Ray Citte RV celebrates 80 years in business with ribbon cutting – Standard-Examiner

Photo supplied, Chad Citte

Ray Citte at one of his original car dealerships in Ogden. Citte opened his first dealership in 1946.
ROY — Ray Citte’s name has been on at least one vehicle dealer’s sign in the Ogden area since 1946.
On Wednesday, employees of Ray Citte RV, members of the Ogden-Weber Chamber of Commerce and local officials took time to celebrate 80 years of a business that has survived evolution, dealership moves, oil crises and recessions while remaining firmly in the hands of the Citte family with a ribbon-cutting ceremony.
Addressing a large crowd, the late Ray Citte’s son Neil Citte said that selling RVs was a natural for his father.
“My dad was an outdoorsman — he liked to take the trailer and go up into the mountains and he liked to hunt,” Neil Citte said. “So when he had an opportunity to sell motorhomes and possibly get in the trailer business, he jumped into it feet-first.”
He told the Standard-Examiner that his father arrived in the Ogden area in 1942. Having originally worked at Defense Depot Ogden, Ray Citte eventually started a used car lot in Ogden, at one point expanding to up to three locations.
Photo supplied, Chad Citte

An undated photo of Ray Citte RV at its current location in Roy along Interstate 15.
During the ribbon cutting, Trent Citte, grandson of Ray and current general manager of Ray Citte RV, said the business is about much more than just selling recreation vehicles.
“This dealership has been part of many families’ vacations, retirements, hunting trips, camping traditions and memories people keep for a lifetime,” he said. “I’m grateful for my grandfather and my father building something worth continuing.”
Following the ceremony, Trent Citte told the Standard-Examiner that RVs actually factored into the business well before transitioning to selling them full-time.
“When my grandpa started the business, right off the get-go, his dad was in the back of the dealership and he would build motorhomes,” Trent Citte said. “He built them out of old semitrucks, would put a box on the back of them and turn them into RVs. Then in the late-’60s, we started taking on trailers.”
Neil Citte, who took over the dealership for his father and retired five years ago, said one of the biggest differences transitioning from a car dealership that sold some RVs to full-time RV sales is the competition.
Rob Nielsen, Standard-Examiner

Trent Citte and his father Neil Citte cut a ribbon celebrating the 80th anniversary of Ray Citte RV in the dealership’s showroom on Wednesday, May 13, 2026.
“We’re not competing with six or seven or 10 car dealers; we’re competing with one or two dealers in the area,” he said. “We all get along. There’s enough market for all of us. It’s been successful for all of that time. Even our competitors are the best and we have a good relationship with everybody.”
Ray Citte RV officially moved into its current location just off of I-15 in Roy in 2000. Ray Citte passed away in 2008.
Trent Citte noted that, like many businesses that have been around for years, they’ve had their share of ups and downs.
“We got in the RV business 2004-2005 and got out of the car business,” he said. “It’s 2008 everybody talks about — 2008 was our best year — but in the ’70s (Neil) went through the energy crunch and in 2009, I don’t know all the reasons, those were rough times. … There’s good times. There’s bad times, too, but it’s been a blessing in disguise overall.”
Neil Citte said with the dealership celebrating its 80th year of operation, the next couple of generations are aiming to keep it in business for another 80 years.
“I’m going to support these boys as long as they want to do it,” he said. “(Trent’s) got boys that might want to venture out into the RV business as well. Time will tell.”

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