Bent’s celebrates grand opening of expanded 22-acre location in Boutte

Ribbon cutting ceremony scheduled at 8 a.m. Sept. 8

Though Bent’s RV has been open in Boutte since 2014, Sept. 8 nonetheless marks a significant grand opening celebration.

After three successful years, Bent’s expanded its store and then some in 2017, doubling the size of its facility and fully planting roots in an area full of outdoorsmen and women.

The store, which initially opened as a 1,200 square-foot modular building, now covers 22 acres of property, which store owner Brian Bent says allows he and his staff to offer more items and services than ever to their customers.

“This building is a dream come true,” Bent said. “We’ve had tremendous feedback from our customers … a million thumbs up, all very excited. We have more space now, an indoor, weather-controlled showroom. Be it sales or service, we can do a better job for our customers now.”

The grand opening will include an official ribbon-cutting, which will kick off what Bent says will be a full weekend of celebration including food and prizes for all.

“We want to create some excitement, let folks know we’re here and open for business,” Bent said.

Bent notes that the store’s showroom is the largest of any RV dealership in the state.

“In our western wing, we have our sales showroom, where rain, shine or blistering heat, people can come in and shop,” Bent said. “Our customers can avoid getting wet or just boiled to death.”

With the added space comes added inventory, including not only more campers — there are more than 200 new or used campers at the facility — but also more parts and accessories.

“As a comparison, we had 500 square feet of parts and accessories (before), now it’s 7,000 square feet,” Bent said.

One of the biggest improvements comes in the store’s service department, where there are up to 40 service bays available and a wealth of space to work with, allowing the store’s technicians to be more efficient and for customers to receive their service more quickly.

He also made note that even people who have not bought their RV from Bent’s may bring them in for service.

“We believe we can create a lot of customer satisfaction through our service department and that maybe they’ll take note of that and shop with us next time around,” he said. But aside from the tangible improvements, Bent also believes the store expansion will convey to residents in the area that Bent’s is here to stay.

“I think the building itself is going to lend a lot of credibility to our customers thoughts of whether we’ll be here for the long haul. We are,” Bent said. “I think we’ll continue to grow our business here.

“A lot of folks have had to bring (their RVs) up to Hammond or out of the area. The more of those people who come to us, the more employees we need and the more tax revenue there is for the parish. It’s good for everyone.”

 

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