Camping World Holdings Inc. has filed for Initial Public Offering (IPO) on the Stock Exchange.
The RV retailer Camping World is one of the largest nonpublic company in the U.S. and has reported strong revenue increases throughout the past few years. It has remained profitable, logging $3.33 billion in 2015, which represented a 25% growth over the previous year.
Additionally, per the company’s report with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Camping World brought in a 43% increase in profits within the past year, amounting to $178.5 million.
Camping is a popular American pastime. In 2010 alone, about 40 million people went camping for a total of 515 million outings nationwide. In their filing, Camping World said that around 3.1 million active customers who regularly buy products, services, and protection plans.
They also anticipate steady growth within the RV market in the upcoming years. Camping World estimates that nine million households in the nation own an RV. As reported in The Wall Street Journal, they said in their filing that this number has potential, and “We believe [it] has grown consistently over the past 20 years, including during the last economic downturn.”
While Camping World hasn’t specified which stock exchange they will use to list shares, the company will trade under the symbol CWH. They would offer three classes of common stock, but Chairman and Chief Executive Marcus Lemonis would have a substantial control with over 50% of voting power.
Camping World’s preliminary filing would raise their business value to $200 million. But experts warn that this figure could change depending on its popularity once it reaches the market.
Overall, RV sales nationwide have been higher than ever. According to research firm Statistical Surveys Inc., North American RV sales grew 11% from 2014, up 78% from the lowest period in 2009.
