The leading caravan and motorhome exhibition in France, Le Salon des Véhicules de Loisirs, will be open for its 55th edition from 25 September to 3 October 2021 at the Parc des Expositions de Paris - Le Bourget.

Last year's show was cancelled due to the COVID pandemic, but in 2019, the show welcomed 102,000 visitors for its 54th edition, two-thirds of whom are loyal visitors who visit the every year.

The 2021 show is spread over four halls covering 200,000 m². The show sits alongside the Düsseldorf and Parma shows as one of most important in the leisure vehicle sector in Europe .

At the Parc des Expositions de Paris - Le Bourget, visitors can benefit from a large outdoor car park dedicated to motorhomes for visitors to the Show.

Le Salon des Véhicules de Loisirs asks each visitor to bring a HEALTH PASS, and will not offer a PCR test on site. The document presented by the visitor must include the QR CODE entitled 2D-DOC present on all COVID certificates. This obligation will apply to 12-17 year olds from September 30.

One of these three proofs is sufficient:

1. Vaccination, provided that people have a complete vaccination schedule and the time required after the final injection, namely:

2. Proof of a negative test within 48 hours.

3. The result of a positive RT-PCR test attesting to recovery from Covid-19, dating at least 11 days and less than 6 months:

It is imperative that the document presented by the visitor includes the QR CODE entitled 2D-DOC present on all COVID certificates.

MDC Camper Trailers & Offroad Caravans (MDC) recently became the first offroad camper trailer and hybrid caravan importer to obtain the voluntary RVMAP accreditation from Caravan Industry Association of Australia.  

MDC has been working with the Caravan Industry Association of Australia for over 12 months regarding its RVMAP accreditation application.

“We are incredibly excited and proud to be the first offroad camper trailer and hybrid caravan importer to display the RVMAP badge on our products” said Managing Director of MDC, Mr Vaughan Hindley. 

“As a company, MDC has always strived to provide the best possible products to market for the benefit of our customers, so achieving RVMAP accredited status really allows us to genuinely demonstrate this commitment”, he continued.  

While initially relating to those products emanating from MDC’s Brisbane Assembly Facility, both MDC and Caravan Industry Association of Australia continue to work towards accrediting units produced from assembly facilities in Melbourne, Perth and Adelaide as soon as travel restrictions associated with COVID-19 allow RV products to be inspected.

Caravan Industry Association of Australia CEO, Mr Stuart Lamont praised the team at MDC, after recently visited their Brisbane operation: “RVMAP accreditation is not handed out lightly, with ongoing evidence of a business’s commitment to supplying product which complies with relevant Australian Design Rules and other Federal construction compliance regulations required to be RVMAP accredited.”

To obtain RVMAP accreditation, an extensive review of products and processes must be completed to the satisfaction of the RVMAP team of compliance engineers, over several inspections.

The Caravan Industry Association of Australia has opened up over 3,000 audit files in the past four years inspecting against Federal compliance commitments, while providing advice to RVMAP businesses regarding their compliance obligations.

Stuart Lamont commented: “With more and more brands and RV products on the market, it is important that consumers have the best possible information available in their purchasing decision.  With the amount of work undertaken by our team of engineers in assisting RVMAP businesses, it is no wonder that they identify nearly four times as many compliance concerns in products supplied by businesses which are not part of RVMAP as opposed to RVMAP accredited businesses."

“As Australia’s largest distributor of imported RV product, it was encouraging to see the effort being taken by the team at MDC to make sure their products are supplied to the market in accordance with Australian regulations.”      

Products from MDC’s Brisbane facility will carry the RVMAP “International” badge representing to consumers that these products originate from off-shore.

MDC Camper Trailers & Offroad Caravans (MDC) is family owned and run and has been operating for 14 years.  Throughout this time, it has established eight showrooms, making MDC one of Australia’s largest distributors of campers and caravans with over 30,000 units sold nationwide. 

Recreational Vehicle Manufacturing Accreditation Program (RVMAP) is a voluntary industry accreditation programme for manufacturers and importers run by Caravan Industry Association of Australia.  The programme mirrors those Federal construction standards under the responsibility of the Vehicle Safety Standards branch of the Federal Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications. 

Caravan Industry Association of Australia regularly inspects new RV product by RVMAP businesses and provides guidance to meeting their ongoing compliance obligations.  There is a substantial and positive difference in average compliance issues identified between RVMAP businesses and those outside of RVMAP.  Businesses are licenced to use a RVMAP key on any product supplied to market under a current RVMAP licence agreement.   

The German Caravanning Trade Association (DCHV) has presented Truma with the “LUPO” supplier and partnership award for 2021 in the “Supplier” category “for providing exemplary support to Service Partners during the maintenance and service of products”.

The award was presented to Truma by Matthias Euch, member of the DCHV Committee, and Kai Dhonau, DCHV president. 

As a professional association for specialist caravan dealers with around 320 member companies across Germany, the award gains a great deal of attention throughout the sector.

According to the DCHV, Truma received the award for the following reasons: Specialist caravans dealers are facing great challenges due to the increased demand for workshops. On top of this, a shortage of specialists and workshop workstations, which cannot be simply extended at the drop off a hat, are standing in the way of capacity being increased in workshops of specialist caravan dealers. The continuous further training of service staff in order to further optimise workshop processes, as well as suppliers providing support make an important contribution towards taking the pressure off workshops.”

The following was also praised: “Thanks to the continually increasing self-service range, Truma provides online support to customers to help them solve minor issues and problems themselves, if necessary. In doing so, Truma is taking exemplary steps towards relieving the workload of the service team, who are involved in processing straightforward, frequent yet on the whole time-consuming requests. Truma Assist is another exemplary development, which Truma uses to provide online productive support to service staff in the workshops in the case of analysing faults, offering valuable tips for swiftly eliminating malfunctions. Equipped with service hotlines, a qualified Truma field service and the option of being able to submit warranty claims digitally in a simple manner, Truma is making significant contributions towards supporting specialist dealers.”

Truma was delighted to receive this award, particularly as comprehensive customer service is a cornerstone of its strategy. Every day, around 1800 Truma Partners and around 500 Service Partners from Germany and beyond ensure that technical problems while travelling are eradicated as swiftly as possible, in a friendly and professional manner, knowing that they are playing a vital role in customers having confidence in the Truma brand.

“The award confirms that we are heading in the right direction by providing campers with such a sophisticated and comprehensive service infrastructure. This also forms part of the Open Innovation, which we will be drawing on in future. Along with our community, we want to make travelling safer, with increased comfort and digital channels. This goes hand in hand with offering excellent customer service. The basis for this is the deep level of trust our customers have in us”, says Michael Peikert, Head of European Retail Management at Truma.

Truma develops and manufactures products at its site in Putzbrunn near Munich and has branches in the UK, Italy, Sweden, the USA, China and Australia. Every day, 800 Truma employees around the world offer customers reliable premium products and excellent service. Truma is a top employer and a Top 100
company – one of Germany’s most innovative small and medium-sized enterprises. (www.topjob.de and
www.top100.de).

Filippi 1971, the Italian company supplying RV furniture, started its 50th anniversary celebrations at the recent Caravan Salon in Düsseldorf - it's 18th consecutive year at the show.

In its 50 years of history, Filippi 1971 has changed a lot, especially since 2000 when it decided to enter the RV sector. It has gradually implemented a radical conversion of its production, passing from the tradition of solid wood to the use of plywood panels. This conversion involved new machinery, production processes, suppliers.

After introducing the production of melamine panels, in 2004, Filippi 1971 also included the processing of laminate panels. In 2017, an internal carpentry department was created, capable of manufacturing high quality furniture items.

The company has continually invested in machinery, but the excellent specialized staff who come from the valleys of the Bergamo area, where Filippi 1971 is based, are also important. In recent years, staff numbers has increased a lot and today 80 people work in the company.

To celebrate the company's 50th anniversary, employees will be invited to a company outing as a way to celebrate this important milestone together, but also a useful team building opportunity.

"It is exciting to work with such a well-established and close-knit team," explains Francesca Filippi, marketing manager of Filippi 1971; "and our family owes a lot to its employees and collaborators. It was not easy to enter the RV world, but in the last 20 years we have worked hard and invested a lot: today I can proudly say that our professionalism is recognized even by those who are not yet our customers. We are open to new experiences and we are talking with various European manufacturers," said Francesca Filippi.

Although 70 percent of Filippi's 1971 turnover comes from the RV sector, the company is also active in other areas, such as furniture design and the nautical sector.

Thetford took part in the Virtual Technology Days during the Caravan Salon Düsseldorf to introduce its new products and explain its latest developments to those who were unable to attend in person.

"We move from product development towards value creation, with iNDUS, smart sanitation system and our new PowerPods as great examples. We keep it cool with our updated compressor refrigerators which take another step to being more sustainable. And, we are going more and more digital, but still love to stay connected!" says Norbert van Noesel, Thetford marketing manager.

Thetford's presentation can be viewed here:

The biggest caravan and motorhome show in Italy, the Salone del Camper, opens in Parma on Saturday 11th September and runs until Sunday 19th September 2021.

There are 200 confirmed exhibitors from 15 countries occupying 150,000 square meters of space over five pavilions, each with different themes: Caravan and Camper, where the most important European companies in the sector are present; Vehicle Accessories and complements to make your holiday even more comfortable; Shopping, with products for outdoor life and for small spaces; Percorsi e mete(Routes and destinations), tourism promotion section to learn about ideal places and destinations for tourism in freedom.

The event is organized by Fiere di Parma and the APC – Caravan and Camper Manufacturers Association and has a vast range of recreational vehicles for visitors to see, ranging from those who go on adventurous trips looking for an agile and practical motorhome will find 210 models of semi-integrated models, to interesting coachbuilt motorhomes for families who want more space on board. For long-term and demanding campers, there are over 100 models of integrated vehicles on show, and campervan fans will have 205 models to see from the most prestigious brands.

Other news and events for this year's show include: “Cucinare in Camper” (Cooking in the motorhome) to “Camper Facile: a scuola di camper” (Easy camper: a motorhome school). Without forgetting stage photography, book presentations, the Outdoor & bike area, the “Amici a 4 zampe” (4-legged friends) area, the Giardini del Salone (Salone gardens) and Kinderheim, the tent in the woods, a special space for childcare and entertainment.

This year the Salone del Camper has also expanded its offer with Percorsi e mete: not only motorhomes and accessories, but also travel ideas. Experiential itineraries, like the Friuli-Venezia Giulia Wine and Flavours Route or the thousand shades of the Marche region, from the sea to the mountains, passing through the ancient villages and cities of art, without forgetting the local products and excellent wines.

Antonio Cellie, CEO of Fiere di Parma commented. “All the major brands are present with the latest news in the sector: more than 600 models to meet the expectations of enthusiasts, who have been meeting every year since 2010 at the Salone del Camper. The exhibition is aimed at those who have made the motorhome a philosophy of life, but also looks carefully at a new frontier of travellers, who increasingly seek contact with nature and want to move freely. The future of tourism is more and more outdoor: passions join traditional itineraries, so here is the combination of motorhome and bike and the search for a new way of enjoying free time. The Salone del Camper at Fiere di Parma is ready, with a complete exhibition and initiatives always in line with new trends”.

The high number of the major manufacturers at the Salone del Camper is an indication that the sector is expanding. The growing passion for motorhome travel is reflected in the data, which is constantly growing. “The trend in registrations in the first half of 2021 in Italy,” underlines Simone Niccolai, president of the APC, “was extremely positive: +38.36% over the same period of the previous year, with over 4,800 new registrations. The Italian production of motorhomes has surpassed all previous production records and [our country, ed] confirms itself as the third manufacturer of motorhomes in Europe, after Germany and France: in the first half of the year, the increase in the production of motorhomes in Italy it was 75.16% compared to the first half of 2020. In addition to the demand from the domestic market, the sector is driven by tradition, also and above all by exports. In Europe, in fact, in the first 4 months of the year, the average increase in registrations of motorhomes and caravans was as much as 45.7%, with Germany largely in the lead for the number of new registrations”.

The editorial staff of Aboutcamp BtoB could not miss this event and will be in Parma in the first days of the event. If you want to meet them, send a message to [email protected].

Following a rapid increase in local and national COVID cases in North America, the annual Dealer Open House in Elkhart, Indiana, scheduled for the week of Sept. 26 2021 has been cancelled.

In a joint release, Forest River Inc. and THOR Industries stated that the companies’ top priority is the health and safety of valued industry partners, team members, and the larger Elkhart community. It was felt that the safety mandates required to help mitigate risks would distract from the positive experience industry partners expect.  

The statement continued, “the cancellation of Open House is the right thing to do in order to protect the health of all stakeholders, officials said, while also helping alleviate disruption to production at a time when delivering new RVs is critical to the industry’s continued success. Forest River and THOR continue to be focused on delivering quality products to their respective dealer partners.”

“After reviewing all of the factors, we determined it was in everyone’s’ best interest and the safest, most responsible course of action to cancel the Expo this year,” stated Pete Liegl, CEO of Forest River Inc. “The community and dealers always welcome this event, but with COVID rates increasing across the country, we do not want to put our dealers, employees, or the community at any additional risk.” 

“With a heavy heart, we’re cancelling this year’s dealer event,” shared Bob Martin, THOR President and CEO. “Our companies remain steadfast on delivering exceptional RVs to our dealer partners. While we are eager to share the exciting innovation we’ve been developing across our brands, we are committed to protecting the health and safety of our trusted partners, team members, and community.”

Winnebago Industries also released a statement that their primary focus continues to be the health and safety of team members, dealers, and the communities they serve.

“Given recent developments, Winnebago Industries will not be hosting traditional Dealer Open House activities in Elkhart, Indiana in September. We firmly believe this decision, made in consultation with our Winnebago, Grand Design RV, and Newmar brand businesses is the appropriate course of action at this time. Each of our RV companies will continue to work closely with our dealers to ensure they have access to the latest products, updates and information as well as sales and service support,” the statement read.  

Airxcel has promoted Chris Gorski to the position of Director of Marketing responsible for marketing and advertising across Airxcel’s 11 RV specific brands and will continue to oversee the expansion of Airxcel’s marketing team. Mr. Gorski joined Airxcel in the role of brand and marketing manager in March of 2020.

“Chris’s marketing experience from his former roles at Airxcel and outside our company make him uniquely suited to tackle the challenges of a multi-brand marketing team,” Piar Adams, VP of Marketing and Aftermarket Sales said. “His expertise in analytical marketing and developing scalable marketing tools will help drive our marketing team and our marketing strategy in dynamic ways.”

Prior to joining Airxcel, Mr. Gorski was in sales and marketing for a large Class B upfitter. His marketing experience includes leadership roles in marketing business processes, product commercialization and brand management for a range of industries. He holds an MBA in marketing and finance from the WE Simon School at the University of Rochester, NY.

AL-KO Vehicle Technology did a presentation on Green Caravanning at the new 'Virtual Technology Days' concept created by the Caravan Salon Dusseldorf this year to allow those who could not attend the show the opportunity to get the latest news in the Technology and Components section.

The presentation from AL-KO can be viewed via the following link: