Caravan body spurs industry development

We know the Australian RV manufacturing industry is experiencing a mini-boom, judging by data supplied by the RVMAA. But how much does the industry actually contribute to the economy as a whole?

That’s the question a peak industry body is trying to answer, at least in regards to the state of Victoria, where an estimated 80 per cent of all Aussie caravans are manufactured.

The Caravan Trade & Industries Association of Victoria (CTIAV) is developing an industry plan for the future growth of the recreational vehicle sector in Victoria, with the support of a $45,000 grant from the Victorian Government.

CTIAV CEO Robert Lucas says the Caravan Industry Blueprint project would help quantify recent growth in the Victorian RV industry, which has been a “good news story” compared to some other manufacturing sectors which are struggling.

“The estimated total annual revenue of our caravan industry is $2.4 billion in Victoria, the estimated number of people employed is 6000 plus, the estimated number of enterprises and industry is 700-plus (and the) total wages in the Victorian economy is $250 million plus,” claims Lucas.

“So when we stack up against some of the other industry sectors we’re a pretty big sized industry,” he says.

“We continue to grow (because) we’re in the lifestyle industry – (whether people) upgrade, buy new, downgrade... there are all sorts of opportunities, and the great thing about that is we have the breadth of product that will meet their needs.”

Highlighting the impressive size and scale of the industry was the recent Victorian Caravan, Camping & Touring Supershow, which had more than 400 exhibitors in total including 140 RV manufacturers, spread over 10 acres at the Caulfield Racecourse venue.

This year the six-day show attracted 64,355 through the gates, a seven per cent rise on last year. Lucas says it’s a far cry from the early days of the Victorian show, which the CTIAV has been organising for the past 58 years.

“1952 was our very first show. History tells us it was held at St Kilda Rd just over the bridge where now the Arts Centre is; the world’s changed a little bit,” recalls Lucas.

“We then moved on to the Royal Exhibition Buildings... we were there for quite a long time, but once again space provided a challenge to us and we moved to the Melbourne Exhibition Centre, where we were up until 2000. After that we came to Caulfield and we’ve been here ever since.”

As now one of Australia’s biggest RV shows, the Victorian Supershow is booked out months in advance with late entries including new brand Vantage missing out on a spot this year due to limited space.

“It’s very hard to imagine how big this show is now to where we actually started, its growth has been sensational,” says Lucas.

Lucas says the findings of the Caravan Industry Blueprint including a five-year action plan will be announced in June by the Victorian Minister for Manufacturing, Exports and Trade, Richard Dalla-Riva.

He says the action plan will include a range of initiatives including “creating a training culture in the industry and making sure we have a whole range of things around regulations...”