Enterprise

Prologue

My wife, Evelyn, and I are active motorhome enthusiasts. We converted our first camper, a VW T2 bus, ourselves in Munich in 1972. After our initial, instructive experiences, we moved on to another self-conversion, then another, and so on. Our campers continually improved, became more comfortable, and self-sufficient – our vehicles even had photovoltaic panels on the roof as soon as they came onto the market. Our campers didn't get much bigger, because we didn't want to forego maneuverability, off-road capability, and urban mobility – after all, it was our only car. That's why our largest camper was "only" a self-converted VW LT 1 with a long wheelbase, albeit with a self-built, firmer suspension and a higher ride height. However, we always enjoyed returning to the small and maneuverable VW bus, which is simply more fun to drive, can be driven even off paved roads, can be parked easily anywhere, and can easily get under all the 2m camper barriers on the Mediterranean.
Our hobbies were/are diving, fishing, surfing, sailing – simply anything to do with water –, skiing, horses, dogs, building campers for our own needs, and, of course, developing camper equipment.
To be able to achieve all of this with a relatively small camper, we had to be "creative" and constantly come up with something that didn't yet exist, or not in the way we needed it. We didn't just need a good camper, but above all functional equipment that really solved problems. It also had to be stowable and of absolutely reliable quality, because we couldn't carry a lot of repair tools in the tight space and didn't want to spend our holidays doing repairs.
Along the way, we repeatedly met other campers who asked us if we could perhaps make one or two parts for them. Buyers of "pole campers," in particular, had a significant need for equipment, as these vehicles weren't tailored to individual needs but were intended to appeal to a broad customer base, and therefore only needed to be customized with the necessary equipment after purchase. This was a broad field of activity that we enjoyed.

Over the years, we have invented and reinvented numerous products, including: AIR-SAFE, AIRSCREEN, FLYOUT, ISOLITE, ISOLITE Extreme, ISO-TOP, iXTEND, FLEXBAG, MULTIBOX, MULTIBOX CarryBag, TOP-RAIL, TIALO, UTILITY storage systems, Second Skin, VARIOTENT, etc.

BRANDRUP Camper & Van Equipment – still a 100% family-owned business – has evolved from a pioneer to an international market leader in equipment for Volkswagen AG's series recreational vehicles, as well as an equipment manufacturer for Mercedes-Benz AG's recreational vehicles and a supplier to renowned recreational vehicle and motorhome manufacturers.

Original BRANDRUP products are always marked with our trademarks.
As of 2024, BRANDRUP has seventeen registered brand names and six other trade names under which the products are known.

Our products are known among end customers and retailers for their exceptional durability and flawlessness, as well as for their practical functionality by BRANDRUP and the highest quality "Made in Germany."

Company

2025: BRANDRUP CAMPER & VAN EQUIPMENT celebrates its 40th anniversary.

1985: The company was founded by Robert Michael Brandrup in 1985 in Munich, Bavaria.

1986: BRANDRUP products were presented at national trade fairs.

1990: A very close collaboration with VW dealers began, developing special accessories for Volkswagen recreational vehicles. We convinced more and more VW dealers that vehicle customers also needed suitable accessories to make their campers even happier.

Presentation of the VARIOTENT® awning system at the CBR Munich/MAHAG booth (VW).

1992: Presentation of TOP-RAIL® on the VW T4 California at the CBR Munich/MAHAG booth, the first retrofit rain gutter for vehicles without a standard rain gutter.

1994 Starting in 1994, we were a regular guest exhibitor/co-exhibitor at Volkswagen AG's trade fair stands for many years, which began building a specialized recreational vehicle dealer network at that time. At the Volkswagen trade fair stands, vehicles equipped with our equipment were presented and advised on.
At the Volkswagen stand at the CMT Stuttgart, we presented, for the first time on the market, seat covers for vehicles in the original Volkswagen design and material on a VW T4 California. These covers were virtually indistinguishable from the standard seating, thus preserving the high-quality design of the vehicle interior: Second Skin® seat covers.

1998 A large number of our VW dealers also became authorized BRANDRUP dealers, enabling us to offer our end customers even better service.
Start of cooperation with the VW importer PORSCHE AUSTRIA.

2000 BRANDRUP importer agreement with the Dutch Volkswagen importer, PON/Volkswagen Campercentrum Nederland, which established the first fully specialized recreational vehicle company outside of Germany.

2001 Our success and the loyalty of our customers enabled us to expand: relocate the company headquarters from Munich City Center (Sendlinger Strasse) and consolidate all operations on our own site of approximately 24 hectares in the beautiful Bavarian Forest.

2003 Exclusive presentation of BRANDRUP accessories for the VW T5 California and Multivan at the Caravan Salon/Düsseldorf, Volkswagen AG booth, during the initial presentation of the VW T5 California.

Manufacture of some original equipment parts for HYMER AG.

2006 The accessories shop of the Volkswagen AG Commercial Vehicles Customer Center in Hanover becomes an authorized BRANDRUP dealer. Intensified cooperation with VW dealers in France and Belgium.
Development and production of accessories for Mercedes-Benz recreational vehicles.

2007 Importer agreement with Domingo Alonso SA, the Volkswagen importer for the Canary Islands, Ceuta, Melilla, and Gibraltar. Expansion of our dealer network in Spain.

2008 Reorganization of the sales structure in Switzerland: One VW dealer (E. Baschnagel AG/Windisch) remained a direct authorized dealer; the Volkswagen importer AMAG took over the supply of all other VW dealers as the BRANDRUP authorized importer for our VW equipment.

2010 Production capabilities were expanded with a computer-controlled system for the production of seat covers with documented tear seams for the side airbags of VW cab seats. All Second Skin® cab covers were voluntarily tested by us in Wolfsburg according to the specifications and supervision of Volkswagen before market launch. Our computer-controlled system guarantees that every tear seam in every slipcover is identical to the seam that passed the inspection. The data for each slipcover is stored for ten years, and the corresponding code is sewn into the back of the slipcover.

2011-2013 Instead of "contemporarily" relocating production components to low-wage countries, we bucked the "trend of the times" and expanded our own production capacity at our Bavarian site to be even better.
During development, we asked ourselves whether it was possible to achieve significantly improved sleeping comfort while significantly increasing storage space. There was a possibility: the iXTEND PAD for the VW T5 California Comfortline made it possible.

2014 Daimler AG presented the Mercedes-Benz V-Class, a new recreational vehicle, for which we developed a comprehensive range of accessories.

2015 The VW T6 California Ocean, Coast, and Beach were presented in 2015, for which we further perfected our equipment range.

2016 The Daimler subsidiary "Mercedes-Benz Schweiz AG" became the authorized importer for our Mercedes-Benz equipment in Switzerland.
The VW T6 California models and our equipment were extremely well received by customers and were in such high demand that not only vehicle production at Volkswagen but also our production was extremely busy, resulting in longer delivery times in some cases.

Demand for our equipment for Daimler recreational vehicles also increased significantly.

By mid-2016, we had doubled our production capacity. Nevertheless, we were unable to meet the rapidly increasing demand for our equipment without delivery times of sometimes 6-8 months.

In order to be able to quickly meet demand again, we decided in mid-2016 to significantly expand production capacity again.

At the end of May 2017, the new production hall at our Bavarian location was operational and equipped with machinery and equipment. The space and equipment allow us to employ over 60 people.

In 2020, Covid-19 arrived, bringing with it numerous restrictions, delivery bottlenecks, work interruptions, and individual problems for our employees. Nevertheless, our order situation was so good that we had delivery times of over 12 months in some cases.

2024 The "new California" based on the Multivan (T7) with a long overhang replaces the proven T 6.1 model.
The original BRANDRUP equipment for the new VW California Ocean/Coast/Beach models will continue to be of the highest quality "Made in Germany" and will be available from VW dealers and VW importers worldwide who are also authorized BRANDRUP dealers/importers.

2025 The initial presentation of the products for the new California models will take place at the "Swiss Caravan Salon" (October 23-27, 2025) in Bern at the AMAG Import AG booth in Hall 2, Stand E001, and at the Emil Baschnagel AG booth in Hall 2, Stand C003.

Of course, we have remained true to our company tradition of manufacturing all of our own products under fair conditions for our employees: We produce the majority at our location in Bavaria, one product line in Saxony, and a small portion in Austria.

Epilogue

A lot has changed since we started. There are hardly any "do-it-yourselfers and tinkerers" anymore because the automotive industry is developing ever-improving campers itself, and custom conversions are therefore no longer worthwhile, and in most cases, no longer necessary. With today's high purchase prices, the value retention of the vehicle is also important, which is significantly better with a "standard vehicle" than with a custom conversion tailored solely to the personal needs of the converting owner.
The advantages of production vehicles are achieved by not having customized basic equipment from the outset. Production vehicles must be usable for all possible customers. Adaptation to personal hobbies, needs, and everyday use can only be achieved with equipment specifically developed for these vehicles, helping each individual to expand their range of applications.

Therefore, BRANDRUP Camper & Van Equipment is even more important for buyers of today's production vehicles than ever before – especially when commercial rental fleets and so-called "influencers" and their needs and preferences are increasingly at the forefront of vehicle development.

Our fundamental commitment to the functionality and reliability of our products has not changed over the years. In order to be able to consistently guarantee this quality and do so under fair conditions for our employees, we continue to manufacture our own products in Germany and a small product line in Austria. This is why, as an industry pioneer, we were able to offer a three-year warranty for BRANDRUP products as early as 1985, instead of the statutory warranty of six months that was in effect at the time.

What has also not changed is that we still thoroughly test all of our products in our own field before offering them to you.

Enjoy browsing our website!

Robert Brandrup and Team