Forest River (company)

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Forest River Inc. is an American manufacturer of recreational vehicles, cargo trailers, utility trailers, pontoon boats, and buses.<ref name="WSJ">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

History

Forest River, Inc. was founded in 1996 by Peter Liegl<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> after purchasing certain assets of Cobra Industries,<ref>(RV Business Vol 56, no. 9 pg 38)</ref> where CEO Peter Liegl worked from 1985 to 1993. The company started by manufacturing tent campers, travel trailers, fifth wheels, and park models under the model lines Salem, Sierra, Sandpiper, Wildwood, Rockwood, Flagstaff, Summit, and Quailridge. Later that same year, they began producing cargo utility trailers as Cargo Mate.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In 1998, Forest River Launched Forest River Marine and began producing pontoon boats.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> That same year the company purchased certain assets of Firan Motorhomes to begin manufacturing class A motorhomes.

In 2001, Forest River acquired Starcraft Bus<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and Glaval Bus.

In 2005, Forest River, Inc., was acquired by Berkshire Hathaway.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> As the Wall Street Columnist Ben Cohen noted:

"Liegl came to him (Warren Buffett) with a price in mind: $800 million. So he did some basic diligence. The next day, Buffett made an offer. The next week, Liegl came to Omaha. They met for 20 minutes and shook hands on a deal."<ref name="WSJ"/>

Forest River continued to expand with the acquisition of Rance Aluminum Fabrication and Priority One Financial Services in 2007.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

The following year, the company acquired assets of Coachmen RV, a subsidiary of Coachmen Industries<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and a manufacturer of class A motorhomes, class C motorhomes, travel trailers, fifth wheels, tent campers and sport utility trailers.

In 2011, Forest River acquired Dynamax Corporation,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> which builds motorhomes (class C and super class C).

In 2014, the company expanded with production facilities in Silverton, Oregon,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Hemet, California,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and White Pigeon, Michigan.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> That same year, the company acquired StarTrans Bus.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In January 2017, Forest River launched its new line of luxury buses, Berkshire Coach.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In June of the same year, Battisti Customs was acquired.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

In May 2020, Forest River acquired the REV Group shuttle bus brands Champion, Federal Coach, World Trans, Krystal Coach, ElDorado, and Goshen Coach.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In 2020, they closed the Federal Coach, Goshen Coach, Krystal Coach, and World Trans brands soon after acquisition.

In 2022-2024 They shut down Battisti Customs, Berkshire Coach & Elkhart Coach bus brands.

In January 2024, Forest River acquired the school bus manufacturer Collins Bus from REV Group.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Later, the company acquired another school bus manufacturer Trans Tech.

Forest River Bus & Van acquired L.A. West Coaches in January 2025.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In March 2025, co-CEO David Wright announced his retirement from Forest River, Inc., citing the recent passing of his longtime friend, mentor and Forest River founder, Pete Liegl.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Subsidiaries

Forest River, Inc., though known best for its recreational vehicles, sells a wide variety of products including cargo trailers, buses, and pontoon boats. Below are the subsidiary brands of Forest River, Inc.:

Buses

• Glaval Bus
• Starcraft Bus
• StarTrans Bus
• ElDorado Motor Corp.
• Champion Bus
• Collins Bus
• Trans Tech

Vans

• Forest River Vans
• Mobility Trans
• L.A. West Coaches

Cargo Trailers

• Force Trailers
• Restroom Trailers
• AmeraLite
• Cargo Mate
• Cargo King
• Continental Cargo
• Haulin Trailers
• Lightning Trailers
• Rance Aluminum Trailers
• US Cargo

Commercial Trucks

• Rockport Commercial Vehicles

Park Models

• Cabins and Suites
• Summit
• Quailridge

Pontoon Boats

• Berkshire Pontoons
• South Bay Pontoons
• Trifecta Pontoons