No Longer Can the Nordic Motorhome Market Be Defined by a Single Customer Profile The Nordic motorhome rental market, once characterized by the “traditional international traveller in their late 40s on a family holiday,” is no longer easy to describe using a single customer profile. Elle Tick’s dissertation research shows how the traveller segment has shifted since 2017, forcing a revaluation of how customer segmentation strategies should be approached. From International to Domestic During the pre-pandemic market, international customers made up the majority of the Nordic market (around 80% of total rentals in 2017; around 84% in 2019).

Source countries for the international market primarily included Germany, Switzerland, the Netherlands and France, “showing the tight relationship between demand for Nordic motorhome rentals and the international leisure travel market,” Tick reports.

The most prominent customer segment at the time was families (approximately 65% of the market included in the study’s rentals, versus just over 35% for couples in 2019). The “average traveller profile of the dominant segment” was “somewhat mature” – around 45-46 years old in the study, Tick notes. However, in 2020, the market’s structure dramatically changed, as rents fell to 1,257 from 2,290 in 2019, while local customers jumped to an average of over 53% of total rents (up from ~16% previously). “In effect, a new customer segment was established by local customers due to restricted international movement,” Tick explains.

While international travel did increase in 2021 (around 47% of the market was local, with over 86% international in 2022), this clearly illustrates how “customer segments and demand change due to external shocks.”

The change is a crucial indicator that customer segmentation strategies “need to be dynamic and adaptable,” as the “market composition can shift” quickly. Longer Stays, New Preferred Segments The dissertation study also identifies a change in rental duration. It rose from a consistent around 12-day rental for the pre-pandemic market to 12.7 days in 2021 and 14.3 days in 2022, with durations “stabilizing near 14 days up to 2025,” Tick found.

“Longer rentals mean greater commitment by the client and thus more emphasis on service reliability, comfort, equipment, and on vehicle technical service availability, ”Tick writes. In addition to length of stay and new demographic profiles of travellers, Tick points to an increasing presence of couples in the Nordic rental market – from roughly 35% in 2019 to about 46% by 2025. As you can imagine, this will have implications beyond just family fun.

“The segment of couples may signal different rental preferences with regards to marketing and vehicle features compared to a segment of families.

It creates opportunity for businesses to consider and invest in a wider range of vehicle configuration and holiday package offerings.” Business Opportunity In targeting or developing services for specific customer segments, the key is to avoid treating the entire market as a monolithic entity. Instead, use demographic and behavioural information to identify distinctions that can then be used to shape and deliver highly customized communications and experiences. The Nordic motorhome market serves as a stark example of how flexible, data-driven segmentation practices are critical for navigating an ever-changing global tourism landscape.

Read Elle Tick’s abstract of her dissertation here: GlobalX Publications | Read My Work | Elle Tick About GlobalX Publications.

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