Luxe RV aims to do for the recreational vehicle industry what Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts and Ritz-Carlton Hotel Co. did for the hotel industry – provide luxury accommodations for quality-conscious consumers. The high-end experience begins with the hardware. The Van Nuys RV rental company has partnered with manufacturers to customize the Mercedes-Benz RVs, working with such designers as Coach Men RV in Middlebury, Ind., and Forest City, Iowa-based Winnebago Inc. Each vehicle is valued at about $150,000, according to Luxe RV founder Adrian Ghila. The company has seven Class B and C RVs in its fleet and Ghila said an additional four vehicles will be added by the spring. “The fact that we custom build makes us more attractive,” he said. “People love the quality.” Rental prices range from $275 to $595 a night depending on the day of the week and type of vehicle. The company, founded in February last year, also provides concierge services. Its five employees will run errands for customers and buy groceries upon request, book camping grounds and RV park reservations as well as locate restaurants that deliver near their customers’ destinations. Also, Luxe RV offers what Ghila calls something new to the industry – RVs delivered directly to customers. “I think this should be a completely different experience from what’s out there,” said Ghila, who has a background in real estate development. “We deliver to the hotel, your house or even pick you up from the airport.” Most rental companies, such as national competitors El Monte RV in Santa Fe Springs and Cruise America in Mesa, Ariz., have customers pick up a vehicle from one of their rental locations. Recently, the company has expanded its services to accommodate renters in both California and Nevada. Each Luxe RV contains two to three rooms and can accommodate between four to six people. The vehicles include amenities such as kitchenware, bedding, towels and Wi-Fi. According to industry experts, millennials are increasingly investing in RVs now that the economy is on the mend. “Our main customers are the baby boomers and the millennials,” said Gigi Stelter, chief executive of RV Sales of Broward Inc. in Davie, Fla. “Our industry has always been about discretionary spending, but in the last several years I see people have a lot of cash.” In hopes of catering to emerging customer preferences, Luxe RV is developing an app that can control the electronics, lighting and security of the vehicles with the click of a button – much like owners of smart houses do with their phones. “Everything in these RVs is controlled from inside and manageable,” said Ghila. – Champaign Williams
