The Canadian series of park models, manufactured by Kropf Park Model RVs, are new to the Bucars dealership this season. We caught up wit Curt Yoder, a third generation owner of the company, to chat about what Kropf Park Models is all about and what we can expect from these new additions to the Bucars lineup.
Meet Curt
Curt has been with Kropf for 28 years, starting in the sales department for his father-in-law and working his way up to management and now ownership. His prior experience has been in the manufactured home business, so starting at Kropf seemed to be an obvious good fit. In 2002 Curt obtained ownership of Kropf with his brother in law and since then they have seen steady growth in the business with sales increasing from $6 million to $20 million within 13 years.
About Kropf Park Models
Kopf Park Models has been in operation since 1946 and is located in Goshen, Indiana (We didn’t know where that was either! Here’s a map). They began building trailers and quickly transitioned into the mobile home business. By the early 80’s the company had moved away from the mobile home industry and became one of the first companies to start manufacturing park models. Today they have become the number 1 selling park model in the United States and are currently expanding into the Canadian marketplace with dealerships selling Kropf in almost every province.
What makes Kropf different than other Park Model’s?
Kropf pride themselves in not manufacturing generic “cookie-cutter” park models. Instead they create quality, custom-built park models, while working very closely with their customers – no two units are exactly alike.
They are a self-sufficient manufacturer; meaning parts such as cabinetry are handcrafted on site with proficient detail. This creates many additional options and unique floor plans for their customers to choose from. Being very aware of the market that they are in, Kropf makes it their mission to know the residential market and stay ahead of the changing curve in terms of colours, floor plans and other park model features, creating a high-quality unit that continues to appeals to their customers.
You truly have to see these in person to see what we’re talking about!
Bringing Kropf to Canadians
Curt loves Canada and has been here plenty of times, which is why they decided to move into the Canadian market. Obviously working so far away from their home base, in Indiana, Canada poses a few difficulties in terms of their ability to work as closely with their customers and to make such custom built park models. Interestingly enough Canadian certified park model floor plans are allowed to be up to 100 square feet larger than in the United States. Kropf has created the “Canadian Series” specific to their Canadian customers. With 11 different floor plans to choose from and 7 different cabinetry packages they have created a very versatile product that can be tailored to the customer.
Partnering with Bucars
Curt felt that Bucars would be an obvious choice for Kropf to sell their park models to Albertans. He says “they just get it, they know how to run their business in a very professional manner and they have established a strong reputation and become one of the top dealers in the Calgary RV and park model industry.” Curt admires how Bucars has run their business and he hopes that Kropf Park Model RV’s can contribute to that success.
A few photos of the beautiful Kropf Canadian Series interior and video below on how they make the Park Models:
Video: Birth of a Dream: A Kropf Park Model Home
