Business allows RVers to try out lifestyle before making purchase
Published in the May 14-27 issue of Morgan Hill Life
By Staff Report
Photo by Marty Cheek
Family RV owner Alan Cezar in his Monterey Road facility.
Alan Cezar has enjoyed the recreational vehicle lifestyle even as a young child. The owner of Morgan Hill’s Family RV business was born in Montreal, Canada where his family owned a travel trailer and enjoyed outings in it at the lake. He started Family RV in 1991 and emphasizes the fun of these vehicles with the slogan “Your Adventure Begins Here.”
With summer fast approaching, Morgan Hill Life asked Cezar about Family RV and the special fun people can have traveling in recreational vehicles.
How did you initially get into the recreational vehicle business?
When I moved to California in 1985, I bought my first RV for our family and traveled to many local sites on the weekends. I thought it was great fun so I started renting it out to others. In 1987 I started up my first RV facility, renting, servicing and selling RVs. Family RV continues to offer fun times and vacations to thousands of satisfied customers. It’s so enjoyable to show others how much fun a family RV vacation can be.
Family RV is known for its customer service. Describe your customer service philosophy.
Service is easy for me since I started serving customers in my dad’s business when I was 14. My philosophy has always been do more than you have promised, and your word is always your bond. I explain to my staff that the customer pays their salary and without the customer there would be no business.
You offer customers a “Try B-4 You Buy” program. Describe how this works and why customers might want to get into it.
I have had the “Try B-4 you Buy” program since 1989 which lets our customers try out the RV lifestyle before they purchase. We even had other dealers send over customers to experience the RV lifestyle and then those customers return to that dealer to buy the RV that they were interested in.
The most important thing for us is that the consumer gets to know what an RV is like and buy the correct unit the first time. Sometimes you don’t know what will work best for you and your family until you get out and do it. We have also rented out our trucks with trailers for folks that don’t have a truck so they get the full experience before buying a truck and a trailer. The main idea here is to try it out before making an investment.
Family RV also offers RV rentals and sales on consignment. How does this program work?
Today’s seller and buyer should be cautious about whom they may be dealing with. Craigslist, AngiesList or private deals could be laden with problems. We offer a way to sell your RV and not have the problems of calls at night, low-ball offers and strange people calling and visiting you. Let a dealer do the qualifying and do it right. When buying an RV we make sure that it is what you want and do an inspection for you, all the paperwork and offer the warranties. We also do consignment rentals for those who do not use their RV much and need to store it.
What is your most popular vehicles for family vacation trips?
The most common rental for years has been the Class C motor home. It sleeps up to 10 in some models and is easier to drive than a Class A unit. These are also the most popular because many times there are two families that split the costs of the trip. We also rent out travel trailers which have become increasingly popular over the past few years. For trailers, the tow vehicle needs to be set up but once that is done, picking up a trailer is very easy and less expensive.
FAMILY RV
Location: 19380 Monterey Road
Hours: 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday to Saturday; noon to 5 p.m. Sunday
Contact: (408) 612-4700 or visit: www.familyrv.com.
