RV Business Newsmaker of the Year Named for 2005

LOUISVILLE, Ky., Dec. 1, 2005 -- A lot of things happened in the RV industry during 2005. It was a year in which companies were changed by economic and nature's forces -- gas prices and hurricanes -- that were well beyond their control. In spite of all of these obstacles, no event triggered a greater reaction in the RV industry than the July announcement of the sale of Elkhart, Indiana-based Forest River, Inc., America's second largest producer of towable RVs and cargo trailers, to Berkshire Hathaway Inc., an Omaha-based holding company with subsidiaries engaged in diverse business activities, including property and casualty insurance.

The acquisition paired Berkshire Hathaway's Warren Buffett, one of the world's most successful investors, and Forest River's Peter J. Liegl, the sole owner of Forest River and a larger-than-life force in the recreational vehicle business.

Part of the interest in the acquisition was the undisclosed price of the sale. The acquisition reportedly included all of Forest River, Inc.'s estimated 71 facilities located in several states. A $1.6 billion, 5,800- employee corporation, Forest River produces commercial buses, pontoon and fishing boats, cargo trailers, mobile offices, manufactured housing, park trailers and a full line of towable and motorized recreational vehicles. Speculation around the industry was that Liegl banked more than $800 million from the sale of nine-year-old Forest River, the nation's No. 2 U.S. towable builder, with about 19 percent of U.S. towable RV market share. In so doing, he was named the RV Business Newsmaker of the Year for 2005 by RV Business, the nation's leading RV trade journal.

The difference between most entrepreneurs and the rest of society is their uncanny ability to bounce back from near-death business experiences and flourish -- a skill that Liegl has perfected. Liegl, who like Buffett is often considered the quintessential entrepreneur, has not always been on top, as he will quickly tell you. Indeed, he was fired from his job years earlier at one of the major RV manufacturers, then again in late 1994 by the board of directors of publicly held Cobra Industries Inc., an RV builder for which he was serving as president at the time.

The sale of Forest River, Inc. is a reminder of what a lucrative high stakes game the RV industry can be for those who play their cards right.

Liegl decided to get back in the RV market when Cobra was auctioning off the (Cobra Rockwood) tent camper operation in bankruptcy court. Liegl acquired the tent camper operation and 30 days later got the approval for the other facilities out of bankruptcy court.

When asked how he managed to grow Forest River, Inc. from nothing in early 1996 into a $1.6 billion company in 2005, Liegl said it was simple: "All we did was have the best product at the best price and hire decent people."

The full story and interview with Liegl is in the current issue of RV Business magazine.

About RV Business

RV Business, the trade magazine, operates RVBUSINESS.com, a Web site news service for the RV industry's business-to-business audience. Managed by the reporters and editors of RV Business, this site is dedicated to providing the most up-to-date information about RV manufacturers, converters, suppliers, dealers, distributors, manufacturers' reps, campground operators, service outlets and trade associations involved in our fast-moving industry.