By GREG STILES
Mail Tribune

ASHLAND — Spurred by their passion for motor home travel, Larry and Joy Marshall developed a business line known as Fun & Functional Lifestyle Toys 4 Big Kids.

From portable spas to memory foam mattresses to pet strollers and rare art pieces, Toys 4 Big Kids are designed for those who have everything — including lots of money.

The Marshalls say they saw the $13 billion recreational vehicle industry as the perfect platform for their pursuit.

"There are large companies such as Camping World that sell basic utility items," says Larry Marshall, 64. "But the industry is changing. People are buying these vehicles, spending from $100,000 to over $2 million, and they are using them differently than in the past. They want to have fun with them. Our challenge was to find something we could bring to the marketplace that hadn’t been there before."

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They moved to Ashland three years ago from Malibu, Calif. While Larry Marshall ran his own firm, his wife was a special events and fundraising consultant and an executive for children’s hospitals. The couple then wanted to develop a business that appealed to their shared interests.

The Marshalls’ first project after launching ElegantMotorCoach.com — the company’s original name — was finding a Tempur-Pedic quality mattress for the motor home. They figured since they liked the memory foam, others would, too. But Tempur-Pedic didn’t think its $2,000 price point would be attractive.

The Marshalls then turned to a New York manufacturer to produce a similar quality product they sell for $999.

When a portable spa in the Hammacher Schlemmer catalogue caught their eye, they figured it would tickle the fancy of other RVers, too.

Spas2Go, produced in Florida, has been a big seller among the motor coach and yacht set.

The 250-gallon portable spa seats two to four people, sets up in 25 minutes and runs on a 110-volt power source. Its 127 micro jets shoot out water heated between 80 and 104 degrees. The spas are made of the same vinyl as river rafts and sell for $899.

Larry Marshall spent three decades recruiting executives for a marketing and public relations firm. So it was no mystery how to sell the new find: He peppered major recreational vehicle and boating magazines with promotional material and bought prominent ad space.

But that was just the beginning of the marketing campaign. The couple spent much of 2005 on the road, hitting major RV, boat and home shows around the country.

First stop was the Sports, Vacation and RV Show held each January in Quartzsite, Ariz., 100 miles east of Palm Springs, Calif. The show drew 150,000 visitors, and 50 of them bought portable spas for their future travels.

On the road, Fun & Functional Lifestyle Toys 4 Big Kids continued as a two-person show capable of handling Internet sales via wireless communications technology.

Home shows outside Atlanta and in Tampa, Fla., and a boat show in Sarasota, Fla., followed before the humidity chased the Marshalls west.

"Boaters like (Spas2Go) because traditional spas would take up valuable space," Larry Marshall says. "They can use them on the boat and marinas as well as docks around the world."

Still, he says, 80 percent of the thousand-plus buyers over the past two years use the spas at home.

The couple operates out of their home not far from Southern Oregon University and have no plans to open a storefront.

"We enjoy working from our home and working the hours we like," Marshall says. "Even though we could end up working much harder than either of us did in our former lives, this has given us an opportunity to see the country and meet people."

The Marshalls have extended their offerings to 40 products, including a series of pet strollers that give small dogs and cats all the benefits of babies and toddlers. Those sell from $99 to $299.

The company’s Web address is www.funlifestyles.com and the phone number is 1-888-488-3121.

Reach reporter Greg Stilesat 776-4463 or e-mail business@mailtribune.com.