Las Vegas, NV – CalRVDA attended the 2025 RVDA Convention & Expo, held November 10–14 at Paris Las Vegas. The Convention & Expo is the premier annual event designed to help the RV industry connect, learn, and grow by joining industry partners for an unparalleled experience.
There was strong participation this year with attendance from dealers, manufacturers, suppliers, and service providers. The Convention proved to be an invaluable opportunity for networking and education.
Key Themes & Take-Aways
- High Engagement & Optimism in the Dealer Community
- The strong attendance at the 2025 RVDA Convention & Expo reflects a healthy appetite for in-person dealer events.
- RVDA’s leadership emphasized optimism about growth in the coming year.
- The annual meeting saw leadership transitions: Bob Been (Blue Compass RV) named 2026 Chairman, among other honors awarded.
- Exhibit Hall and Vendor Activity Nearly Fully Booked
- Exhibit space was “nearly sold out,” and all vehicle-display slots were taken.
- The exhibit floor covered a broad cross-section of the industry — from traditional RV manufacturers to technology and software vendors.
- For California companies (dealers, parts suppliers, and service providers), this represented a high-visibility platform to showcase innovations, especially in mobile power, AI, and fixed operations.
- Education & Vendor Training +Plus (VTP+) Sessions Focused on Futuristic Challenges
- More than 30 VTP+ sessions were offered, covering fraud prevention, AI, information security, lithium and 12 V power solutions, tax strategies, and more.
- Significant focus was placed on AI in dealership operations: workshops such as “Adapting in a Shifting RV Market with AI” (InteractRV) and “The AI Advantage” (KENECT) were part of the agenda.
- Fixed operations (service, parts) were also well-covered. A case-study workshop examined how to boost fixed-ops profits, led by fixed operations expert Ken Barnes.
- Legal and compliance content was notable: sessions included “Super Lawyers – Preventing and Defending Litigation” and managing cybersecurity incident response.
- A dedicated RV rental track (sponsored by MBA Insurance) gave dealers insights into maximizing rental ROI.
- Networking & Dealership Relationship Building
- The convention kicked off with multiple well-attended evening networking receptions.
- Financial partners, such as Huntington Bank, leveraged the event to deepen relationships with dealers in an informal environment.
- Industry Recognition & Awards
- Several industry veterans were honored: The James B. Summers Award and the RVDA Titan Award were presented.
- These ceremonies underscored the long-term commitments within the RV dealer community and highlighted outstanding contributions — serving as both inspiration and validation to many.
Strategic Implications for California Stakeholders
- Dealership Growth & Differentiation: For California dealerships, the insights on AI, compliance, and operations can be directly applied to improve efficiency and customer experience. Implementing AI-driven tools could help address competitive pressures, especially in high-cost markets like California.
- Expansion of Rental Business: Given California’s strong tourism sector, attendees in the rental track may consider scaling their RV rental operations. The ROI guidance from the
convention could help dealers structure more profitable rental programs. - Power & Electrification Opportunities: Vendors offering lithium power systems, solar, and advanced electronics found a receptive audience. California dealers should assess partnerships in this area, especially given the state’s environmental norms and rising consumer demand for energy-efficient RVs.
- Risk Management: Given the sessions on fraud, identity theft, and cybersecurity, California businesses (already often under greater regulatory scrutiny) should evaluate strengthening their risk and compliance frameworks — both for customer-facing sales and back-office operations.
- Talent and Leadership Development: The focus on ethics, recruitment, and succession planning suggests that dealers should double down on leadership development and workforce planning, particularly in high-cost labor markets.
Risks & Challenges
- Cost of Adoption: While the convention emphasized advanced technology (AI, lithium, etc.), implementing these solutions requires capital. California dealers may face higher
implementation costs due to labor and regulatory factors. - Regulatory Complexity: As dealers expand into new services (e.g., rentals) or adopt new tech, they face potentially complex local and state regulations (zoning, emissions, consumer
protection) that may not have been fully addressed at the convention. - Competition Pressure: Increased adoption of cutting-edge practices could intensify competition among dealers, particularly in saturated markets such as Southern California.
- Scaling & Talent: Recruiting talent with the right skills (in AI, data, fixed ops) may be harder in California, where wage expectations are higher and competition for skilled labor is fierce.
Recommendations for California-Based RV Stakeholders
- Post-Convention Action Plan
- Conduct an internal debrief with leadership (sales, service, operations) to map which VTP+ lessons align best with your business.
- Prioritize pilot projects: e.g., test an AI tool, or run a lithium-upgrade demo, beginning with one branch or department.
- Partnership Development
- Reach out to relevant vendors met at the expo (AI providers, battery suppliers, compliance firms) and explore partnership or pilot agreements.
- Leverage relationships with financial institutions (such as Huntington Bank) made via the convention to support growth initiatives.
- Risk & Compliance Review
- Use learnings from compliance / cybersecurity sessions to audit current practices.
- Engage legal counsel to integrate best practices from the convention into dealership contracts, incident response plans, and customer onboarding.
- Rental Business Assessment
- Run a feasibility study for scaling or launching an RV rental arm if not already in place.
- Use the ROI models and networking insights from the rental track to structure rental offerings that align with California’s traveler demographics.
- Talent Strategy
- Identify key roles (e.g., data analysts, fixed-ops managers) that could benefit from upskilling.
- Consider sending high-potential talent to future conventions or certifications (e.g., via the Mike Molino RV Learning Center) to build internal capacity.