Airstream is a recreational vehicle like no other, with its iconic aluminum frame sticking out at campgrounds where many other RVs closely resemble each other.
The brand takes serious pride in its history, frequently publishing stories of the life of its founder, Wally Byam, and is opening the Airstream Heritage Center later this year.
But many Airstream owners are surprised to learn that the unique company is not independently owned. Thor Industries owns Airstream, Jayco, Keystone RV, and a few other smaller brands, and has its headquarters in Elkhart, Indiana, while Airstream resides in Jackson Center, Ohio.
This wasn’t always the case. Byam founded Airstream in a Los Angeles garage in 1931, just two years after building the world’s first Airstream by himself. So how did the company come to be owned by America’s largest RV supplier?
The Great Depression Era that Airstream was born in the midst of was cruel to many companies. More than 400 travel-trailer building operations popped up on Airstream’s heels by 1936, but Airstream was the only one able to survive the Great Depression. World War II then stopped the companies’ production entirely, as non-military industries suffered an aluminum shortage.
1948 saw Airstream manufacturing resume as the aluminum industry stabilized. A boom in demand for the vehicles necessitated increased production, and Airstream opened a second facility in Jackson Center, Ohio in 1952. California manufacturing still continued until 1979.
But Airstream’s owners changed before the company left California. Wally Byam died in 1962, and ownership of the company was handed over to Art Costello.
Costello, Byam, and Airstream Product Designer Andrew Charles
Costello was one of the first workers at the reopened Airstream factory in the late 1940’s, rising all the way up to plant manager and then president.
Dale “Pee Wee” Schwamborn, cousin of Wally Byam and a founding member of the Wally Byam Caravan Club International, said in an April 2015 blogpost that “Having known Art and his family, I have no doubt about his strength as a leader and the important void he filled after Wally’s death in 1962. Without his knowledge, and without the lessons he learned as Wally’s protégé, Airstream’s survival is doubtful.”
Costello had already been Airstream’s Chairman of the Board since 1959. Although frequently given credit for much of the company’s success, Art Costello’s praise was reserved for everyone but himself, as he continued to praise Wally Byam’s vision.
“It was in August of 1952 that it was decided that Airstream would be the first manufacturer to set up a manufacturing facility in the east as well as in the west, and be able to establish a national dealer organization and have its product sold on lots throughout the country. Prior to this time, travel trailer manufacturers had but one manufacturing facility and was only selling to dealers in their immediate areas. It was Airstream who at this time led the way and established two manufacturing facilities and started building a national sales organization. This, again, was Wally Byam’s idea.” Costello wrote in a letter about Airstream’s legacy in the internal company publication.
After a period of financial difficulty, Costello led Airstream into going public in 1966, just four years after Wally Byam’s only heir to the company, Stella, had sold off her liquidity to Airstream’s board members.
Schwamborn said in 2016 that “The company began to heal, and thanks to Art’s leadership, 1966 was the most successful in the company’s history.”
The next year, dairy and food company Beatrice Foods acquired Airstream in an attempt to further diversify their holdings, and Art Costello retired a few years later, in 1971.
Beatrice Foods caught on to Airstream in a difficult economic climate, and grew interested in selling the brand a shortly afterward. In 1980, two New Zealanders, Wade Thompson and Peter Orthwein, purchased Airstream just four years after meeting each other.
With the purchase, the two founded Thor Industries, Inc, a name derived from their two last names. Thor immediately pumped life into Airstream, earning $1 million in the first year of operation, after Airstream had lost $12 million the previous year.
A glimpse into Airstream’s manufacturing plant
From then on, Airstream continued to grow into the record sales it boasts today. As did Thor, who acquired Canadian company General Coach in 1982, and proceeded to go public in 1984 on the New York Stock Exchange.
Today, Thor Industries dominates the RV industry, earning over $8 billion per year in revenue, with Airstream proudly leading the way.
At Pete’s RV Center, we have all the Thor RVs you could need, proudly carrying Airstream, Jayco, Keystone, and more.
