Dan Cartwright has over 12 years of experience in the caravan and motorhome industry. He is a judge for a number of prestigious leisure vehicle awards and regularly heads off in his motorhome with his family. Every week, Dan shares his insights with the community. Here’s what he has to say this week.
Last night, Bailey of Bristol brought together many interested parties from the world of caravanning and motorhoming to launch three new models of leisure vehicle. The live launch of the 2025 Bailey range marked a significant step forward in the way that manufacturers present their products to the public.
Bailey’s two new luxury caravan ranges – the 7.6-foot-wide Unicorn and the eight-foot-wide Alicanto – as well as the updated version of the Adamo motorhome were shown for the first time. They did this through a direct digital live launch where anyone could ask questions.
It’s not the first time that Bailey have done this and they’re not the only manufacturer launching products in this way, but it demonstrated how well the format can work. It’s so much better than how it used to be, with launches having changed significantly over the last ten years.
A forward-thinking move
In the interests of full disclosure, it’s worth noting that we helped with the production, filming and broadcasting of the launch, so we’re slightly biased. But we think that this way of launching caravans directly to the consumer, allowing everybody to see it at the same time, feels very forward-thinking for what is often considered an old-fashioned industry.
As well as showing the audience the leisure vehicles, this format allows manufacturers to open the floor to comments, respond to them and give customers a much better feel for the products. All of this happens in real time and cuts out the intermediaries – the dealers and the journalists – who were previously tasked with relaying the information.
A departure from past launches
To understand how different this is to how caravans were launched in the past, we need to take a step back in time. Unfortunately, I’m old enough to recall the old process first hand. What would happen ten years ago is that the British and some of the European manufacturers would have a one or two-day event in the summer.
This occasion would be strictly for the trade dealers and retailers and press. A huge amount of money would be spent hiring out an entire hotel, where they’d bring their new ranges and present them to the assembled guests, along with a sales pitch. We’d then be given a very expensive luncheon where the wine flowed and told the information we’d just learned would be strictly embargoed for around two months.
A particular low point in my caravan career was attending a product launch where a manufacturer’s entire team of directors stood up and sang ‘Always Look on the Bright Side of Life’. Luckily, it seems that those days are now in the past.
Launching directly to the publicInstead of one or two pages covering the new ranges in a publication, or an article mentioning the highlights, manufacturers can do it themselves. They can demonstrate the different ranges and multiple layouts, while going into a lot more detail about the various features.
This leaves them free to focus on what they do best, which is making leisure vehicles. The caravan industry isn’t small and getting ahead of the curve in terms of direct-to-consumer communications is absolutely vital. Striking up a conversation with customers is what’s going to drive the industry forward.
Within 24 hours of the Bailey Live Launch, some 4,000 people had seen the footage and it’s full of comments from people trying to find out more. That allows Bailey to answer the most pressing questions that they hadn’t preempted. For example, one audience member asked how much the Adamo can tow, which was answered there and then.
As well as finding out more about the products, potential purchasers can also discover more behind the scenes information on the company. This includes both the design and testing processes, which are instrumental in bringing new models to market. It’s a more transparent way to address the public without relying on journalists.
