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Good morning! It's Friday, October 20th. Today’s post takes a close look at millionaire entrepreneur and reality show star Marcus Lemonis and his most lucrative business, Camping World!

THE FEATURE

Marcus Lemonis’ Billion-Dollar RV Company

You may recognize Marcus Lemonis from reality TV shows like "The Profit" and "Streets of Dreams," but not everyone knows that he amassed the bulk of his $500M net worth from selling...wait for it... RVs!

Marcus Lemonis' company, Camping World, was named to the Fortune 500 list with a record $7 billion in annual revenue last year!

So, What’s the Business?

Lemonis was born into the chaos of the Lebanese Civil War and abandoned at an orphanage at just four days old. Fortunately, Lemonis was adopted by a couple living in Miami, Florida, who nurtured his entrepreneurial spirit early on with his lawn maintenance and candy-selling businesses.

However, his business talent became evident while working at his grandfather's car dealership after college. He quickly became such an essential salesman that AutoNation retained him as a manager when they acquired the dealership in 1977.

Lemonis's life changed when he received a call from a family friend, former Chrysler CEO Lee Iacocca, who encouraged him to leave car dealerships and help him "create the largest RV chain."

Iacocca helped Lemonis purchase Holiday RV Superstores, a struggling publicly traded company. As the 26-year-old CEO of Holiday RV, Lemonis closed failing branches, optimized operations, and restored profitability to the company.

With Holiday RV under control, Iacocca founded FreedomRoads in 2003. FreedomRoads was Lemonis' RV roll-up business that expanded by acquiring mom-and-pop dealerships across the country.

In the first three years of FreedomRoads, the company grew to make up 9% of the U.S. retail RV marketplace and conducted 29 acquisitions.

In 2006, FreedomRoads merged with Camping World. Lemonis retained his position as CEO and unified the two companies under the Camping World brand name.

To this day, Lemonis continues to drive growth through acquisitions, believing that if a dealership has strong fundamentals, such as a profitable product line and state-of-the-art facilities, there's no reason not to acquire it.

Camping World now employs 13,000 people across approximately 200 locations. Last year, the company generated a record $7 billion in revenue and $2.3B in profits.

How They Win: Adjacent Acquisitions

When Lemonis became CEO of Camping World in 2006, growth was slow despite his focus on acquisitions. It was only in 2011, when he acquired Good Sam, the RV equivalent of the American Automobile Association, that his company experienced meteoric growth.

Just one year after the acquisition, Camping World's annual revenue increased by 28.8% to $1.48B, and by 2015, the company's revenue had more than doubled to $3.28B!

With Good Sam under the Camping World umbrella, Lemonis now had direct access to America's largest group of RV enthusiasts. His previous acquisitions had only been other RV dealerships, but by purchasing an RV roadside assistance and insurance company, he created significant cross-selling and upselling opportunities for Camping World.

Since 2015, Camping World has once again doubled its revenue through adjacent acquisitions. Here is a list of some of the most notable ones:

• World of Camping (2015): A Canadian-based chain of RV dealerships.

• Gander Mountain (2017): An outdoor retail chain that sold hunting, fishing, and camping gear.

• Erehwon Mountain Outfitter (2018): An outdoor lifestyle retail brand based in the Midwest.

• Coast Distribution System (2019): A wholesale aftermarket supplier for the RV industry.

Key Observation

Lemonis has expanded Camping World's reach one acquisition at a time, transforming the company from a simple chain of RV dealerships into a one-stop shop for everything from RV insurance to camping equipment.

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