Tourism manufacturer pulls plug in Oz, powers up in Hamilton
Tuesday, 9 December 2025
A major global tourism operator is ditching production in Australia and jumping across the Tasman to Hamilton.
Tourism Holdings Limited have announced they are closing its manufacturing factory in Brisbane effective December 19 and are transitioning all production to Action Manufacturing in Hamilton, New Zealand.
Thl are listed on the NZX and ASX and are the largest commercial RV rental operator in the world.
The closure is expected to lead to a reduction of 110 frontline and support roles in Australia.
Thl chief executive officer Grant Webster said in a statement he acknowledged the move’s effect on the company’s Brisbane manufacturing crew.
“While a proportion of frontline role reductions will be offset in New Zealand during 2026 as thl ramps up production, the majority of support roles will not be duplicated and will instead leverage existing roles already in place in New Zealand.
“In addition, thl expects to exit the lease on the Brisbane factory at some point in 2026. Together, these changes are expected to deliver substantial and ongoing overhead cost savings.
“We remain committed to the Australian market, anchored by an RV rental business that continues to have a strong forward order book.”
Webster said the move was reflective of “the sustained downturn in the broader Australian RV manufacturing industry, the recent consolidation of thl’s dealership footprint as part of the Australian Retail strategic initiative, and the fact that thl has completed a significant part of its Australasian fleet regrowth programme.
“Over the past two financial years, fleet numbers across Australasia have grown by 45% as we have responded to recovering international tourism and rental demand. Maintaining manufacturing operations in both countries enabled thl to achieve that level of recovery in a short timeframe.”
Shifting production to New Zealand would allow thl to reduce costs and maintain strong overhead leverage while anticipating lower manufacturing volumes across the Tasman, he said.
He added thl said it was one of many broader strategic actions they were taking during what they saw as a “transition year” into the 2027 financial year.