Former President Donald Trump takes the stage at a campaign rally in Youngstown, Ohio., Saturday, Sept. 17, 2022.
AP Photo/Tom E. Puskar
Former President Donald Trump slammed President Joe Biden for lowering gas prices.
Trump claimed the decrease was a politically motivated scheme.
"Right after the election, it's going to double up and go higher than anybody ever believed," Trump claimed.
Former President Donald Trump, while in Ohio to rally support for Republican Senate candidate JD Vance, slammed President Joe Biden for the recent decline in national gas prices.
In a tweet, the White House recognized Saturday as the 95th day in which gas prices have steadily declined since reaching record highs earlier this year. According to the White House, the national average for a gallon of gas sits at $3.68.
The administration — and Biden himself — have claimed that the drop in prices is the steepest decline in more than a decade. Insider was unable to independently verify the claim.
Trump slammed Biden for going into the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve to release crude in an effort to ease overpriced gas despite the reserve being "only for war." But Trump did the same during his administration when Saudi Arabia's crude production drastically decreased following attacks on its production facilities, per CNBC.
"He's using that to keep prices down as much as he can just before the election and right after the election, it's going to double up and go higher than anybody ever believed," Trump claimed at the rally on Saturday.
Trump claimed the current average is still "double and triple" what it was during his administration.
The Associated Press reported the national average was as low as $1.87 per gallon during May 2020, but the outlet attributed the low cost mostly to the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown.
While the crowd cheered during Trump's rant on the current status of gas prices, some supporters didn't seem too bothered.
When an interviewer from Right Side Broadcasting Network pushed a woman clad in a pro-Trump hat to say the gas prices for her 5.5-hour drive were bad, the woman didn't agree.
"Wasn't too bad," the supporter said of the gas prices.
Greg Jensen warned the Fed's rate hikes could spark a market downturn and a deep recession.
The Bridgewater Associates boss predicted stubborn inflation, slower growth, and weaker earnings.
Jensen said the US is at the center of a global financial bubble that may be about to burst.
Investors are delusional if they think the Federal Reserve can vanquish inflation without tanking asset prices and plunging the US economy into a major recession, Bridgewater Associates' Greg Jensen has warned.
The co-chief investor of Ray Dalio's hedge fund predicted stubborn price increases, slowing growth, and a decline in corporate earnings, speaking at the SALT hedge fund conference in New York this week.
He also said the US is at the heart of a global financial bubble, argued the pandemic has permanently transformed the world, and highlighted regions and markets where he sees bargains.
Here are Jensen's 10 best quotes, lightly edited for length and clarity:
1. "The biggest mistake priced into markets right now is the belief that we're going to return to pricing similar to pre-COVID. That inflation is expected to come down to a little under 3% over the next 18 months or so, and that will happen without much of a recession."
2. "The markets aren't pricing in how constrained policymakers are — how impossible it will be to have the markets' expected combination of reasonably good earnings growth and low inflation."
3. "It's a mistake to think things can revert to normal, that we've had the drawdown, and the worst is behind us. We're still in the early phase of dealing with a radically different world than pre-COVID." (Jensen highlighted examples of what's changed: less globalization, a shrinking role for financial markets, and more government influence.)
4. "You're going to have inflation staying stubbornly higher than markets are expecting, as growth starts to turn down. That's when it gets really tricky, and that's what's going to create the more risky part of the downturn — when it becomes clear that earnings are falling, and rates are still rising."
5. "The downturn feels big, but asset prices are still quite high by historical standards. The decline is quite small, relative to the change in the underlying fundamental conditions. There's a lot more to come, and it'll get scary when everybody thinks it's not a temporary blip, but a more permanent phenomenon. That's when the bottom will start to come in."
6. "The recession will probably be longer, more grinding than a crash. It's not easy to say if it will be three years or one year, but the magnitude of it is likely to be large and difficult."
7. "There's a decent chance that the market isn't going to react to the European crisis until it's deeply upon us, which I think will be in the next couple months." (Jensen was referring to Russia's invasion of Ukraine driving up food and energy prices, eroding economic growth, and heaping political and fiscal pressure on European governments.)
8. "The worst thing for the US is it's priced to be the greatest economy going forward, and not to have major problems. The US is the center of a financial bubble, and it's the most at risk from liquidity being pulled." (Jensen noted that assets that don't generate cash flows to support their valuations — such as cryptocurrencies — are most at risk of declining when the Fed hikes interest rates and reduces the money supply.)
9. "Bear markets can go on for a long time. You can be in Japan and you can have a 25-year bear market. You have to know that's a possibility, and you have to prepare for that now."
10. "There are places in the world that are having very different cycles than the US, UK, and Europe. It's difficult in a tightening world of rising risk premiums and declining liquidity, but there are areas that look relatively attractive." (Jensen pointed to parts of Latin America, and commodities that haven't received sufficient investment and are less growth sensitive than other assets.)
Free bikes are available for employee use at the Patagonia corporate headquarters campus in Ventura, California.
David Walter Banks/For The Washington Post via Getty Images
Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard announced this week he is giving away the company, with all profits going to climate change.
Chouinard has a long history of environmental activism, which he has steeped into the company.
Here's a look at how Patagonia rose to become one of the world's most popular outdoor companies.
Patagonia was founded in 1973 by Yvon Chouinard, who is married with two children, now in their 40s.
Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard poses in his shop November 21, 1993 in California.
The company was built out of Chouinard's love for the outdoors. He was a passionate mountain climber at the ripe age of 14.
Yvon Chouinard climbs near Ophir wall during the three-day Mountainfilm festival in Telluride.
Chouinard grew interested in climbing while a member of the California Falconry Club, when a leader taught the group how to scale cliffs to find falcon nests leading to a "lifelong love or rock climbing," according to the company.
Rock climber John Salathé with Yvon Chouinard at Camp 4, Yosemite Valley, California, October 1964.
As Chouinard expanded his climbing experiences, he grew his network of friends in groups like the Sierra Club and learned to scale iconic peaks like Tahquitz and Yosemite.
Photo of rock climbers (L to R): Tom Frost, Royal Robbins, Chuck Pratt and Yvon Chouinard on the summit of El Capitan on 30 October 1964, following the ten day ascent of the North America Wall, Yosemite National Park, California.
Chouinard began teaching himself how to be a blacksmith in 1957, starting with making pitons, which are spikes mounted into rock to help support a climber. He quickly developed a following, and began selling them from his parents' backyard in Burbank, California, to friends and family.
A photo of a RURP (Realized Ultimate Reality Piton), invented by rock climbers Tom Frost and Yvon Chouinard.
His real passion, though, was being outside, climbing and surfing along the California coast. He continued selling the gear from his car to support himself, but "profits were slim," and Chouinard would eat discounted tins of cat food for sustenance.
Yvon Chouinard
Jacques Pavlovsky/Sygma/CORBIS/Sygma via Getty Images
Ready for a new adventure, in 1965 Chouinard teamed up with Tom Frost to create Chouinard Equipment, with a focus on redesigning climbing tools to make them "stronger, lighter, simpler, and more functional."
Chouinard Equipment Company, Ventura, California, 1969
Tom Frost - Skunkworks
Business began to grow, and by 1970 Chouinard Equipment was the largest climbing tool company in the US.
Inspired by Chouinard's use of a rugby shirt he picked up in Scotland — which worked well on climbs because the collar stopped slings from digging into his neck — the company decided to take a stab at making its own apparel.
Patagonia store owner Yvon Chouinard poses with his automobile November 21, 1993 in California
In 1973, the company opened its first store, Great Pacific Iron Works in Ventura, California. Today it serves as the company headquarters.
Patagonia headquarters, the site of the first store, Great Pacific Iron Works
Wikimedia Commons
Throughout the next decade, Patagonia worked on developing new forms of apparel — including specialty outerwear and long underwear — designed to keep climbers warm and dry.
Robert Alexander/Getty Images
The company experimented with different types of fabrics and materials. It also began using its signature bright, bold colors for its clothing.
An array of fabrics along the wall in the lab on the Patagonia corporate headquarters campus in Ventura, California.
David Walter Banks/For The Washington Post via Getty Images
By the late 80s and early 90s, the company established a culture known for its community spirit and love of outdoor sports.
Free bikes are available for employee use on the Patagonia corporate headquarters campus in Ventura, California.
David Walter Banks/For The Washington Post via Getty Images
Its headquarters had no private offices, and employees were allowed to wear whatever they pleased.
Solar panels cover the employee parking lot on the Patagonia corporate headquarters campus in Ventura, California on Friday, September 19, 2014.
David Walter Banks/For The Washington Post via Getty Images
Employees were encouraged to take surf breaks. Chouinard's laid-back approach to management is detailed in his memoir, "Let My People Go Surfing."
Laura Tripp, testing & standards engineer, tests fabric strength in the lab on the Patagonia corporate headquarters campus in Ventura, California on Friday, September 19, 2014.
David Walter Banks/For The Washington Post via Getty Images
It was also during this period that the company made an increased effort to support environmental efforts, and in 1988 Patagonia kicked off its first major campaign to protect Yosemite Valley.
In this Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2019, photograph, buyers pass by a sign in the Patagonia exhibit at the Outdoor Retailer & Snow Show in the Colorado Convention Center in Denver. Major players in the outdoor industry jumped into the political fight over national monuments two years ago and now have added climate change and sustainable manufacturing to their portfolio.
AP Photo/David Zalubowski
Similar efforts continued over the years, and the company began making regular donations to grassroots environmental organizations. It later debuted its 1% for the Planet effort, in which 1% of all sales are directed to these groups.
Bethany Biron/Business Insider
Patagonia continued to make waves on the sustainability front, including with major campaigns like the 2011 Black Friday "Don't Buy This Jacket" ads, which urged customers to reduce their consumption.
Despite its focus on activism, Patagonia hasn't been impervious to controversy. In 2015, an expose from The Atlantic reported that internal audits showed "multiple instances of human trafficking, forced labor, and exploitation in Patagonia's supply chain."
Demand Fair Trade sticker seen in the Patagonia store window in Dublin city center during Level 5 Covid-19 lockdown. On Saturday, 13 March 2021, in Dublin, Ireland.
Over the past decade, the company continued to expand its reach, including launching its own line of food, designed for hiking and camping called Patagonia Provisions.
Today, Patagonia has more than 70 stores globally and operates two distribution centers.
Tourists enter the Patagonia outdoor clothing shop in Vail, Colorado.
In April 2017, Patagonia announced the launch of Worn Wear, a program in which customers can return old gear and apparel, and receive credit toward a new item.
The company then mends the used items and resells them on its Worn Wear website.
Bethany Biron/Business Insider
In 2020, Patagonia took its activism to new heights when it sued former President Donald Trump over plans to reduce the size of two national monuments in Utah. The lawsuit came in tandem with an awareness campaign, "The President Stole Your Land."
In an unprecedented move, Chouinard announced this week he is giving away Patagonia, with all profits going into a new trust established to fight climate change.
Brad Barket/GettyImages
"Instead of 'going public,' you could say we're 'going purpose.' Instead of extracting value from nature and transforming it into wealth for investors, we'll use the wealth Patagonia creates to protect the source of all wealth," he wrote in a statement on Wednesday.
The company, which is valued at around $3 billion, will now be owned by the Patagonia Purpose Trust and Holdfast Collective.
A Patagonia store signage is seen on Greene Street on September 14, 2022 in New York City.
Often described as a "reluctant billionaire," Chouinard still embodies the same adventurous and unfettered spirit of his youth. According to The New York Times, the 83-year-old who was born in Maine "wears raggedy old clothes, drives a beat-up Subaru" and "does not own a computer or a cellphone."
Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard
"I never wanted to be a businessman," he wrote in his Wednesday statement. "I started as a craftsman, making climbing gear for my friends and myself, then got into apparel."
He continued: "Despite its immensity, the Earth's resources are not infinite, and it's clear we've exceeded its limits. But it's also resilient. We can save our planet if we commit to it."
Yvon Chouinard said on Wednesday that he's giving away Patagonia's wealth to fight climate change.
The donations could save the Patagonia founder's family over $1 billion in taxes, experts calculated.
It shows how wealthy people don't pay taxes in the same way everyone else does, those experts say.
It was the business proclamation heard around the world: Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard was giving away his company's wealth to fight climate change. What wasn't heralded so loudly: He could be avoiding more than a billion dollars in taxes while doing so.
"Instead of 'going public,' you could say we're 'going purpose,'" Chouinard said in a statement announcing the move. "Instead of extracting value from nature and transforming it into wealth for investors, we'll use the wealth Patagonia creates to protect the source of all wealth."
Earlier this year, another businessman from a different side of the political spectrum – Chicago's Barry Seid – used a similar structure to donate his $1.6 billion business to a nonprofit that advocates for conservative causes, including restricting abortion access and appointing conservative judges to the federal bench, according to a report in the New York Times.
Seid was able to avoid paying taxes on the sale of his business, an electronics manufacturer called Tripp Lite, by donating it to the nonprofit Marble Freedom Trust. And he got to make sure his pet causes were cared for — much like Chouinard has done with the donation of Patagonia to his own nonprofits that he says will advocate for climate change.
It was a huge move, and it instantly lit up the business world. It also might give Chouinard and his family a big tax break, experts who monitor such big transactions told Insider.
That's because of the structure of the donation: Chouinard told the New York Times that the family's voting stock — about 2% of all shares — was being transferred to a new trust run by family members and advisers, called the Patagonia Purpose Trust. The rest of the privately owned company's stock, which the family now holds, will go to a new nonprofit called Holdfast Collective.
The Times reports that, in transferring that stock to the trust, the Chouinards are on the hook for $17.5 million in gift taxes. However, they're not going to pay any taxes on the value that stock has accrued since they first acquired it — what's called capital gains taxes. Bloomberg estimates that the capital gains tax on the donation could have come in at more than $700 million.
Similarly, the massive amounts of stock headed for the 501(c)(4) nonprofit are also tax-exempt. Justin Miller, national director of wealth planning at Evercore Wealth Management, estimates that if 98% of the $3 billion donated had been subject to a federal gift tax, it would have been as much as $1.176 billion with the 40% levy.
A Patagonia spokesperson told Insider the Chouinard family did not ask to create a company structure to avoid taxes.
"Patagonia pays its taxes," the spokesperson said. "We have at times advocated for increased corporate tax rates to support climate initiatives. We did this most recently in our support of the Build Back Better plan – we said we would be willing to pay a higher corporate tax rate for stronger climate policies."
Some experts say the structure Chouinard used to offload the company is helping the founding family of Patagonia "opt out" of the tax system the rest of us are subject to — or at least those of us who aren't billionaires.
The structure of the Chouinards' donations falls under a quirk of American tax law: Wealthy people don't pay taxes in the same way everyone else does
"You can give appreciated assets to a (c)(4) corporation and not have to pay any capital gains tax. And that's just the flaw," Chuck Collins, the director of the Program on Inequality and the Common Good at the left-leaning Institute for Policy Studies, told Insider. "Regardless of how generous the donor is, they shouldn't be able to entirely opt out of taxes. That's my view."
There are a whole lot of mechanisms for the ultra-wealthy to move money around and not have to pay any levy on it. When it comes to why Chouinard isn't paying much in taxes, "there's a simple legal answer — because he does not need to," Steve Rosenthal, a senior fellow at the Tax Policy Center, told Insider.
The structure of the donations means that the family won't get any charitable tax deduction, either, since they're pouring stocks into a 501(c)(4) and not a 501(c)(3). When you donate to a 501(c)(4), they're generally not eligible for a charitable tax deduction on your federal income tax — and, because of legislation signed into law under President Obama, those donations aren't subject to federal gift tax. Non-billionaires who claim donations on their taxes are probably donating into a 501(c)(3) in order to get deductions.
Demand Fair Trade sticker seen in the Patagonia store window in Dublin city center during Level 5 Covid-19 lockdown. On Saturday, 13 March 2021, in Dublin, Ireland.
Artur Widak/NurPhoto via Getty Images
Miller said the choice of a 501(c)(4) instead of a 501(c)(3) makes sense: The family likely would not have been able to stay in control of a 501(c)(3). Russell James, director of graduate studies in personal financial planning at Texas Tech University, said that the ultra-wealthy generally "can't even use charitable income tax deductions." That's because they work to make sure that their on-paper income is low.
"They tend to have high wealth and low reportable income and deductions are limited to a percentage of income," James told Insider. "So if they make a gift of even a small share of their wealth, it completely overwhelms their reportable income, meaning they are already maxed out on their donations that have tax benefits."
In short, then, "these alternate structures make more sense because you have more control, can spend it on politics, and you didn't really need the charitable tax deduction anyway," James said. Meanwhile, a 501(c)(4) can spend its money on political causes — like fighting climate change; a 501(c)(3) generally cannot.
Tax law means people can do the same for much less worthy reasons
While the Chouinards say they are are putting their billions towards fighting the climate crisis, other wealthy people can use the same type of structures for causes that are dear to them, too — and perhaps not so politically popular: Maybe an oil baron would want to use a similar structure to pump profits into supporting drilling for carbon.
"The argument for a change in tax policy to implement a gift tax for 501(c)(4)s is that not only can an individual donate unlimited — they can continue to grow tax free for generations," Miller said. "So $3 billion today could easily be $9 billion 20 years from now. Completely free of taxes and all used for political purposes."
Current tax policy "allows individuals to not only influence politics during their lifetime but for generations after they are gone," Miller said. Ultimately, even if there's a "good" 501(c)(4) organization, "there's nothing stopping anyone else from donating to a different organization you don't agree with — and these donations can have lasting effects."
Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard
Al Seib/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
"I object to the tax rules in this area, because to me, it seems that the tax rules are subsidizing these political agendas," Rosenthal said. "Everyone should be able to advance their political agendas as they see fit with their assets, but we should draft the tax rules in a way that forecloses benefits from using resources to advance an agenda."
Notably, tax expert Harvey Bezozi said it's an unusual strategy, and probably won't become common. That's because, with the 501(c)(4) in play, there won't be an income tax deduction, and it's unlikely most families would want to use their funds more for political purposes than charitable ones.
But Chouinard's donations illustrate how the ultra-wealthy, even when championing big causes, fall out of the realm of taxation, which means that the public purse — the one that pays for roads and airports and healthcare subsidies — could be deprived of around a billion dollars in tax revenue, in Patagonia's case.
"We applaud this sort of charitable impulse and the desire," Collins said. Still, Collins said, "some portion of that money should go to pay the taxes that the rest of us are paying on our income and assets."
President Joe Biden addresses the nation at the White House in Washington, DC on June 24, 2022 following the US Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe vs. Wade.
Photo by MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images
Navient CEO Jack Remondi said he won't sue Biden on his student-loan forgiveness plan.
"It seems like a case of a lot of people hoping somebody else is going to sue," Remondi said.
Some Republican lawmakers have expressed intent to pursue legal action to block the relief.
The head of a major student-loan company says he could sue President Joe Biden's recent debt relief — but won't.
During Barclay's Global Financial Services Conference this week, student-loan company Navient's CEO Jack Remondi joined to chat about Biden's recent $20,000 loan forgiveness announcement at the end of August. It was a long-awaited decision — Biden pledged to approve $10,000 in relief on his campaign trail — but a controversial one nonetheless, given many Republicans have been pushing back on the relief since the president took office.
After the announcement, conservatives turned that pushback into threats of legal action, with prominent lawmakers like Texas Sen. Ted Cruz saying they were looking for ways to take the debt relief to court and attempt to block it. Remondi addressed those threats and said that Navient would "clearly" have the legal standing to challenge the policy because it manages the Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) program. Borrowers within that would not directly benefit from the relief since the loans are privately-held, so they would need to consolidate their loans into federal debt to qualify. This would materially affect Navient's business.
But in terms of whether Navient will actually sue, Remondi said: "It won't be us."
"We don't have any direct knowledge of who would be suing or not," Remondi said. "It's pretty clear that the precedent here requires someone to have standing in order to sue. We would clearly have standing as a holder of FFEL loans, but it's not clear whether or not some political entity that might have standing in their state because of a state agency that homes FFEL loans will or will not decide to sue."
"It seems like a case of a lot of people hoping somebody else is going to sue, but it's not clear who's going to step up and fight that political battle," he added.
It's something a lot of people are wondering about. Top Republican on the House education committee Virginia Foxx said during an event this week that she's "open to suggestions" on ways to block Biden's loan forgiveness in court.
"Right now, we don't know exactly what's going to happen," she said. "But we do believe there will be actions that will come forward that will be able to stop it. And we're working as hard as we can to find out what those are going to be."
Biden's administration said it has the authority to enact this one-time blanket relief under the HEROES Act of 2003, which gives the Education Secretary the ability to waive or modify student-loan balances in connection with a national emergency, like COVID-19. However, Republicans have argued the policy is an overreach of that authority.
Abby Shafroth, staff attorney for the National Consumer Law Center, also previously told Insider that it will be difficult to find a plaintiff that can successfully fight Biden's debt relief in court — especially when it comes to the companies that service student loans since they make money through contracts with the government.
"Do they want to bite the hand that feeds them?" Shafroth said. "Also, I think the administration is in regular contact with the servicers and talks to them about what the administration is doing, and tries to find ways to design relief programs that are not going to really upset their services. So I think that there are a lot of sort of pragmatic reasons that I wouldn't expect a servicer to bring a suit."
Airstream unveiled a new $131,882 camper van on a Ram Promaster chassis.
The RV maker previously exclusively used Mercedes-Benz Sprinter chassis for its Class B RVs.
Airstream has "always" considered shifting from the Sprinter amid Mercedes-Benz's supply chain delays.
Famed RV maker Airstream has unveiled a new $131,882 Ram Promaster-based camper van in a major shift away from Mercedes-Benz's beloved Sprinter chassis, which has been impacted by supply chain issues and the semiconductor shortage.
Longtime fans of Airstream's Class B motorhomes may be surprised to see the popular RV maker working with Ram for the first time.
Airstream
Before it announced this new Rangeline Touring Coach, the RV maker had been exclusively using Mercedes-Benz Sprinter chassis for its camper vans since 2004, Bob Wheeler, president and CEO of Airstream, said during a virtual media event.
Airstream
But in the last two years, as Airstream started seeing rising demand and a growing backlog of orders …
Airstream
… Mercedes-Benz began experiencing more COVID-19-induced supply chain issues amid the semiconductor shortage.
However, these pandemic woes and supply chain delays aren't an isolated incident, according to Wheeler, which has pushed Airstream to consider other chassis alternatives.
Airstream
"Let's just say that we've had enough supply side issues with our Sprinter chassis over the years that we'd be foolish if we didn't start to look for other alternatives," Wheeler told Insider in 2021.
And as a result, moving away from the Sprinter chassis has "always" been a consideration amid these ongoing supply challenges.
Airstream
Now, this consideration has become a reality in the form of the 21-foot-long Rangeline Touring Coach camper van.
Airstream
"As an OEM, we'd be foolish not to diversify our supply base away from a single source for such a critical component as chassis," Wheeler said during the media event …
Airstream
… noting that working with Ram allows Airstream to create a chassis supply with "backup and redundancy" while entering a new camper van segment.
Airstream
Despite differences in the chassis brand and price point — the Rangeline Touring Coach is almost $69,000 cheaper than Airstream's least expensive Sprinter-based camper van — the new model still has all the typical amenities RVers have come to expect from Airstream.
Airstream
The tiny home on wheels can seat up to four people.
Airstream
To accommodate this many travelers at night, the camper van has a rear folding twin bed above the garage …
Airstream
… and an optional pop-top roof with a mattress, windows, a fan, and lights.
Airstream
Like most camper vans at this almost $132,000 price point, there's also a kitchen with a refrigerator, freezer, and electric stovetop …
Airstream
… a bathroom with a sink, shower, and toilet …
Airstream
… and an expandable table that can be used when the driver and passenger seats are swiveled to face the table and two-person bench.
Airstream
All of these amenities are powered using energy sources like a lithium battery, generator, inverter, solar, and hookups.
Airstream
Plus, your furry friends are welcome as well: The Rangeline Touring Coach has pet bowls built into a pull-out drawer and a leash attachment on the van's running board.
Airstream
As always, storage is plentiful inside the camper van with features like gear storage panels on the rear doors and cubbies by the entry door.
Airstream
And it wouldn't be a luxury camper van without an awning, although this one is manual.
Airstream
In terms of interior amenities, it's evident the Ram Promaster hasn't dramatically changed the camper van's functions.
Airstream
But if you're a loyal fan of the RV maker's Sprinter-based diesel camper vans, you can still expect to see the German chassis in future Airstream builds.
Airstream
"[The Sprinter] has been a fantastic platform for us and will continue to be so far into the future," Wheeler said.
Airstream
Camper van demand has stayed resilient despite the supply chain issues that have impacted auto and RV makers.
Airstream
The COVID-19 pandemic helped catapult camper vans and van life, along with other forms of RVing, into mainstream fame.
Airstream
But as general RV sales have dwindled again, Class B RV shipments have remained strong.
And Airstream predicts it'll continue to ride this ongoing wave of #VanLife popularity with the Rangeline Touring Coach.
Airstream
The RV maker has already received over 1,000 Rangeline Touring Coach orders from dealers, and the team predicts this momentum will continue to grow now that the camper van has been unveiled to the public, Wheeler said.