, or deal with supply chains anymore. And my wife retires in ten weeks. Thank the Dear Lord.
Seneca is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-05-2019, 07:29 PM   #25
Senior Member
 
gbaglo's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: North Vancouver, British Columbia
Trailer: 2009 Escape 17B 2020 Toyota Highlander XLE
Posts: 17,136
Quote:
Originally Posted by Seneca View Post
An outfit with a four or five month backlog like Escape is obviously in okay shape when it comes to consumer demand for its products, but that backlog isn't the year or so wait of a couple of years ago.

Escape dramatically increased production, reducing the backlog.
__________________
What happens to the hole when the cheese is gone?
- Bertolt Brecht
gbaglo is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-05-2019, 08:13 PM   #26
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2015
Location: College Station, Texas
Trailer: 2017 Escape 21 "LollyPop" June 12, 2017, sold Coleman pop up
Posts: 256
I am trying to recall correctly, but did Oliver Travel Trailers close down for awhile and then reopen again after being "out of business" for a time?
casejh is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-05-2019, 08:24 PM   #27
Senior Member
 
kstock11's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Asheville, North Carolina
Trailer: 2014 Escape 19
Posts: 895
Quote:
Originally Posted by casejh View Post
I am trying to recall correctly, but did Oliver Travel Trailers close down for awhile and then reopen again after being "out of business" for a time?
Yes - they were just getting started when the economy went into the recession. Their main business was bathroom tub enclosures so they concentrated on their core business. It turned out to be a smart move for them.
__________________
Kevin
Thanks to the interstate highway system, it is now possible to travel across the country from coast to coast without seeing anything - Charles Kuralt
kstock11 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-05-2019, 10:37 PM   #28
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Dec 2013
Location: Westcliffe, Colorado
Trailer: 2010 EggCamper (#083); 2017 Escape 21 (#053); 2016 F-150 5.0L FX4
Posts: 1,765
I don't think it is too much of a stretch to add EggCamper to that list of "recent" closures, although as I understand it, it was more because the owner was experiencing health problems and no one stepped in to buy the business from him, so he simply shut down (mid-2016)?. The highest production sequence number I've seen reported for an EggCamper is #144 (ours is #083 made by Jim in 2010).
War Eagle is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-06-2019, 06:07 AM   #29
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Feb 2018
Location: alpharetta, Georgia
Trailer: 2014 21' Escape
Posts: 494
Would agree about the RV market and what I think is going to happen in the next down turn. The industry has been really healthy last 3 years but beginning to see the slow down and when that happens........
Person has mortgage, two car notes, daycare and he buys to many toys, business has slowed to a crawl and all those payments. He uses the 4 wheeler to hunt and around his property the trailer it's got to go. Going to be many in that situation and worse I'm afraid.


Enjoy the journey.

Steve
stratos175 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-06-2019, 06:28 AM   #30
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Dec 2013
Location: Westcliffe, Colorado
Trailer: 2010 EggCamper (#083); 2017 Escape 21 (#053); 2016 F-150 5.0L FX4
Posts: 1,765
Quote:
Originally Posted by stratos175 View Post
Would agree about the RV market and what I think is going to happen in the next down turn. The industry has been really healthy last 3 years but beginning to see the slow down and when that happens........
Person has mortgage, two car notes, daycare and he buys to many toys, business has slowed to a crawl and all those payments. He uses the 4 wheeler to hunt and around his property the trailer it's got to go. Going to be many in that situation and worse I'm afraid. Enjoy the journey. Steve
Before the 2008 market crash, financial planners were advising their clients to purchase second homes as an investment (saying "home values can only keep go up"). We know families who followed that advice, took out second mortgages on their primary home to purchase a second vacation home, and when the housing market crashed, they lost both homes. Very sad...
War Eagle is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-06-2019, 08:17 AM   #31
Senior Member
 
Dave Walter's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Edmonton, Alberta
Trailer: 2013 19' & 2013 15B
Posts: 2,634
Quote:
Originally Posted by EdColorado View Post
Sad to see that prospective buyers who have put down large deposits to secure a Snoozy will likely lose the whole deposit. I also suspect that any current Snoozy owners who require warranty work will also be out of luck. I guess this brings new meaning to the old saying that "if you Snooze - you lose"!
__________________
2013 19' \ 2013 15B, 2020 Toyota 4Runner TRD Offroad

"It is better to remain silent at the risk of being thought a fool, than to talk and remove all doubt of it." - 1907, Maurice Switzer
Dave Walter is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-06-2019, 09:19 AM   #32
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Dec 2013
Location: Westcliffe, Colorado
Trailer: 2010 EggCamper (#083); 2017 Escape 21 (#053); 2016 F-150 5.0L FX4
Posts: 1,765
I'm not sure if Lil Snoozy ever fully resolved the spider cracks that can form in the fiberglass at the top corners of the rear door entryway (caused by side-to-side rear trailer flexing?), so there could very well be fiberglass warranty work needed down the road by current owners that will go unresolved.
War Eagle is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-06-2019, 01:03 PM   #33
Senior Member
 
rubicon327's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2016
Location: Burlington Twp., New Jersey
Trailer: 2010 Escape 19
Posts: 7,126
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dave Walter View Post
I guess this brings new meaning to the old saying that "if you Snooze - you lose"!
I feel bad for those that may lose deposits, but that is funny.
__________________
Mods to Rubicon: https://www.escapeforum.org/forums/f...tml#post249508
“One way to get the most out of life is to look upon it as an adventure.”― W.F.
rubicon327 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-06-2019, 01:59 PM   #34
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Dec 2012
Location: Edmonton, Alberta
Trailer: 1979 Boler B1700
Posts: 14,935
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dave Walter View Post
Sad to see that prospective buyers who have put down large deposits to secure a Snoozy will likely lose the whole deposit.
Yes... apparently 45 of them at $10K each, so almost half a million US dollars of customers' money is gone.
Brian B-P is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-06-2019, 03:00 PM   #35
Site Team
 
rbryan4's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2014
Location: Canyon Lake, Texas
Trailer: 2015 19 "Past Tents", 2021 F150 Lariat 2.7L EB
Posts: 10,222
The best comment I read about this on FGRV was along the lines that bankruptcy doesn't happen overnight, and there was plenty of time for the owner to figure out what was coming down the road. A shameful, disgraceful thing to keep taking people's deposits right up to the end and then just walk away and file Chapter 7. To me that's criminal fraud, but I'm sure the lawyers won't see it that way. At least in Parkliner's case and others, no customers got ripped off.

I feel terrible for those who got stiffed, but then again, anyone who was willing to put down 10K or more and wait 20 months? Red flags. Way too many red flags.
__________________
"You can't buy happiness, but you can buy an RV. And that is pretty close."
rbryan4 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-06-2019, 05:04 PM   #36
Senior Member
 
cpaharley2008's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2010
Location: Central, Pennsylvania
Trailer: Escape#5 2022 E19
Posts: 26,268
That was my specialty before retiring, Securities and Bankruptcy Fraud and it was quite commonplace. As Robert alluded to, it does not happen overnight, most of the time over 12-18 months. I can envision a class action suit for the money and non business bad debt deductions for the final tally.
__________________
Jim
Sometime life gets in the way of living.......
cpaharley2008 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-06-2019, 05:22 PM   #37
Senior Member
 
Hilola's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2018
Location: Tehachapi, California
Trailer: none
Posts: 515
Quote:
Originally Posted by cpaharley2008 View Post
That was my specialty before retiring, Securities and Bankruptcy Fraud and it was quite commonplace. As Robert alluded to, it does not happen overnight, most of the time over 12-18 months. I can envision a class action suit for the money and non business bad debt deductions for the final tally.

Fraud in the RV industry? Say it ain't so!
__________________
Greg
Formerly owned a 2007 24' HiLo/ 2003 Tahoe combo. Interested in the 5.0TA
Hilola is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-06-2019, 05:23 PM   #38
Site Team
 
Donna D.'s Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Portland, Oregon
Trailer: 2014 Escape 5.0 TA
Posts: 11,023
Over the years, we've had new USA members come here and were spooked at the idea of sending a down payment out of the country to ETI. I didn't track them, so have no idea if they went ahead and followed through, in no small part due to this forum, or just left and bought something else.
__________________
Donna D.
Ten Forward
2014 Escape 5.0TA
Donna D. is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-06-2019, 05:25 PM   #39
Site Team
 
rbryan4's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2014
Location: Canyon Lake, Texas
Trailer: 2015 19 "Past Tents", 2021 F150 Lariat 2.7L EB
Posts: 10,222
Quote:
Originally Posted by Donna D. View Post
Over the years, we've had new USA members come here and were spooked at the idea of sending a down payment out of the country to ETI. I didn't track them, so have no idea if they went ahead and followed through, in no small part due to this forum, or just left and bought something else.
True, it might spook some, but my deposit was very reasonable, and Escape's reputation in the industry was stellar. Can't say either of those things about the Snoozy debacle.
__________________
"You can't buy happiness, but you can buy an RV. And that is pretty close."
rbryan4 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-06-2019, 09:49 PM   #40
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2015
Location: College Station, Texas
Trailer: 2017 Escape 21 "LollyPop" June 12, 2017, sold Coleman pop up
Posts: 256
Quote:
Originally Posted by rbryan4 View Post
True, it might spook some, but my deposit was very reasonable, and Escape's reputation in the industry was stellar. Can't say either of those things about the Snoozy debacle.
We put down our deposit with ETI after seeing one used Escape 19 and reading for several months here on the forum of the ETI reputation. The comments here made me think the risk was small, and yes the deposit was reasonable. As it has turned out, we are very pleased with the decision. I have been impressed with the personal integrity demonstrated by ETI.
casejh is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off




» Featured Campgrounds

Reviews provided by

Disclaimer:

This website is not affiliated with or endorsed by Escape Trailer Industries or any of its affiliates. This is an independent, unofficial site.


All times are GMT -5. The time now is 08:20 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8 Beta 4
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
Copyright 2023 Social Knowledge, LLC All Rights Reserved.