My name is Lowell Unruh and I am a recovering Sales Consultant for Camping World of San Antonio located in New Braunfels Texas. I was discharged Wednesday, January 22, 2020. Ergo, I have a lot to say about whether I would recommend this dealership to friends, family, and acquaintances.
Not Just a Disgruntled Employee
To begin, I’ll give you a little insight into the attitude you should expect from the top down at Camping World of San Antonio. I had the privilege of attending a training session led by Mr. William Heinrich, the dealership’s General Manager. The entire sales staff learned from Mr. Heinrich that
“RV OWNERS ARE STUPID!”
Mr. Heinrich is the person who has been charged with increasing RV sales for Camping World in New Braunfels. Therefore, his sales staff is basically taught that anyone walking through the front door – you and your family for instance – should be considered stupid and treated as such. Further proof that you may want to reconsider doing business with Camping World.
Recommend Camping World of San Antonio to friends, family, or acquaintances? Not likely!
Deposit Sham
Late Sunday afternoon, January the 19th, Robin and Nancy drove in from Waco to look at a specific travel trailer they found on the Camping World of San Antonio website. They fell in love with the rig, but the Sales Manager wanted to leave. We were technically closed, it was 5:05 p.m. They simply did not have the time to complete any paperwork to hold the unit.
However, by Tuesday the 21st they had everything in order. They offered less than the published price over the phone but then decided the asking price of $7,599 was a fair number. They provided their credit card info and approval to use it to hold their unit. Here comes the part that is simply wrong.
The travel trailer was advertised online for four days at $7,599 + fees. The unit actually should have been priced between $9,500 and $10,000 but there it was online listed at $7,599. The General Sales Manager was not happy, but he agreed on Tuesday, January 21st, that Camping World would honor the advertised price. Ergo, he agreed to sell the travel trailer to Robin and Nancy for $7,599.
Not Held – For Sale
On Wednesday, January 22nd, my client’s travel trailer reappeared online at $9,995 + fees. By noon that day, Camping World of San Antonio’s new management team made a call to sell it to another buyer for the increased price of $9,995.
After that my client contacted me. On Wednesday afternoon I got a call asking why their credit card had not been debited. It fell upon me to explain how they had been, in my opinion, mistreated, and that the results of the general sales manager’s actions were the cause of what I will call a “screw-job.”
In addition, the client called the San Antonio store and had a conversation with the GSM, Jimmy Spurlock. He told her he didn’t know anything about her offer so he couldn’t help her. As I said, this is just WRONG!
Management Team at Camping World of San Antonio
Bill Heinrich, general manager
Jimmy Spurlock, general sales manager
Rico Pena, finance director
Another One-Star Review
On Friday, January 31, 2020, another one-star Google Review was posted from Michelle W. Michelle shared her experience of getting a call from a Camping World Sales Manager that she’d been screwed. The finance team had taken her deposit and had assured her three times they would indeed hold her unit. After that, she heard from that manager her RV had been promised to someone else.
She went on to say that, after speaking with the sales manager, she “…talked to the owner/general manager who was rude, bad, bad, bad.”
A Pattern Emerging
While once could be an aberration, twice within 10 days seems a lot more like a pattern. A pattern became prevalent approximately three months ago after the senior management team decided that Camping World of San Antonio should continue its trend of filling leadership and finance positions with folks from the car business. From my perspective, senior management would rather have you exposed to the typical car-buying experience vs. a professional approach. Experienced associates who actually know something about motorhomes, travel trailers, toy haulers, and or 5th wheels trailers are unnecessary.
Recommend Camping World of San Antonio to friends, family, and acquaintances? NOT!
My Next Steps
Next, I am thinking about updating and adding additional reasons for not endorsing this dealership. My plan is to edit and update a Google Review on a weekly basis. A few items that may be of interest and that may be addressed are:
- The “sales technique” applied to a 74-year-old widow by the Director of Finance.
- There is a lack of employee background checks and how it could impact your family. For instance, one former and one active salesperson was arrested for felony sexual child abuse at the New Braunfels location within the past two and a half months.
- Seriously consider the value of various “products” sold to you on the back end in the Finance office. A sneak preview of this discussion: How do you know you are even getting the products that you will be paying for over the next 20 years?
- Is it bank fraud for the Director of Finance to knowingly allow inflated NADA valuations of pre-owned units to be submitted to lenders? This practice results in buyers almost assured of being upside-down even before they pull their RV off of the lot.
In Closing
Above all, I am convinced that there are times when speaking out and educating the public is simply the right thing to do. It is possible that I may face some form of retribution or be threatened with legal action. Some may consider this just a case of sour grapes. Yes, it probably is to a certain degree. But, hopefully, sharing my first-hand experiences serve as a Public Service Announcement.
In conclusion, I encourage you to share this post with your friends, family, and even acquaintances. While there is no guarantee that they will get a screw-job at Camping World of San Antonio, you may just want to give them a heads-up. In other words, warn them on what they might expect from both the local and regional leadership teams of Camping World…just saying.
Camping Worlds Sucks Warning
Take time to read our other posts. Our slimy sales experience with Camping World of Monticello, Minnesota, and attempted service screw job at Camping World of Bartow, Florida. In the event you don’t have time, be sure to check out Camping World Purchase under “Badgering” before you buy an extended service plan from Camping World. It will save you THOUSANDS!
To contribute your experience to Camping World Sucks click here. Also, there is a Facebook group, Camping World: The Awful Experience to share your experiences.
In conclusion, I always offer contact information for Camping World corporate headquarters. Please share the results of your attempted contact.
This blog is informational only. No advertising is allowed. The Camping World locations in Bartow, Florida, and Monticello, Minnesota inspired this blog. In addition, visit KeystoneRVsucks.net.
Keystone RV & Camping World
Keystone’s largest retailer is Camping World (Gander Mountain). Similarly, the Keystone RV company is building a rep of poor workmanship and questionable service. We chronicle our experiences at keystonervsucks.net. Click to contact Keystone by e-mail. Let us know how that works out for you. However it ends, please share the results with CampingWorldSucks.net readers.
Another option is Keystone’s parent company, Thor. Thor offers a customer support form and phone support, (877) 855-2867.
Keystone RV experiences are welcomed at KeystoneRVsucks.net.