Tourism Holdings to sell some Australian assets
Monday, 8 September 2025
NZX-listed Tourism Holding is looking to sell two of its Australian campervan dealerships in the wake of a tough financial year which saw it report a significant loss.
Just two weeks ago, the campervan giant announced a net loss of $25.8m after tax over the year to June 30, a big drop from its $39.4m profit for the previous financial year.
It said strategic reviews of its underperforming divisions, which included North America, UK and Ireland, and Australian retail sales and Australian manufacturing were underway.
The Australian division’s returns were impacted by losses in the retail sales division, which was a proportionally larger part of the division compared to other regions, it noted.
Now, it has announced it plans to sell its standalone Sydney RV Super Centre and Kratzmann RV Super Centre dealerships, located in Sydney and Brisbane, in an NZX update on Monday,
The move would build on actions undertaken over recent weeks that aimed to improve the Australian retail sales division, it said.
Those actions included rationalising the product portfolio by exiting low-margin models, consolidating the brand structure, and accelerating efforts to reduce inventory levels.
Tourism Holdings chief executive Grant Webster said the actions reflected the company’s commitment to delivering on the four strategic initiatives it announced last month.
Exiting the Sydney RV and Kratzmann dealerships would reduce overheads and limit exposure to the broader campervan sales market, he said.
But the company would still maintain a sales presence in Sydney and Brisbane by leveraging shared overheads with its campervan rental operations.
“Although overall sales volumes will decrease, we will have an increased focus on ex-fleet sales where Tourism Holdings has historically achieved higher margins and holds greater competitive advantages.”
The company was also reviewing the organisational structure of the Australian retail sales division to maintain alignment with the division’s revised footprint and focus.
Webster said the rationalisation of locations, products, brands and organisational structure, alongside further reductions in inventory, was expected to significantly improve the divisional performance over the next financial year.
“These changes create a more streamlined and capital-efficient business for the years ahead, supporting better Returns on Funds Employed.”
Tourism Holdings would be undertaking a streamlined asset sale process for the two dealerships to explore potential interest, he said.
World’s largest campervan operator
The sale of the two dealerships would still leave Tourism Holdings as owner of retail dealerships around Australia including Sydney RV, George Day Caravans & Motorhomes in Perth, Camperagent in Adelaide, and a range of Apollo RV Sales centres.
Tourism Holdings became the world’s largest commercial campervan rental operator in 2022 after acquiring its largest rival Australia’s Apollo Tourism & Leisure.
In New Zealand and Australia it owns the Maui, Britz, Apollo, Mighty, Hippie, and Cheapa Campa rental brands, and it also owns rental brands in North America and the UK and Ireland.
It is involved in manufacturing and travel technology, and operates several tourism businesses in New Zealand, including Waitomo Glowworm Caves and Kiwi Experience.
The company has been navigating challenging conditions of late, with vehicle sales down, US President Donald Trump’s tariffs causing problems, and a decline in US tourism.
But when announcing the company’s results in August, Webster said he was confident it would meet its goal to exceed $100m in annualised net profit over the next three to four years.
Tourism Holdings recently rejected a takeover bid for the company by Australian industry players as “opportunistic and undervalued”.