Billion-dollar Tampa RV company announces new CEO

The CEO of LazyDays RV, a Tampa-based RV dealership with nationwide presence and more than $1 billion in annual revenue, has left the company.

John North, who led the company for about two years, resigned Friday, the company says in a Monday morning statement. North's departure comes after a big run-up, then big decline in revenue punctuated by heavy quarterly losses.  

On revenue, the company posted $817.1 million in 2020 revenue. That jumped to $1.32 billion in 2022, up 51% due to a pandemic surge in RV travel. Revenue is down to $987 million over the past 12 months. Quarterly losses meanwhile, include the 2023 fourth quarter, where it lost $108 million — a wide gap from a  $1.4 million loss in the same period in 2022.

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LazyDays named former executive Ron Fleming interim CEO. Fleming, according to a statement, previously served as national general manager, vice president and eventually senior vice president of the company for 11 years until his retirement in 2023. 

In that statement LazyDays Chairman Robert DeVincenzi — who was interim CEO of the company himself for nine months prior to North's appointment — acknowledges the challenges, saying, in part, "we're thrilled Ron is rejoining the organization to lead Lazydays out of the current downturn and return the company to growth...the Board looks forward to partnering with Ron as he works to improve performance and capitalize on our expanded national footprint."

Fleming began in the RV industry on Labor Day of 1980 in his hometown of Winter Garden. He announced his retirement Labor Day of 2023 and is now back just a year out.

LazyDays was founded in 1976 and currently brings in $1.08 billion in annual revenue across 25 locations.