Statistical Survey

Statistical Survey (Statistical Surveys, Inc., SSI) is a market research company based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, that provides retail registration and market share data for the marine, RV, powersports, trailer, and manufactured housing industries in the United States and Canada^[1].

Founded in 1958, the company describes itself as the premier provider of registration data in its covered industries, drawing on what it calls the largest source of DMV data across the USA and Canada. SSI has been a subsidiary of marketplace company Trader Interactive since January 2021^[1][2].

What It Does

SSI compiles vehicle and unit registration records into syndicated datasets tracking retail sales, market share, product mix, owner demographics, and geographic distribution for manufacturers, dealers, and suppliers of recreational and lifestyle vehicles^[1].

The firm positions its data as both historical and real-time, supporting business strategy, market opportunity identification, and competitive analysis across its five covered verticals^[1].

Products And Solutions

Offerings highlighted by the company include market landscape reports showing current performance and trends, geographic concentration analyses identifying areas with high sold-unit density and penetration gaps, Competitor Lot Analysis revealing which units are selling on rival dealership lots (available in manufactured housing, powersports, new RV, and trailer segments), and In-Market Buyer Insights for targeting consumers actively shopping^[1].

Buyers And Use Cases

Customers are industry participants — OEMs, dealers, lenders, media companies, and analysts — in the marine, RV, powersports, trailer, and manufactured housing sectors who use registration data for market share benchmarking, sales planning, and marketing strategy^[1]. Industry press regularly cites SSI's monthly and annual retail registration figures as de facto measures of RV industry activity^[2].

Data And Methodology

The company's core asset is state DMV registration data aggregated across all U.S. states and Canadian provinces. SSI markets its output on completeness, accuracy, speed of delivery, and service, promising "the most complete retail market share data available"^[1].

History

Statistical Surveys was founded in 1958 and operated for more than six decades as an independent provider before being acquired by Trader Interactive, a Norfolk, Virginia-based marketplace and dealer services company whose brands include RV Trader, Cycle Trader, and Boatmart; the deal was announced January 5, 2021^[2][3]. Following the acquisition, SSI has continued to publish registration statistics from its Grand Rapids headquarters as a Trader Interactive subsidiary^[3].

Landscape

SSI occupies a specialized corner of the alternative data world comparable to Eilers & Krejcik Gaming in gaming: a vertical-specific proprietary dataset rather than a generalist research or expert platform. Its government-sourced registration data gives it a quasi-official role in measuring retail demand for recreational vehicles, boats, powersports equipment, trailers, and manufactured homes^[1].