As people all over the world rethink how they'll live, work and travel during an ongoing worldwide pandemic, UK luxury motorhome upfitter GlamperRV presents an alternative. Its new Business Line of Class A motorhomes is positioned to be part mobile office, part rolling hotel room and part premium family vacation rig. Versatile onboard amenities work hard during 9-to-5 workdays and just as hard on weekends and holidays.
GlamperRV is an upfitter that specializes in "bespoke enhancement programs" for motorhomes. In other words, it doesn't build motorhomes, it merely makes existing motorhomes a little posher. The two standard floor plans on its website are each built atop the Fiat Ducato-based Dethleffs Trend I 7057 Class A motorhome with rear island bedroom, dry bathroom and front dining lounge.
Just as it merely adds to existing motorhomes on the RV side, GlamperRV isn't reinventing the wheel with the Business Line, but merely making a few adjustments in specs and options. It hopes to catch the eye of the swelling population of people who meet two or more of the following criteria: need a more private office space for their new work-from-home lifestyle, want to avoid hotel rooms on future business and pleasure trips, and see an RV as a viable, stable means of vacationing with the family during uncertain times.
"Working from home looks set to become the ‘new normal’ for many business people as a result of COVID-19," explains GlamperRV managing director Lucy Caillé. “Finding the right long-term solution for home working is now high on the agenda for many people, along with a safer overnight option for when we do need to travel to meetings and work away from home, without the need to share facilities or stay in a hotel. When holidaying restarts, our Business Line offers comfort for weekends away or adventurous touring holidays."
A camper van would be a little tight for a proper mobile office-cum-family motorhome, but Dethleffs 7.4-m (24-ft) Trend creates a dual-personality RV with ease. Many of the amenities a business person would want from a mobile office are the very same amenities an RVer would look for in a motorhome.
GlamperRV begins its design behind the driver's area with a large, rectangular desk/conference table with wraparound seating for up to five people, a workspace that moonlights effortlessly as a dining area. Owners can easily set up a computer, printer, central display and more or simply sit down with a laptop, pen and paper. Either way, it's easy to plug in using the array of electrical sockets and USB ports wired up to the onboard leisure battery and inverter. An integrated mobile Wi-Fi system keeps the space connected.
Other onboard amenities that will find use during both workweeks and weekends include the Nespresso coffeemaker, full kitchen with fridge/freezer, and toilet room. More leisurely after-hours features include a double bedroom with en-suite shower, a drop-down double bed, and a storage garage for bicycles, camping gear, luggage and other cargo. Available options on the four-sleeper Business Line RV include flat screen TVs, air conditioning and external gas BBQ hookup points. Customers will be invited to personalize their designs, with Business Line prices starting at £75,000 (approx. US$94,175) before VAT.
GlamperRV's "Business Line" appears to be more of a relabeled version of its luxury motorhome line with a few tweaks and some marketing spin behind it. The table is now a "desk," the available TV positioned for scouring Powerpoints rather than viewing Netflix, and the Nespresso machine aimed at fueling late-night brainstorming sessions rather than sunrise viewings.
Still, it's interesting to a see a motorhome outfitter aiming its products at customers who will be working from home and looking for travel alternatives because of COVID-19. Over the years, we've seen the occasional work-on-the-road motorhome and mobile office camper van, but those vehicles have remained distinct from the luxury business van category. Perhaps there will be more of a merging of those segments and a rise of dual-purpose designs in the future.
Source: GlamperRV