Shane Devenish Named CRVA Executive Director
Shane Devenish has been appointed as Executive Director at the Canadian Recreational Vehicle Association (CRVA).
Devenish brings more than 25 years of industry experience to his new position, most recently as Vice–President, National Relationship Manager, North America for TCF Inventory Finance. Devenish has worked closely with both RV manufacturers and dealers throughout his career, including senior positions at TCF, Textron Financial and GE Commercial Distribution Finance. He has served on the CRVA board since 1990, most recently in the role of Vice-President.
Devenish becomes CRVA’s fourth Executive Director, following Don Mockford, who held the position for 20 years before retiring in 2006; Brad Clark, previously Ontario’s minister of transport and minister of labor, who held the role from 2006 to 2010; and Larry Boyd, who headed CRVA from 2010 to 2014.
“The CRVA is delighted to have Shane join our team,” said CRVA President, Roger Faulkner. “With Shane’s help, CRVA will be positioned to move forward in a totally new direction. We are confident that Shane’s past relationships within the RV Industry will bring a range of innovative and fresh new ideas to the table.” Faulkner noted that as CRVA Executive Director, Devenish will be working closely with a variety of industry stakeholders, such as Chris Mahony at Go RVing Canada; Eleonore Hamm, President of the Recreational Vehicles Dealers Association of Canada and Maryse Catellier from the Canadian Campground Recreational Vehicle Council.
The appointment comes at a time when business analysts say the needs of Canadian manufacturers have changed, as companies shift from surviving the recession to ramping up for long-term growth. “The Recreational Vehicle Industry in Canada obviously felt the impact of the recession and went through a subsequent period of attrition and consolidation,” says Devenish. “But that was then, and the industry is now focused on building strong growth for long-term, sustainable profits. There’s an opportunity for the CRVA, in working closely with the RVDA, Go RVing and the Canadian Campgrounds along with our counterpart RVIA in the United States, to help cultivate that growth, whether that’s through advocacy and government relations activities, or through working cooperatively with the other industry stakeholders and trade associations to identify new opportunities.
“I admire the gentlemen who have held this office before me, and I know I have big shoes to fill,” Devenish adds. “This is an exceptional and exciting opportunity to take on the responsibility for cultivating CRVA’s presence with a mandate that doesn’t really have any fences around it. I’ve enjoyed working in the RV industry for truthfully my entire career, and the opportunity to work with the people I know so well, in an industry that I love, was just too good to pass up.”
