Founded in 1986, the Hy-Line line of recreational products consisted of fifth wheel trailers, travel trailers and park models. Initially building travel trailers as small as 16 feet in length, the production capacity of Hy-Line would eventually include park models spanning up to 44 feet. Hy-Line products are best known for featuring flexible floor plan options that includes multiple slide-out section on many recent models into 2024.
I actually came in around 2001 as contracted support. I worked closely with them all those years..even through all the staff changes (which wasn't that often), the splits and the consolidation. I was there after the doors closed and helped button things up.
Unlike most RV boom-bust hiring and firing, Hyline kept their doors open. Even when the industry was in a slump, they would pay workers and owners not take any salary. The workers stayed on for many years, because they wanted to stay loyal to a company that was loyal to them. Now, I was never an employee. But I was working there onsite and got to know most of the people that ever worked there. Absolutely everyone was great to be around (except that CEO in 2008/2009)
One of friendliest guys you could meet is Jim Brown. Jim Brown became head of sales and then President of Hyline. (Jim started out in the van industry in the 1980's and built up a reputable company from a garage startup). As the original owners sought out retirement, Jim helped facilitate selling the company (like he did when he sold his successful van company). It was sold to Hy-Line Enterprises Holdings LLC in 2006 (venture marketing group out of Texas). Jim exited out of the company with the sale. The board decided to hire a CEO out of Chicago, Mark H. (while I remember his name well, I am not trying to public shame him). The leadership took a successful company, and after several poor decisions, the company was suffering. It didn't help that the CEO still lived in Chicago and would only be onsite about 3 days a week. He had absolutely no RV experience. Was the relevant? Absolutely. Especially for a company with less than 100 employees. Instead, all indirect labor doubled. Dave in accounting was given a new CFO supervisor. Sales guys were given a new VP of sales. Purchasing went from 1 to 2 people. Simple tasks like a web redesign went from 1 company doing the work to 3. To sum it up in 1 word: chaos. The leadership burned through money like they were NYC hobos at a barrel trying to get warm. They accumulated crazy debt. Mark went back to Chicago to disappear into a larger corporation. Craig S. was brought in July 2009 to try to save the ship. Craig lived in the area and came from the RV industry. But was it too late?
Hyline was known for customer service and custom made park trailers. The wasted effort trying to turn it into a mass-production facility, to rival the cookie-cutter approach (like all the large companies), wasn't working.
While this was happening, Jim Brown partnered with the Hyline sales rep Dave Hochstetler. Dave was also super nice and honest with everyone he dealt with. I spent time with them outside of work and just really good guys. They started up their own trailer factory to compete with the Hyline product line. That started in January 2010. Craig had no idea that was in the works.
This is literally an email from an employee of mine from January 2010: "I stopped at Hyline Saturday morning and talked with Craig. In summary, he basically stated that if all the guys left Hyline that he would tell the owners to shut the doors because they wouldn't be able to keep going. He still doesn't know about Bridgeview and thinks the rumors as false."
The head of production, George, jumped over to Bridgeview, as did some workers. In the Fall of 2010 Hy-Line Enterprises Holdings LLC closed its doors. But to keep Hyline from being shuttered and forever forgotten, one of the former owners, Peggy, bought it back. She was there at the beginning in 1986. She knew the industry, she knew the customer base, and she cut the BS out. The new company name was H-L Enterprise Inc., bringing back the company as to how it was before.
(To be continued)..