Prevost Celebrates 100th Anniversary With Event In Winter Garden, FL
On February 15, Prevost hosted a 100th anniversary celebration for employees, customers, and local officials at its 43,000-square-foot service center in Winter Garden, FL. Among the 100-plus attendees were representatives from the Offices of Senator Rick Scott and Congressman Daniel Webster.
“The exciting celebration featured a short film about the founding of Prevost and a multimedia exhibit that traced the company’s growth and innovation through the decades,” according to a press release. “The new Prevost H3-45 was also onsite, along with several other Prevost coaches, including the X3-45 VIP Entertainer Coach. The event was capped by the unveiling of ‘Clarisse’ — a replica of the very first coach that Eugène Prévost built in 1924.
“Prevost is one of North America’s largest producers of premium intercity touring coaches, and is the world leader in the production of high-end motorhome and specialty conversion coaches.”
Clarisse’s Road Trip
To commemorate the company’s centennial, three generations of Eugène’s family — children, grandchildren, grand in-laws and great grandchildren — dedicated thousands of hours to research, model, build and outfit the replica.
The family located a period REO chassis in Tampa Bay and brought it back to Sainte-Claire, Quebec, where Prevost was founded.
“From there, painstaking care was taken to craft a historically accurate coach — the oak wheels were handmade, window, door and step mechanisms were agonized over, the wooden interior was hand varnished and bench cushions were hand sewn,” the release said.
The 1924 coach was christened “Clarisse” in honor of Eugène’s wife who supported him in all his endeavors — even going so far as to sew vehicle cushions during the early days of the company.
The Prevost Winter Garden service center opened in 2018 and employs 27 mechanics, technicians and service professionals and handles more than 1,500 vehicles a year.
Prevost In The U.S.
Prevost entered the U.S. market in 1967 when Somerset Bus Company, in Somerset, NJ, became the first American travel and tour operator to purchase a new Prevost coach. That same year, Prevost established sales and service facilities in Lyndhurst, NJ, and Los Angeles, CA.
“In 1969, the U.S. connection grew even deeper when André Normand, president of Prevost Car Inc., formed a partnership with two American businessmen, Thomas B. Harbison and William G. Campbell. Harbison and Campbell were longtime motorhome owners and they enthusiastically contributed to the engineering of Prevost’s first LeMirage conversion shell in 1977,” the release added. “The shell business continues to this day and allows U.S. converters to create custom-designed luxury motorcoaches, built on Prevost’s fully integrated structure, creating its own class of motorhome.”
In 1995, Volvo Group and Henlys Group acquired joint ownership of Prevost, and in 2004 Volvo became the sole owner. Today, Prevost has facilities throughout the U.S. and Canada.
Clarisse Rolls On
Following her visit to Winter Garden, Clarisse is joining anniversary celebrations at Prevost Service Centers in Fort Worth, TX; Mira Loma, CA; Calgary, Alberta; Mississauga, Ontario; and South Plainfield, NJ.
To learn more about Prevost’s 100 years and follow Clarisse on her journey, visit prevostcar.com.