01 October, 2026

WEBSITE & SOCIAL STATEMENT
RE: Essential Caravans & Somerton Factory

Please attribute the statement below to Essential Caravans Owner and Director, Jamie Johnson

As part of a broader business restructuring to ensure long-term sustainability and adapt to evolving market conditions, we’ve made the difficult decision to close Essential Caravans’ manufacturing plant in Somerton, Victoria, and transfer its operations to our consolidated facility in Pakenham, Victoria.

Like much of the caravan industry, we are facing challenging market conditions, and consolidating our manufacturing on one site is necessary to safeguard our business, protect skilled Australian manufacturing jobs at Pakenham, and create a sustainable path forward.

We are now in a formal consultation process with our Somerton team. We’ll be working with each person individually, including on opportunities to move to Pakenham, knowing that this won’t be the right option for everyone.

Essential Caravans will comply with its obligations under the Fair Work Act 2009. A factory closure date will be announced following the formal consultation process with staff and workplace representatives.

Existing Essential Caravan customer orders, vehicle warranties, spare parts availability, and national dealership service support remain 100% locally backed in Australia and are completely unaffected by this operational transition.

Sales Contact

For all customer enquiries, please contact:

National Sales Manager
Simon Daley
Email: sales@designrv.com.au

Media Contact

For all media enquiries, please contact:

Corporate Communications Team
Email: caravans@thrivepr.com.au

ENDS