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Since day one, Tiffin has been a family business. Our company is filled with employees who have made working at Tiffin Motorhomes a family tradition. It's a kind of loyalty that just isn't seen very often these days. But then again, neither is this kind of quality and service. Here are a few members of the Tiffin family who have built their lives around bringing you a quality product.
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Bob Tiffin
Founder
Bob founded Tiffin Motorhomes in 1972, and since then the company has manufactured and sold over 50,000 motorhomes. With the simple mission of "building lifetime relationships by doing our best to exceed the sales, service and overall ownership expectations of Tiffin Motorhomes owners and dealers," Tiffin has earned its reputation for having the best products and customer service in the industry.
At an Allegro Club rally, Bob Tiffin joins the plant technicians who knock on every coach door, offering to make whatever minor repairs time and parts allow. At an RV show, RVers -- no matter what make they drive -- line up to shake Bob's hand and visit a minute. At the plant in Red Bay, Bob spends much of his day greeting walk-in customers, catching up on their families and travels. He can wave at customers through his office window, but most folks come into his office for a chat. They do that because they can. Because Bob makes them feel welcome, comfortable, important. His sincerity and his commitment to meeting or exceeding his customer's needs are as plain as the pickup truck he often drives to work.
"Our name is on the product, that's enough for us to fix whatever is wrong," he recently told RV Business. This philosophy is at the foundation of our slogan, "Wherever you go, we go!"
Bob is a 25-year RVIA member and for his dedication and commitment, he was inducted into the Heritage Foundation Hall of Fame in 1999.
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Tim Tiffin
General Manager
The oldest of three children, Tim graduated from the University of Alabama and immediately joined the company. From his first job in purchasing, Tim has progressed in his managerial roles to his present position of General Manager.
"In 1997, Dad led the celebration of Tiffin Motorhomes, 25th Anniversary as a privately-owned Class A motorhome manufacturer," Tim said. "That is no small achievement," he added. "It is now my job to see that we excel in the next century and celebrate our 50th anniversary in 2022. My brothers and I feel that we are up to the task and welcome the challenge."
Tim's role, working with six managers, is to solve problems and remove snags in production. The daily production quota is his yardstick. He also is responsible for advertising and branding.
Outside of work, Tim is an accomplished tennis competitor. He is an entrepreneur in his own right. Tim, his wife and children live in Sheffield, Alabama, a short drive from the plant in Red Bay.
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Van Tiffin
R&D Manager
Van holds a degree in Public Relations from the University of Alabama where he was a place kicker on the Crimson Tide football team.
He now serves the company by managing product development, including research, design, prototype development, promotion and advertising -- all key elements in motorhome sales.
Van began his career at Tiffin in customer service, where he learned, as his father and grandfather before him, how to treat customers and focus on solving problems. He has an eye for effective design and keeps his ears open for what features are liked and disliked. Van avoids insignificant fads but pursues solid improvements. One personal motto is: "If it isn't broken, break it and change it for the better."
"Competition is the keenest in the history of the industry," commented Van. "Customers are the reason we are in business. If we continue to meet their needs, they will keep us in business. It is my job to pay special attention to what customers are telling the motorhome marketplace."
Away from the office, Van conducts an Alabama kicking school each summer. He is an excellent fisherman, yet his multiple roles in the company have allowed cobwebs to form on his tackle boxes. Van, his wife and children reside in Muscle Shoals, Alabama.
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Lex Tiffin
Quality and Assistant Plant Manager
Before joining the company in 1998, Lex Tiffin studied art at the University of Alabama. His sense of design, pattern and creative insight now serve his quest for making quality the #1 goal in the manufacturing process.
Lex has implemented in-line inspection and correction where quality exceptions are corrected immediately after they occur. This means that the people most familiar with a problem are those who fix it. By the time the product gets to the end of the assembly line it is generally "good to go."
Lex says, "We do quality right from the start. Quality cannot be inspected into a product, it must be built into each step of the assembly process. A customer deserves quality. After all, a motorhome is a person's home away from home. They want the same quality in their motorized home as they demand in their stationary home."
Lex and his family reside in Russellville, Alabama. Lex also has considerable drawing talent and a very strong interest in the culinary arts.
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Judy Tiffin
The spouse of an entrepreneur is an intimate working partner in the building of a business. Along with her leading role in the interior and exterior design of Tiffin products, one of Judy's many contributions to our success was naming the original product line: Allegro.
Knowing that Bob wanted a name that began with "A" so that his company would be listed at the beginning of trade directories, Judy equated the essence of movement in a motorized home with a musical movement: Allegro. In music, Allegro implies something brisk, sprightly and cheerful. So Allegro was born as the core product name for moving about the country in an Allegro Motorhome.
Judy has retired from the family business, but often accompanies Bob at RV shows, Allegro Club rallies, dealer meetings and at the plant.
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